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On Saturday November 9th, two of YouTube’s most controversial personalities faced off in a boxing ring for the second time in their short careers. Six tense rounds later, Olajide ‘KSI’ Olatunji was declared the winner by a close judges’ decision.
The Brit won 56-55, 57-54 and 56-55. The American Paul Logan regrettably felt aggrieved and announced he would make an appeal. Some say he had a genuine reason. The fight was dominated by controversial referee decisions.
First off, the referee failed to award KSI crucial points after he knocked down Paul and instead deemed it a slip. However, he would later deduct the American two points for allegedly hitting his opponent after he went down.
Nevertheless, both of the amateur boxers apparently walked off the ring with £700,000 each. For reference, that’s more money than some veteran boxers have ever cashed in a fight. So, what does that say about boxing and the influence of YouTubers in sports?
Impact on boxing
If you’ve never heard of either KSI or Paul, you probably do a good job to avoid big YouTubers. On the one hand, Paul is an American with more than 20 million followers. KSI, on the other hand, is British and has 20.6 million followers.
Paul gained infamy for posting pictures of dead people in his tour of the suicide forest in Japan. He later apologized pulled off the pictures. His opponent KSI, by comparison, is notorious for having made misogynist remarks in the past and has tried to shake off his past actions including his ‘rape face’.
So, when the two men reportedly attracted over 1.5 million pay per views for their recent fight in Los Angeles, it was shocking to some professional boxers. Most high-profile fighters would dream of such numbers for their main events.
Again, a lot of professionals live for the day they would be paid in the upwards of £500,000 per event. Yet, two men who not professional boxers earned enough money to buy a house in the leafy suburbs of most cities around the world.
For esports
Two YouTubers calling each other out isn’t anything new in the world of video games. Players forge rivalries all the time. They threaten each other and even iron things out through competitive esports matches.
But the fact that amateur YouTubers can attract millions of fans and earn over £1.5 million is something to be emulated. Of course, not all gamers have as many Twitch and YouTube fans as the boxing wannabes.
But if KSI and Paul could do it, upcoming esports players and Twitch streamers can also make a decent living through their skills. Learning how to monetize is one hoop they need to jump through. There are multiple ways to make money that don’t involve fighting each other. Here are some of them:
Betting on esports
Betting on esports is arguably the easiest way to make money in the video game world. You don’t have to be a streamer or a competitive gamer. Instead, you need to know more about esports. Find bookmakers that offer betting markets and compare odds on sites like https://oddspedia.com/esports.
Proper research and analytical skills could also help you win consistently.
You can bet on nearly all publicized video games. From League of Legends to Overwatch, Fortnite to FIFA 2020; there’s a lot you can bet on. Due to that, specializing in one sport or a single league could make things easier for you.
Streaming
Streaming on Twitch or YouTube and being able to make money from it is a dream for many. For some, it’s not actually a dream. Tfue (Turner Ellis Tenney) has 7 million Twitch followers while Shroud (Michael Grzesiek) boasts over 4 million fans.
With huge fanbases come plenty of ways to monetize your channel. You can place ads during your streams and get paid by Twitch or YouTube, or seek donations. Another way to make money is to market gaming merchandise and earn commission. You could also sell your merchandise or ask your fans to pay for subscriptions.
Tutoring new gamers
No matter which game you play, there’s always someone who wants to learn it. If the game is popular, you can charge new learners to help them perfect their skills. Fortnite, for instance, is tremendously famous around the world.
It’s particularly popular with young gamers, meaning there are lots of potential customers. Some parents pay up to £80 per hour for their kids’ Fortnite lessons. So, if you establish yourself as a solid gamer, you can monetize your skills on a personal website or tutoring sites like udem.com.
Blogging or vlogging
Similar to other online industries, there’s a great demand for good esports content. From news to informative articles, game reviews to gaming tips, there’s a market for all sorts of information. Becoming an esports journalist or content creator is an option.
If you have good public speaking skills, you can research and keep up to date with video game news, you can become an online journalist. Besides reporting news, you can provide informative content like gaming tips through a blog, YouTube or Twitch channel.
Become an esports player
Being a successful esports professional is the apex of a gamer’s career. If you can also win a few tournaments along the way, you could earn enough money to pay your bills for a couple of years at least.
Unfortunately, becoming such an excellent gamer that wins annual LoL or Overwatch tournaments takes years of hard work. Many are naturally talented. Of course, you don’t have to win a million pounds to make a living as an esports player.
To conclude
After Logan and KSI faced off to show the world that even YouTubers can command pay per views, gamers can learn from it. In the digital world, being smart and having a passion for something can help you make money from the things you love. For players, that means figuring out what they love to do and monetizing it.
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