What Happens to Stocks if Esports are in the Olympics?

As with any burgeoning industry, formal or official recognition can serve to propel a sector to lofty heights. If esports made the Olympics, then the value of esports stocks could rise dramatically.

As it stands it looks like esports won’t make the Paris 2024 Olympic Games as a medal event, but it could see inclusion as a side event. In June 2019, Olympic Organising Committee President Tony Estanguet said esports would make an appearance and provide a “unique experience,” for fans. Estanguet, in a press conference revealed:

“There will be a number of virtual events taking place alongside the Olympics in Paris, which will be another way of engaging with the population.”

He went on to say it would be “a great way of using technology to benefit the Games,” and follow “the idea of mass participation and connected events.”

Again during the summer of 2019, when the topic of esports in the Olympics was hot in the press, SportsPro reported that Intel UK’s head of gaming and esports, Scott Gillingham, had been discussing esports with the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Intel is an official partner of the Olympics and in 2018 it showcased esports at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games by holding an Intel Extreme Masters working with the IOC. The event’s purpose was to demonstrate the opportunity technology can offer the Olympics, as per the report.

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In 2017 the IOC agreed esports could be considered a sport, however there are concerns that the violent nature of some video games could conflict with Olympic values.

Gillingham told the Press Association that Intel did not have “a view,” on whether esports should be included in the Olympics, “or not,” but added:

“We’re totally open and have been talking to the Olympics to let them understand what esports is and what potential there could be for it, but ultimately it is down to [the] Olympic Committee on whether they decide to bring it on.

“There are discussions between Intel and the Olympic Committee… but nothing at this point is confirmed but there are conversations.”

In September 2019 it was revealed that Intel would hold its Intel World Open in Japan in June 2020, just weeks before the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games begin. The open will see two tournaments, one for Street Fighter V and the second for Rocket League, each having a prize pool of $250,000.  The Intel World Open, Japan, will take place between June 22-24.

So, as it stands esports won’t be an official Olympic sport, at least for the next two Games. Should esports, or an esports title, make future Olympic Games the affect on the value of the esports industry and any esports stock prices could be substantial. Related stocks, like Twitch stocks in the form of stocks in Twitch parent Amazon, could also see their prices rises as the greater technology sector gets another boost this time from esports success. The esports betting sector would be another to benefit considerably if esports made the Olympics.

Though we’re speculating, the effect on esports stocks could be equivalent to the dotcom bubble in the late 1990s when technology and internet related stocks really began to boom. And in recent years companies like Alibaba, Uber, Lyft and Airbnb, have launched massive IPOs. Esports making the Olympics could propel the industry, see esports company and team revenues explode, and inspire a flux of esports company IPOs and esports stock sales. Traditional sports stocks, including shares in sports teams, are a substantial part of global stock markets today. There is no reason why esports stocks won’t eventually follow suit.

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