African Esports Scenes and Her Opportunities

Esports in Africa

The scene has suffered for so long regarding career opportunities for gamers or individuals across the continent. Gaming can be a lot of things, whether esports or casual gaming. It can be fun, accessible, exciting, competitive, professional, and engaging.

As an African gamer with dreams of walking the esports path, unlimited doors are yet to be unlocked, which could help curb unemployment and eradicate poverty through video gaming.

Since the pandemic outbreak, things have begun to change and improve for the better. Tournament organizers like Gamr and Kon10der were taking notice of the potential in esports in Africa, and they started giving these gamers the chance to reach their full potential.

Young gamers across the continent are beginning to get the attention they deserve, and esports is slowly becoming a viable career option. From South Africa to Nigeria, from Kenya down to Ghana and beyond, more startups and tournaments are investing in esports in an attempt to promote the growth of the industry.

In this blog, we will outline different career opportunities in African esports and how to get them.

The $1 billion industry has been in existence for a very long period and is still growing at a rapid pace. It is no shock that there is a wide range of careers in esports for individuals or enthusiasts who would like to make an honest living out of it.

From being a key player, such as a gamer during an esports event, to embracing a very significant role or roles behind the scenes However, these roles can be flexible rather than rigid, considering the stage at which esports are reflected in Africa.

Here are some of the career opportunities that can be utilized for African esports;

• Content Writing
• Gamer
• Videography
• Marketing
• Designer
• Game Developer
• Streamer
• Coaching
• Health instructor
• Community Manager
• Sales

Let’s talk about five of them, shall we?

Gamer:

This needs no more introduction, as almost everyone having a career in esports has this as their first choice because they see it as the face of the industry. Gaming is a viable choice in Africa; to be a gamer, one must have passion and enthusiasm for whatever game might interest an individual. There is also a need to join a community of gamers, which could be through an esports team or local tournament organizers.

This career path earns around $35,000 a month as a pro gamer. As a starter in Africa, it is best to start with a local esports team that may have a similar vision and mission that aligns with yours.

Content Creators:

In every organization or startup business, there is always a need for content creators such as writers, videographers, audio creators, streamers, and so on who can help produce content on tournament news and updates.

In Africa, with the rate at which different startup businesses in esports are thriving positively for the industry, writing for esports teams, organizers, developers, or even journalism as a volunteer is a very great way to start one’s career as a professional, even though almost everyone is a gamer in Africa.

Esports content creators tend to cover their niche either through written (blogs), visual (streams), or audio content (podcasts).

Sales/Marketing:

This is a huge career path in any business organization, whether a startup or an established one. Titles like sales marketers, sales managers, and sales associates deal mostly with marketing tournaments, players, games (indie games), websites, and merchandise, either full-time or part-time.

They also deal with ticketing, gaining sponsorship agreements for key business brands, which could be either endemic or non-endemic, growing their gaming community, subscriptions, and so on. In other words, those on this career path are usually interested in anything that would boost their company’s revenue and brand.

Sales and marketing jobs in esports are mostly based on salaries and commission structures for both part-time and full-time individuals.

Game Development:

This path leads to developing new games (indie games) for a particular target audience. It involves the creation and production of games for personal computers, whether console, mobile, or PC games.

One might need to have skills in areas of programming such as engines, graphics, toolchains, artificial intelligence (AI), etc. Nevertheless, developing a game from scratch might take a long period and would involve mostly all the career branches in esports highlighted earlier. The salary of a game developer ranges from $20,000 to $80,000.

Coach:

Coaches are in-game and off-game instructors that help gamers reach their full potential. They may or may not be top-class gamers who help upcoming gamers identify their strengths and weaknesses, motivate them, and develop winning strategies for a particular tournament or competition.

WRAPPING UP:

The African esports scene is rapidly growing, offering a wide range of career opportunities for individuals passionate about gaming. From professional gamers to content creators, sales and marketing professionals, game developers, and coaches, there are numerous paths to explore.

By leveraging your skills, passion, and dedication, you can contribute to the growth of the African esports industry and build a successful career.

How To Apply for These Career Paths

To ignite your esports journey, one can apply on these platforms for gigs and jobs that are gaming-related.

• Indeed
• Hitmaker
• ZipRecruiter