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Interview with VSPO CEO: How China esports differs from the West

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China has long been in a leading position when it comes to the esports industry, home to many top esports players and a massive fanbase that supports them. However, China’s esports market operates substantially differently from Western markets. What is China’s esports ecosystem like, and how has it been affected by industry troubles that have plagued the West?

In an extended interview with VSPO, a major tournament organiser in China that runs some of the country’s biggest leagues, Esports Insider provides an insight into an ecosystem that is frequently heard about but rarely discussed in Western media.

In the hour-long chat, conducted in Mandarin and translated into English, Dino Ying, CEO of VSPO and Danny Tang, CFO of VSPO, discussed everything from the company’s founding story to the ‘esports winter’ that has left a chill on the shoulders of prominent stakeholders.

The original story

VSPO is an influential actor in the Chinese esports sector. Founded back in 2016 as VSPN, the company’s goal was to offer comprehensive services within esports, spanning production, operation and entertainment. The business primarily consists of three cores: the organisation and operation of esports events, commercialisation, and community management.

Since then the company has worked with top-tier professional esports competitions on game titles Honor of Kings, Peacekeeper Elite (PUBG Mobile in China), CrossFire, League of Legends and many more. VPSO also organised the latest Asian Games (which were postponed to 2023) in Hangzhou, China, which saw esports matches getting medal recognition for the first time.

According to Ying, the formation of VSPO began when he realised there was a strong demand for content and high-level competition in China, but the supply side was lacking. By building esports complexes across multiple cities around the world, the company wanted to bring a range of experiences — from online to offline — to esports fans.

Tang added: “From the very first day of our entrepreneurial journey, we had a clear vision: drive and witness esports become a more influential sport and form of entertainment. Over the past six to seven years, we have gradually seen esports unleash its impact worldwide.”

Assessing the Chinese esports market

Since its creation, the company has seen significant changes in the esports landscape, none more so than the mobile esports ecosystem. According to VSPO’s CFO, the decision to focus on the mobile gaming route has paid off in the Eastern world.

“Our judgment at that time was that mobile phones would definitely become mainstream because as more and more time was spent on mobile gaming, the demand for content and experience would naturally shift to the mobile side,” mentioned Tang.

Alongside the growth of gamers across mobile, PC and console, esports also rose in popularity, becoming part of China’s pop culture extremely quickly. Back in 2019, League of Legends professional player Jian ‘Uzi’ Zi-Hao was voted Weibo Person of the Year, beating all the other Chinese celebrities on the platform. Esports is also featured in several TV series, including ‘Crossfire’ and ‘You are my Glory’.

Paired with the development of technology and the enhancement of online and offline competitions, tournament organisers also started to make major events become ‘fan spectacles’ alongside sporting competitions.

According to Tang, the industry is entering a phase where it is trying to break previous barriers, caused by specific preferences of local markets and game titles. “I believe that in the coming years, the industry will break those barriers, truly achieving global integration”, she said.

Venue of the 2023 KPL Spring Season Finals in Hangzhou, China. Image Credit: VSPO

VSPO’s investment from Savvy Games Group

VSPO came under the spotlight in the Western world when the company received a $265m (~£219m) investment by Saudi Arabian government-owned esports company Savvy Games Group, which intends to accelerate and support VSPO’s global strategy.

The news received some criticism from the esports community due to the country’s human rights record, and Saudi Arabia’s government getting increasingly involved in esports has led to a backlash within sections of the industry. Savvy Games Group has heavily integrated itself into esports over the past few years. The company formed the ESL FACEIT Group, which recently faced a round of layoffs, for $1.5bn (~£1.19bn) in 2022. This also sparked concerns over ‘esportswashing’, a term used to describe how esports is used mask the country’s rights record.

From a business perspective, though, VSPO claims that the two parties are aligned. “When we first interacted with Savvy [Games Group], everyone’s view on esports was consistent,” said Ying. “We both agreed and shared the vision of establishing a recognised and independent event system. Overall, the feeling was good.”

Has China been affected by the Esports Winter?

Despite its chilling name, the so-called esports winter has been a hot topic in recent times. Following the industry’s downturn and economic struggles, various esports companies have gone through shutdowns, layoffs, consolidations and restructurings.

Whilst there are always going to be outliers, businesses in the esports space have struggled to generate profits. Moreover, the allure of creating short-term business models in exchange for growth is slowly disappearing due to its unsustainability. While this trend is affecting the industry worldwide, Ying claims that the ‘esports winter’ has not impacted his own company.

When asked about his thoughts on the subject, the CEO gave a clear reason as to why he believes the Western world is facing such challenges: a lack of strong competitive performances and the development of higher-quality competition.

The Chinese community is known for its results-focused nature, which correlates with fanbases watching the best competitive content. Ying made an interesting comparison with traditional sports. “In football, there are leagues that are more commercialised than others. The fans worldwide end up watching the most competitive European leagues like the Premier League, whilst the Chinese domestic league doesn’t have such a great following.”

