As the esports community continues to grow, thanks to television, online streaming, fans that just enjoy watching, and players that aspire to be one of the greats, it’s generating a lot of money and interest from investors and sponsors. When you think of esports sponsors, you probably think of software, energy drinks, headphones, and maybe some sports-related companies, seeing as how it’s widely regarded as one. You don’t, however, imagine esports pros having underwear, beer, and car dealership sponsors.
Bud Light announced their own foray into esports, and it’s not what anyone expected or even really wanted. The Bud Light All-Stars are a group of fan-picked gamers that would then make up a five-person team that would represent Bud Light in esports. These five were picked out of 20, and they were literally chosen by Twitter voting. They are touted as being the best, hence the name “All-Stars,” though they are anything but. That’s ok. They are still very good esports gamers. They just aren’t the absolute best that Bud Light claims they are. Some of the choices to vote for were ranked 192nd and 216th in Street Fighter V, according to Shoryuken.com.
This new team of All-Stars also won’t be doing anything really all that special. They are glorified advertisers, chosen not because of their prowess in esports, but because of how well they will advertise and represent their new sponsor, Bud Light. Just ask Ryan “Filipino Champ” Ramirez. They’re flown around first class to show off the Bud Light logo, and basically act as ambassadors in the esports scene. Which is also ok. That makes sense. Even if you are one of the best gamers out there, if you are terrible at representing a brand, they won’t want to sponsor you.
As Steven Jurek of the Daily Dot adequately puts it, “The problem with the Bud Light All-Stars nominee slate isn’t that it values marketability over skill. The problem is that it values marketability over skill while insulting the intelligence of fans by trying to convince them that it’s the other way around.”
Bud Light is a beer label, and the esports community is made up mostly of minors, which puts the brand a little out of place in this sport. Now don’t get me wrong, gamers over the age of 21 probably get more excited about beer than they do about Mountain Dew or Red Bull, but it may also alienate a majority of esports pros.
And perhaps that’s why their team of “All-Stars” are not exactly that: because many (if not most) of the true top-performers of esports are under the age of 21.
Is it unethical for a beer company to sponsor something that is mostly made up of under-agers? Does that send a bad message to young adults, essentially associating their favorite pastime with drinking? Of course, this has been going on for ages with other sports, Super Bowl commercials, and hundreds of coming of age movies that depict high school kids partying and drinking. That doesn’t mean that Bud Light is in the clear, but this also isn’t the first time an alcohol brand has been indirectly aimed at minors. And they just rub salt in the wound when they say they will “throw the esports celebration to set the standard for all esports celebrations.” Does that mean that beer is the standard?
And let’s not overlook the fact that this may actually be good for esports (if you can get past all the cringing and facepalming at Bud Light’s inadequate attempt to seem cool). After all, the brand Anheuser-Busch InBev brought in almost $10 billion in 2015.
It gets weirder. An underwear company wants to sponsor the Immortals. Arby’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, and Credit Karma are sponsoring ELeague. Mountain Dew has its own esports league.
To anyone who doesn’t pay attention to esports or know many gamers are picturing an overweight, mid-thirties neckbeard living with his parents. They don’t realize that most esports pros are young, physically fit, and plenty are good-looking enough that they could definitely get away with having an underwear sponsor, and maybe model them, too. We’re waiting, Bjergsen.
