If you’re a fan of eSports or competitive gaming in general then you’ve probably heard of a Gaming Org. But what exactly is a gaming org, and how can they benefit you as a gamer?
What Is A Gaming Org
A gaming org is an organization or team dedicated to professional gaming, also known as eSports. Gaming orgs sign professional players to contracts and then those players compete in tournaments under the organizations name. Some gaming orgs have one team while others have many teams playing many games.
A gaming org is very similar to a gaming team, except an org is a little more broad. For example, TSM is a very well known gaming organization.
TSM has many teams competing across every popular eSport. TSM has a League of Legends team, a Valorant team, a Fortnite team, etc.
Most gaming orgs are completely focused on professional play, although some will sign popular players even if those players aren’t highly skilled.
So why join a gaming org?
What Is The Point Of Joining A Gaming Org?
Joining a gaming org has a lot of benefits to the player. A gaming org usually has coaches that can help the player improve at the game, gives the player a chance to play on a professional team, helps build their brand, and it gives the player a guaranteed salary in the form of a contract.
There are many pros and cons to joining a gaming org, but when you’re an up and coming pro player the pros usually outweigh the cons.
First of all, joining a gaming org gives you a ton of legitimacy as a professional player and will open up a lot of doors for your future.
Joining an org means you can say you’re a true professional player that gets paid to play the game of your choice.
This builds your brand and opens you up to future sponsorships and even puts other orgs’ eyes on you. Gaming orgs generally like players that have already competed professionally and have that experience.
Joining an org and signing a contract will also give you the peace of mind of having a real salary.
Being a professional gamer can be unreliable at best and unsustainable at worst, so having a guaranteed payday is very appealing to many professional players.
Many times these contracts will also have merch and performance bonuses, so you can increase your payday by playing better and getting popular.
Of course, there are also some cons to joining gaming orgs. The most obvious con is that a lot of the money you’re making will be going to the org instead of you.
The trade off is that you wouldn’t be making that money without the org. The other downside is that it can be hard to land a fair contract if you don’t have experience or a manager that has your back.
A lot of young professional gamers get taken advantage of by managers and orgs so they end up getting a fraction of what they deserve.
In the video below, Mytheros does a good job of breaking down some of the pros and cons of a gaming org.
How Do You Join A Gaming Org?
To join a gaming org, you have to be extremely good at your game, or a talented content creator. Once you have proven that you have talent, you can reach out to different gaming orgs and see if they have any openings. In some cases, these orgs may even reach out to you.
There are a few ways to make yourself an appealing player for gaming orgs. Of course, you have to be talented in creating content or playing the game, but after that you can help yourself stand out by:
- Streaming
- Creating Youtube videos
- Gain a following
- Form a team with friends and play in small, online tournaments
- Join small orgs or find local teams to try out for
Joining a big org is going to be hard at the beginning. They pretty much have to reach out to you. However, there are things you can do to get your name out there.
Actions speak louder than words, so just prove you’re a great player by playing in tournaments, streaming your gameplay, etc. Orgs love having popular players more than anything, so building a following is vital.
You can find orgs of all different sizes on social media, especially Twitter. Just make sure they are a legit org before joining because there are some orgs that are complete shams.
For more info about joining an org, check out the video from Akella below:
How Much Do Gaming Orgs Pay?
Gaming orgs generally pay between $3,000 and $5,000 per month. However, there are also merch and performance bonuses added into the salary. Gaming orgs also pay much more to their star players because these are the players that sell the most merchandise and make the org the most money.
How much a gaming org pays will depend heavily on the organization, the game, and the player. If a game isn’t very popular, then the gaming org probably isn’t paying their players much.
Professional eSports players usually make money beyond their org contracts as well. They usually have sponsorship deals, Twitch / Youtube income, etc. that adds to their yearly salary.
Do You Have To Be 18 To Join A Gaming Org?
You do not have to be 18 to join a gaming org. Age requirements will vary by org, as every org has its own rules on age. However, most orgs will require a parent’s signature before letting a minor sign a contract. Some eSport leagues also require players to be 18+ which would bar minors from competing.
How old you need to be will depend entirely on the organization and the game. Most eSports games have a few different leagues and these leagues will usually have an age restriction for the players.
So it’s unlikely an org will sign a player if that player can’t compete in the league. On top of this, most places in the world require that a minor have parental consent before agreeing to a contract.
Therefore many orgs will require parental consent before signing someone under 18, if they sign them at all.
However, even if you are under 18, there are still orgs and leagues you can join so don’t be discouraged.
Are Gaming Orgs Scams?
Gaming orgs are not scams. Gaming orgs are legitimate organizations that mutually benefit both the players and the orgs. However, there are many fake orgs out there and orgs that take advantage of young and naive players by luring them into predatory contracts and not paying them fairly.
Gaming orgs, in general, aren’t scams. They give young professional players a chance to build and legitimize their brand while also paying a salary.
With that being said, there are definitely shady orgs out there and a lot of these orgs have received public backlash for their predatory behavior.
It’s important to run contracts by a manager or lawyer before signing to an org in order to avoid being taken advantage of.
Gaming orgs are becoming more and more popular as video games become more and more popular. I hope I was able to help answer some of your questions regarding gaming orgs.
For even more streaming tips and how-to content check out my Youtube channel here. And if you want to check out my streams then stop by my Twitch channel here.
Sources
https://influencermarketinghub.com/top-10-esports-teams-earnings-and-salaries/
Eric streams 3 days a week on Twitch and uploads weekly to Youtube under the moniker, StreamersPlaybook. He loves gaming, PCs, and anything else related to tech. He’s the founder of the website StreamersPlaybook and loves helping people answer their streaming, gaming, and PC questions.