VSPO CEO, Dino Ying. Image Credit: VSPO

This same logic is applied to esports. He explained that since the Western domestic market is not the best from a competitive perspective, it becomes increasingly difficult to commercialise it: “The problem now is that the internet allows users to get easy access to the best content. So, if you do not provide the best content, they won’t watch it.”

According to Ying, a lack of strong competitive results is a major factor behind the worse commercialisation. The accessibility of fans across the globe further amplifies the issue. “Sponsors know you’re not the best in the world, so commercialising is difficult because users can directly watch matches from the best regions such as China and South Korea.”

He revealed that China also suffers from similar issues, depending on which titles it competes in. “Competitive teams from games like League of Legends, Honor of Kings, PUBG, they all can support themselves. Others, instead, struggle. Why? Poor performance,” he added.

Still, Ying did admit that China having lower costs to run competitions is a major factor that has impacted the country’s esports sustainability. For example, he highlighted that one of its largest sponsorship deals for the KPL (King Pro League), the Chinese professional league for Honor of Kings, was worth around $10m (per year). “While it is more than enough to operate in China, it would be unfeasible for a large sports league in the United States,” he added.

Focusing on community

While there are several hurdles to tackle, esports is still growing and more opportunities will arise. Danny Tang is convinced that more changes need to happen in the gaming landscape to reduce the esports winter’s effects — and not just from a business and commercial perspective.

Community is a big part of what makes esports tick, so enlarging the fanbase should, in theory, benefit the scene in the long run. Tang put a particular emphasis on the female audience, which is already close to 50% in China, according to a Chinese 2023 Global Esports Industry Development report.

Encouraging people to be part of this culture and developing a more inclusive community is what allows products to transition from a niche to mainstream status. By doing so, a larger community opens up a lot more room for monetisation, including sponsorship opportunities and the commercialisation of services and products.

Tang is convinced that game companies should find ways to incentivise participation by lowering the barriers to entry, which explains why the mobile and freemium models have been so successful. “All designs are focused on providing joy to players, and esports becomes part of their product content,” Tang explained.

“As long as you provide them with a conducive environment and more ways for beginners to integrate into this environment, they will be willing to interact and watch matches.”

Source: Nico Partners / esportsinsider.com

 

George Miller (Gyorgy Molnar) started his career in content marketing and has started working as an Editor/Content Manager for our company in 2016. George has acquired many experiences when it comes to interviews and newsworthy content becoming Head of Content in 2017. He is responsible for the news being shared on multiple websites that are part of the European Gaming Media Network.

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OddsMatrix announces record performance numbers during 2024/25 football season

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OddsMatrix, EveryMatrix’s tier-1 turnkey sportsbook platform and odds feed service, has revealed significant year-on-year growth across its football product during the 2024/25 season, headlined by a rise in player prop betting.

Inclusive of all domestic global club football, major continental championships and international competitions, OddsMatrix delivered an average 2024/25 margin of 11.8%, a sharp increase on 2023/24 performance.

Overall turnover grew 28% season-on-season with volume of football bets placed on the platform surging 34% from 241.5 million in 2023/24 to 324.1 million in 2024/25 as the supplier continued to expand its client network and benefit from existing customer growth.

Demonstrating that behaviours are changing within the football betting community, the steepest season-on-season growth came in player prop betting. Dominated by the Shots on Target and Player to be Booked markets, player prop turnover grew 72% compared to 2023/24 with revenues from the betting type increasing 84% among OddsMatrix’s growing, global client base.

Fuelled by OddsMatrix’s recent integration partnership with Kero Sports and further development of its own in-house prop pricing models, player prop betting growth was further pronounced during the Champions League with shots betting accelerating 158% season-on-season while wagering on assists increased 149% during the 2024/25 continental championship.

The OddsMatrix numbers also point to sustained momentum for the well-established Bet Builder product. Firmly established as a sportsbook essential, the product continues to grow, alongside the award-winning sportsbook revealing a 127% season-on-season rise in Bet Builder turnover – driven by deeper in-house pricing integration.

Last week OddsMatrix was crowned sports betting supplier and sportsbook platform supplier of the year at the EGR B2B Awards 2025, alongside EveryMatrix picking up three major honours including top prize Full service platform of the year.

Tor Skeie, CEO, OddsMatrix, said: “It’s been another memorable club football season, with standout moments from PSG, Liverpool and Napoli. At OddsMatrix, we’re proud to have achieved exceptional year-on-year growth across our core football product metrics. 

“In the last 12 months, not only have we rolled out a new proprietary horse racing solution, we’ve worked hard to enhance our football product with broader event coverage, increased in-house pricing, extended market uptime, enriched content, faster settlement, and smarter risk management – demonstrating our continued commitment to strengthening the core of our sportsbook offering. 

“These enhancements were instrumental in securing turnkey sportsbook partnerships with several ambitious operators during the 2024/25 season and we look forward to building on this momentum with more innovative product developments lined up for the new 2025/26 campaign.” 

