Information agency Credinform represents a ranking of multi-gaming eSports companies in term of earnings for 2018.

Using the Information and Analytical System Globas, the experts of the Agency have analyzed TOP-5 eSports companies of Russia and CIS. The research includes prize pool won by teams at the international championships, their positions in global rankings, primary source of revenue, and eSports market size.

Information about eSports companies of the world will be available in the forthcoming ranking “TOP-5 global multi-gaming eSports companies by earnings for 2018”.

ESports is a form of competition sports using video games. By the Order of the Ministry of sport from April 29, 2016, eSports was recognized as a real sport. In the register, it is referred to as “computer sport”.

The world’s most popular games for championship are first-person shooter¹ Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) and multiplayer online battle arena Dota 2; both were developed by Valve Corporation. The ranking includes teams having players by both games.

Counter-Strike gameplay is a 30-rounds match between two teams of five players: terrorists and counter-terrorists. After 15 rounds played, the roles change. A team wins by being the first to win 16 rounds. If after 30 rounds the winner is not determined, the game goes into overtime².

Dota 2 is played in matches between two teams of five players of the light or dark side. Each of the ten players controls one hero. The ultimate goal of each match is to occupy and defend their own separate base. A team wins by being the first to destroy the other team's "Ancient", a large structure located within their base.

Popularization of eSports is growing every year. 15 years ago, it was impossible to imagine that live broadcasts of large-scale championships will be held on, players will be classified as professionals receiving salaries, and a whole stadium will gather for the finals of various tournaments. The possibility of including computer sports in the Olympic program is already being discussed.

Over the past 15 years, the size of eSports market and its prize pool has increased many times. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, the global eSports market has almost reached 50 billion RUB, and by 2023 it will exceed 115 billion RUB. In Russia, the market volume in 2018 is estimated at 1,2 billion RUB, and by 2023 it should exceed 2 billion RUB. Such high indicators allow Russia to be ranked the 9th by the eSports market size in the global ranking. In addition to the rapid growth in revenue, there is a massive increase in audience. In 2018, over 22 million people in RF watched eSports broadcasts. This is the third indicator in the world, and the total eSports audience is already over 400 million people.

The International 2019³, the grand final of the most important and significant event on Dota 2, was watched by 2 million people on Twitch⁴ streaming platform. The second most popular event was the semifinal of the mentioned championship with 1,6 million viewers.

The biggest prize pool in the tournament was recorded for The International 2019, and amounted to 2,2 billion RUB, while the winner received more than 966 million RUB. By comparison, the prize pool at the most significant CS: GO tournament in 2019 amounted to only 64 million RUB.

Sponsorship contracts account for 36% of the revenue structure of eSports companies. For example, title partnership may cost 64 million RUB, 25 million RUB amount for general partnership, and standard sponsorship package will increase the organization’s income by 12 million RUB. Selling media rights brings 21% of annual revenue, 18% of total revenue comes from streaming platforms (Twitch, YouTube), 17% comes from in-game purchases by users, and 8% comes from tournaments prize. (Picture 1).

Picture 1. The revenue structure of the eSports companies

Over 90% of the prize pool is divided between the players, and the remaining 10% is received by the organization.

The salaries of e-sportsmen vary from 30 thousand RUB to 1,7 million RUB per month. Players whose teams are in the Top-30 of the global ranking receive on average 640 thousand RUB per month. Weaker and less popular teams pay cybersportsmen on average 150-250 thousand RUB. Hence, wages directly depend on the success of the team.

Table 1. Revenues, prize pool, positions in the global ratings of Top-5 eSports multi-gaming organizations playing for the CIS

Rank	Team	2018 revenue, million RUB	Prize pool of all time, million RUB	Position in CS: GO global ranking	Position in Dota 2 global ranking
1	Virtus.Pro (Russia)	1 117,7	879,7	22	10
2	Natus Vincere (Ukraine)	320,0	642,1	10	19
3	Gambit Esports (Russia)	96,0	158,6	32	7
4	Winstrike (Russia)	87,2	32,9	69	34
5	Vega Squadron (Russia)	22,0	65,7	Did not participate in the tournament for the last 3 months	Did not participate in the tournament for the last 3 months
Outside the ranking
Avangar (Kazakhstan)		Data not disclosed	52,9	6	No Dota 2 team

Source: Information and Analytical System Globas  by Credinform; data from the Internet sources Forbes, HLTV, esportsearnings, and CQ. Revenue and prize pool converted to rubles at the dollar exchange rate on November 5, 2019.

