In this digital age, the gaming and esport market has experienced exponential growth, becoming a full-fledged industry with a constantly expanding fan base and increasingly large events around the world. In Belgium, this evolution has not gone unnoticed, with a significant increase in interest and media coverage.
Online gaming platforms becoming increasingly popular
Needless to say that the increasing use of gaming and esports in recent years is partly due to the fact that online gaming platforms are more numerous and more accessible. The constantly improving quality of graphics also plays a role in the popularity of video games. As a result, online games attract a wider audience, which is reflected in the presence of esports in the media. For example, Fortnite completely transformed the gaming industry, as well as FIFA, Rocket League, League of Legends, and CS:GO. All of these games are now among the most popular in the media and therefore have a huge influence in the press and on social networks.
The topic is mainly addressed by Dutch-language media, and the articles are mostly very positive.
Create visibility through major gaming/esport events
In Belgium, the number of gaming and esport events has also skyrocketed in recent years with the aim of bringing together professionals of the field, but also to bring users together in the same place and thus create more visibility. Because major events mean media presence and/or citation in the media. Competitions such as LouvardGame, the Elite Series of League of Legends, or the PGL Major Antwerp benefit from extensive media coverage, but a large part of their notoriety comes from users themselves who mention the events on their various social media platforms. These competitions and the various esport opportunities have contributed significantly to the development of the sector in Belgium.
The LouvardGame, a major gathering of online gaming fans, has also contributed significantly to the reputation of the sector in the country. The organizers also offer conferences, giving professionals the chance to share their success stories. On April 1st, Auxipress participated in these conferences. It was an enriching experience for a sector with a growing offering of media opportunities for brands!
And to further accentuate the visibility of esport, major Belgian media outlets, such as RTBF and RTL-TVI, have started broadcasting programs about gaming, such as video game shows, online gaming competitions, and reports on gaming events in Belgium and around the world. The Proximus ePro League, for example, reaches a wide network of supporters and football professionals, due especially to the coverage of the competition by traditional Belgian football clubs, which have a large audience.
Discover the study realized by Auxipress
Using our media analysis tool MediaTopiQ, Auxipress analyzed the visibility of gaming and esports in the media. The study is based on the analysis of more than 1,500 different print data and more than 2,000 online press sources in Belgium and analyzed the Belgian online and offline press as well as Belgian content on Twitter between 01/01/2022 and 29/03/2023. In total, 26,939 articles (online and offline) were deemed relevant to the topic and were therefore analyzed. These figures once again demonstrate the growth of the sector’s visibility in the wider media universe.
Download our report here!