The post OddsMatrix announces record performance numbers during 2024/25 football season appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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QTech Games quick to integrate fresh-faced content from Kitsune Studios

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Emerging-markets leader expands its content offering with new games from emerging studio from Hacksaw’s OpenRGS production line

QTech Games, the leading game aggregator for emerging markets, has continued to build the strong momentum in its pipeline, thanks to its latest deal with rising-star supplier, Kitsune Studios, part of the bold OpenRGS studio initiative from Hacksaw Gaming.

Integrating content from such an innovative and well-credentialed studio, founded on Hacksaw’s heritage and expertise, adds yet more creative muscle to QTech Games’ burgeoning platform, which is taking the widest range of online games to emerging territories with established names, such as Playtech and Aviatrix, sitting alongside the industry’s most exciting up-and-coming providers.

The games made available to its partners via the deal include Kitsune’s foundational title, The Library, and its hotly anticipated latest release, Club Cabana.

Kitsune Studios’ designs are premised on play-now vertical screens for optimized gameplay on the go. And while its gaming suite neatly aligns with any device (smartphone, tablet and desktop) it remains mobile-first, a cornerstone of QTech’s proprietary technical platform, affording games providers and operators one of the fastest integration available. Through this aggregation-leading platform, which has sealed its definitive status as a global gaming one-stop shop, clients enjoy the best performance and customer support available, localised to every region across both developing and more mature markets.

The deal organically broadens Manchester-based Kitsune Studios’ international footprint, unlocking untapped jurisdictions for diversified growth from Asia to Africa and Eastern Europe to Latin America, where Kitsune Studios is looking to make a big impression over the coming 12 months.

Philip Doftvik, QTech Games’ CEO, said: “We’re committed to rolling out high-calibre content that drives revenue for our partners. And this deal with Kitsune Studios both extends our impressive sequential pipeline for 2025, and also demonstrates that our diverse portfolio draws from a deep well of established stars and emerging forces in slots provision. We can’t wait to watch how these games perform across a spread of new markets for Kitsune.”

Phillip Douglas, CEO & Founder of Kitsune Studios, added: “At Kitsune, we’re all about pushing what slot games can be — creating immersive experiences that feel fresh, bold, and full of personality. Partnering with QTech gives us an exciting opportunity to share that vision with new players in emerging markets.

“Their smart tech and distribution reach mean our games will land in front of the right audiences — and that’s huge for a growing studio like ours. We’re excited to see how players respond as we continue telling stories and breaking a few rules along the way.”

The post QTech Games quick to integrate fresh-faced content from Kitsune Studios appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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Stats Perform Named Live Streaming Supplier of the Year at EGR B2B Awards 2025

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Stats Perform has been named Live Streaming Supplier of the Year at the EGR B2B Awards 2025, in recognition of the strength, innovation, and global scale of its Bet LiveStreams platform for licensed sportsbook apps, websites and retail betting venues.

Bet LiveStreams, first launched as ‘Watch&Bet’ in 2005, now delivers more than 40,000 exclusive low-latency live events each year, across 15 sports. Football, the world’s largest betting sport, accounts for more than 15,000 matches, with rights including LaLiga, CONCACAF, English Football League and top domestic leagues and cups across Europe, South America, and APAC. Other sports include tennis, basketball, volleyball, darts, badminton, rugby and cricket.

Judges noted that Stats Perform’s Bet LiveStreams is unique because of its extensive year-long, round-the-clock coverage and high performance. In 2024, the platform securely delivered billions of live video sessions to hundreds of licensed global sportsbooks such as bet365, Betano, Superbet, Betfair, FanDuel and many more.

They also praised its interactive, built-for-betting features like betslip integration, instant highlights, and in-stream contextual stats (also known as Opta Interactive Overlays) that have made the watching and betting experience more engaging for bettors.

“Our focus with Bet LiveStreams has been to make live streams easy to watch and bettable, whoever is playing,” said Mike Perez, Chief Operating Officer at Stats Perform. “The features give bettors more entertainment from every stream, whether it’s a headline fixture like Tottenham v Liverpool in the Carabao Cup, or a six-goal thriller in South America that might otherwise have been overlooked. We’re delighted our efforts have been recognised with this award.”

The judging panel pointed to three standout recent Bet LiveStreams innovations:

  • Opta Interactive Overlays: Live game and player stats and odds available directly in-stream, with bets added to the slip in one click
  • Instant Highlights: Key moments can be replayed during the game to help bettors quickly catch up on relevant action, such as the moment their bet won, or see action they missed in other live games, with multi-game playlists across competitions
  • Live Match Gallery: Easier discovery of concurrent events, helping bettors follow more matches and sports at the same time

Adoption of these features has been fast and operators have reported a 7x increase in interactions per session, longer watch times and more in-play bets placed.

“This award is a reflection of how far streaming can go when it’s built for betting, not just viewing. We’re excited to continue to integrate our Opta data and AI into the experience to make the future of streaming on sportsbooks more engaging, intuitive and bettable,” added Perez.

The post Stats Perform Named Live Streaming Supplier of the Year at EGR B2B Awards 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

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