The first place of the ranking is taken by Virtus.Pro (VP) having the highest revenue for 2018 among all organizations from the CIS (1117,7 million RUB). Virtus.Pro is a Russian eSports project founded in November 2003. The “VP” tag is one of the most titled and oldest in Russia. The team has many victories at the World Championships and other prestigious tournaments. The organization began its activities with Counter-Strike, and then Dota team appeared. The total prize pool won over the entire history of the project is 879,7 million RUB.

Initially, the organization consisted only of mainly Russian players. However, from 2014 CS: GO team was consisted of gamers from Poland alone. It was in their era that the golden time came for the organization. Nevertheless, since the end of 2018, the team did not achieve serious successes and fell from the top five to the 22nd position in the global rating.

Virtus.Pro has never won The International Dota 2 Championships. Three times the team took 5-6th place, and it is their best result for today. However, the organization owns one of the transfer records. In September 2019, after an unsuccessful performance at The International 2019, one of the best young Dota 2 world players, Roman “Ramzes” Kushnarev, left the team. He joined Evil Geniuses from America. In his 20s, the Roman Kushnarev tops the Forbes ranking of the most powerful eSports players. According to Cyber.Sports, the amount of transfer was 19,2 million RUB including bonuses.

The organization was previously owned by MAIL.RU LLC, belonging to the Russian businessperson Alisher Usmanov. Current ultimate beneficiary is ESforce Holding Limited, registered in Cyprus. In 2015, the holding invested 6,4 billion RUB in the development of eSports. Thanks to Mr. Usmanov and his partners, eSports in Russia got a powerful impetus for the development. In 2018, JSC Megafon became the general partner of Virtus.Pro.

The second in the ranking is the Ukrainian eSports multi-gaming organization Natus Vincere (Na’Vi). In translation from Latin, the name of the organization is “born to win”. In 2018, its revenue reached 320 million RUB. In 2019, the leadership of Natus Vincere plans to increase revenue to 480 million RUB. The organization was formed in 2009. The well-known philanthropist Murat Zhumashevich was engaged in financial support of the team. By agreement, he stopped financing the project since 2011, and the organization switched to self-sufficiency. The amount of prize pool won reached 642,1 million RUB.

Counter-Strike was the first cyber-discipline of the organization. Immediately after creating, Na’Vi won 3 World Championships in a row. “Born to win” is one of the most titled CS: GO team. The best player in the world, Alexander "s1mple" Kostylev, plays for the team. According to Forbes, he ranks the 2nd among the most influential people in eSports. Kostylev is both the best and expensive e-sportsman in the world. His cost today exceeds 64 million rubles. The CS: GO Na’Vi team is ranked 10th in the global ranking. Until recently, they were the Top-2 of the world, but after the completion of the career of team captain Daniil “Zeus” Teslenko (8th place among the most influential people in eSports), the team’s results deteriorated. Teslenko was replaced by a young and promising player from Winstrike organization - Kirill "Boombl4" Mikhailov. He became the most expensive transfer made in Counter-Strike in the post-Soviet space. Details of the transaction were not disclosed, but the experts estimate its value in the range of 16-22 million rubles.

As in Counter-Strike, Natus Vincere has made significant strides in Dota. In 2011, the team won The International with a prize pool of 102,4 million RUB, and then twice stopped a step from the first place. In addition, the team achieved significant victories in other international tournaments. It is these five players that are considered the best in the history of the organization. One of the most famous e-sportsmen in the world, Danil “Dendi” Ishutin (12th place among the most influential persons in eSports) played for the team. However, later the results worsened and the team was dismissed. The organization could not repeat the successes of 2011-2015, and today the team is 19th in the Dota 2 global ranking.

