ESL FACEIT Group (EFG), Hero Esports and Niko Partners have jointly published a whitepaper titled The Esports Generation: Who They Are & Why They Spend, revealing that an estimated 400 million Gen Z individuals, roughly one in five, regularly engage with esports worldwide.
The white paper draws on survey responses from 8,000 Gen Z esports fans aged 13 to 30, spanning eight global markets, and examines spending habits, content consumption, genre preferences and lifestyle interests.
The study paints a picture of a diverse and commercially valuable audience. While esports fans still skew male at 68%, female participation is growing. At EFG’s DreamHack Birmingham 2026 festival in March, 41% of attendees were women, while female viewership surpassed 50% in China’s Peacekeeper Elite League (PUBG Mobile) and Honor of Kings Pro League (KPL) competitions.
The research also found 85% of Gen Z esports fans notice brand activity in the space, and 74% say it has directly influenced their purchasing decisions. Two-thirds have bought a product off the back of a collaboration with an esports team, game or player, with food and beverage, electronics and fashion among the top-selling categories.
Beyond gaming, the audience is broadly culturally engaged. Music ranked as the top outside interest at 48%, followed by TV and film streaming at 37% and traditional sports at 36%. Notably, 26% of those surveyed watch no broadcast or cable television at all in a given week.
The white paper was first revealed at LIONS Sport in Cannes where Hero Esports Co-Founder and CEO Danny Tang and ESL FACEIT Group (EFG) CEO Niccolo Maisto were featured as speakers. It is available now at this link and aims to help brands better understand and engage with this digitally native, high-spending generation.
The release comes as esports viewership hits record highs. The 2026 Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) Cologne Major Counter-Strike grand final drew a peak audience of over 2.75 million, representing 141% year-on-year growth in peak viewers and 185% growth in hours watched.
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