In a new report published by Newzoo, its findings concluded that while eSports has a growing audience, a large number of fans don't play the games they watch.
According to the report, at least 18% of viewers for each of the top five eSports titles only watch the game. The most extreme example was in the case of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, which concluded that 30% of its viewer audience doesn't play the game.
In the comments of a related Reddit post, several users shared their perspective. In the case of APlayerWhoPlays, he "got sick of [Match Making] a long time ago". Several users replied sharing that toxicity and time requirements were the greatest barrier of entry, both of which are avoided when spectating rather than playing.
Data also indicated that among those who watch eSports, 70% only watch one franchise; only a minority of the active eSports audience watches more than one game.