In terms of revenue, Gambit Esports are the third in the ranking (96 million RUB). The multi-gaming organization Gambit was formed in 2013. Despite the fact that the team plays for Russia, the organization is based in the UK. Counter-Strike and Dota 2 teams have appeared only in 2016 and 2017. However, this fact did not prevent the organization from earning 158,6 million prize money in three years.

The greatest success in CS: GO was achieved in 2017, when the team won the World Cup and a number of other serious tournaments. Amid success, the team had a new owner. In 2018, MTS JSC bought the organization from private owners for 220 million RUB. The players were offered long-term contracts, but they could not save the champion team: the coach and captain left the team for the reasons not connected with sport, and the replacement could not be found. A series of chaotic changes forced two more players to leave the team. Soon, MTS JSC decided to dismiss the old squad and create a young and ambitious team called Gambit-youngsters.

The team did not achieve serious victories in Dota 2, and did not participate in The International. It is noteworthy that the team is the 7th in the global ranking. Thanks to the proven strategy and perseverance in 2019, Gambit was able to take 1-2 places in prestigious tournaments, which allowed the organization to rise so high in the ranking.

Four eSports organizations in Russia are in fourth and fifth places in terms of revenue - Winstrike (87,2 million RUB) and Vega Squadron (Vega) (22,0 million RUB). Total amount of their revenue is only one third of the revenue of the Ukrainian Natus Vincere. It should be noticed that the main strategy of Winstrike and Vega is to find skilled players. They help future young players reach their potential, overcome psychological problems, teach teamwork, foster champion spirit and much more. The key task of the tournament for such teams is the highest possibly climbing the tournament bracket. The brighter is the team, the greater is the chance of being noticed by stronger teams for the further sale of their players. Winstrike team took this opportunity by selling their young star to Na’Vi.

Avangar is outside the ranking. The organization does not disclose the amount of revenue, but Counter-Strike team won almost 53 million RUB of prize pool in two years. The team from Kazakhstan is a vivid example of perseverance and work. Thanks to a well-built strategy and clear tasks from the leadership, the young players participated in CS: GO World Cup finals and won a number of major tournaments. Under the general decline in the game tone of Na’Vi team, Avangar team is ranked the 6th in the global ranking.

The results of the ranking showed that the eSports market is growing every year in terms of revenue, prize pool and audience. A growing number of people are becoming interested in the results of matches, and the number of fans is growing. The trend emerging in the world of computer sports demonstrates that in the near future, eSports will become more popular than football, basketball, hockey, etc. Today, in terms of entertainment and emotional component, it is not inferior to traditional sports, and even surpasses it in some points.

By Resolution of the RF Government N1216 of September 20, 2019, the amendments to the fire prevention rules were made.

These amendments are mainly concern the buildings wherein trading companies, medical, cultural and educational institutions are based. Cinema audience, employees, clients and visitors of the mentioned facilities have to be informed about fire prevention rules.

Smoking areas have to be designated on the territories of facilities connected with sale, extraction, processing and storage of flammable and combustible liquids, and combustible gas, as well as on the territory of facilities producing all types of explosives.

Medical institutions are permitted to set up workshops and storage facilities in the basements and semi-basements, in case they are available in the building’s project.

Amendments are also related to:

• directors of organizations, in part of maintaining the fire protection objects and emergency exits, including during mass-attendance events;
• owners of land and individual dwellings;
• territories of settlements, urban districts and gardening;
• maintenance of electrical and ventilation equipment, gas appliances, elevators, heating systems, etc.

In total, the rules contain over 500 regulatory requirements.

Implementation of the fire prevention rules are mandatory to all state bodies, organizations, farms, institutions, legal entities and natural persons, citizens of the Russian Federation and foreign states, and stateless persons.

According to the Art. 20.4 of the Administrative Code, a fine from 150 thousand RUB to 200 thousand RUB is imposed on legal entities violated the fire prevention rules.