Esports have dominated headlines in the gaming world for the past few years. Now they’re hoping to dominate Wall Street.
Super League Gaming, an amateur esports community, began trading on the Nasdaq marketplace Tuesday under the symbol SLGG, offering just less than 2.3 million shares at $11 each.
The stock initially saw declines of up to 9%, in early trading.
Super League was founded in 2014 and found a niche in the hyper-competitive field of video game tournaments by focusing on regular players, rather than those hoping to play video games professionally. CEO Ann Hand has referred to the company as “Little League for esports.” It reported sales of $1 million last year.
Investors in the gaming sector will likely be carefully watching the company’s performance. Esports, which until recently were being considered as an Olympic sport, have spread at a wildfire pace through the industry.
Many game publishers acknowledge they’re still figuring out how best to monetize the competitions and generally see them as marketing opportunities.
However, organizers of these tournaments have established a reliable stream of revenue, thanks to the continued growth of streaming platforms like Twitch and interest from networks like ESPN in broadcasting tournaments.
The global esports market is expected to exceed $1.1 billion this year for the first time, according to the research firm NewZoo.