'All The Esports Orgs In North America Are Either Broke Or Going Broke' Says Streamer, Esports Team Owner 'Disguised Toast'

Streamer and esports team owner Jeremy Wang, widely known as Disguised Toast, expressed his views on the current state of the esports industry, saying it "is one of the worst things you can get into."

"Last week, my accountant messages me and says, 'Toast, we need to talk'," he said in his latest video, as per PC Gamer.

"He told me that I'm actually on track to spend a million dollars this year, double what I was expecting. He sent over this spreadsheet with all these red numbers, and I noted in the revenue section it was blocked out. I asked him, 'Why'd you block it out?' He said 'Well, it's not blocked out, there's just nothing there. You're not making any money'."

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Disguised Toast claimed: "If you look at any esports org in North America, all of them are either broke or going broke. And I do mean all of them. Some orgs will try and put on a front and say, 'Hey, we're still good, we look good, everything's cool here.' Trust me when I say, everyone is losing a lot of money. A lot of people are being fired, no org is safe right now."

Earlier this year, the Taiwanese-Canadian internet personality founded a pro team for Tencent Holdings ADR's (OTC: TCEHY) "Valorant" called DSG with a $500,000 investment.

The team lost all of its first seven games by May, leading him to question his involvement in the industry.

Undeterred, he purchased a "League of Legends" pro team for the North American Challengers League but unexpected changes by Riot and potential LCS professional strikes posed further challenges for his new venture.

To overcome these financial challenges, Disguised Toast proposed implementing a Patreon model, where backers receive perks in exchange for their support.

"If there are thousands of viewers willing to spend five bucks a month on millionaire streamers, just for a little badge in their chat, maybe there are some fans out there that are willing to throw in five bucks a month to keep a team going — a team they like, a team they support," the 31-year-old streamer expressed.

Disguised Toast explained that major sponsorships have dwindled because esports has struggled to gain traction with mainstream audiences, making it unappealing for companies to invest in.

"Brands are scared of esports because they invested millions and millions into it, and they never got any significant return," Disguised Toast said.

Recently, FaZe Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: FAZE), the prominent esports and entertainment organization, has made headlines because of the significant decline in its value since its public debut in July 2022. With its stock price plummeting below $1 per share, the org faces the possibility of being delisted from the NASDAQ.

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Photo: Florian Olivo on Unsplash and photo on Wikipedia