23 best esports startups that are taking the gaming world by storm (2025)

What are gaming startups?

Gaming startups are working on creative solutions related to the development, marketing, distribution, monetization, and improvement of video games.

Toornament

Founded in 2013, Toornament aimed to create a well-designed hub to consolidate the fragmented tournament organizing process on one intuitive platform. With Toornament’s product, both hosts and gamers benefit from professional-grade tournament building and seamless UX focused on eSports.Whether amateur or professional, Toornament lets tournament organizers schedule matches, track scores, and keep participants informed.

Players can quickly find and sign up for competitions in their game using the platform’s tournament discovery feature. During events, gamers can access schedules, leaderboards, and match results via Toornament’s apps and website. Organizers have access to analytics on tournament performance too. Features like live streaming integration and sponsor management help level up production value and promotion.

Beastcoast

Beastcoast is a prolific esports and gaming media organization. Operating competitive esports teams in titles like Dota 2 and Rainbow Six Siege, Beastcoast has earned over $5.5 million in tournament winnings. Beyond managing rosters of pro gamers, the company has cultivated an online following of millions through its gaming content channels on YouTube and Twitch.

With 14 branded outlets producing gameplay highlights, tutorials, and lifestyle segments daily, Beastcoast’s channels earn over 45 million video views per month. This massive audience engagement underscores the success of its model building esports skill and fame in parallel. By fostering both competitive team excellence and individual content creator stardom, Beastcoast fuels rising prospects in esports entertainment.

Mobalytics

Founded in 2016, Mobalytics built an AI-powered system that gives players insights on strengths, weak spots, and comparisons to top performers. Gamers can set goals, get learning plans, and benchmark progress across titles like League of Legends and Teamfight Tactics.

By making skill analytics and mentoring accessible, Mobalytics aims to upgrade training for aspiring eSports athletes and amateurs alike. Users gain an information edge to sharpen talents faster.

Talon Esports

Founded in 2017, Talon fields star-studded rosters under their brand across major esports titles. Alongside competing, they organize branded tournaments and events. Talon also creates merch that connects fans to players.

As a leading Asian esports team operator, Talon is pioneering new models of fandom, entertainment, and community engagement. With the scene booming, expect organizations like Talon to drive future growth through their diverse offerings.

PlayVS

Founded in 2018, PlayVS partners with schools and leagues to offer sanctioned esports programs as an official school activity. Students compete and spectate matches in top titles like Rocket League and Smash Bros.

By establishing infrastructure for interscholastic competition, PlayVS aims to legitimize and expand gaming within education. Their platform brings organization to grassroots enthusiasm for esports.

Challengermode

Founded in 2014, Challengermode provides tools to organize and participate in online esports tournaments across popular titles. Features include brackets, league management, and live streaming integration.

By enabling grassroots competition, Challengermode aims to make esports participation accessible at all levels – from amateurs to pros. Their scalable platform promises to drive inclusive community growth.

eFuse

Founded in 2018, eFuse aims to be the go-to community for gamers looking to turn their passion into a career in esports. Users create profiles highlighting their skills, experience, and interests to connect with teams, brands, colleges, and events.

Key features include a matchmaking algorithm that recommends relevant opportunities based on users’ profiles. Gamers can also find teammates, chat, and build their network organically.

MCES

Founded in 2016, MCES aims to promote esports through education and development of future talent. At their training centers, aspiring gamers gain coaching and structured development pathways from amateur to pro level.

The MCES academy focuses on developing skills like teamwork, communication, and resilience alongside gaming abilities. Their programs take a holistic approach tailored to amplify players’ potential.

Streamloots

Founded in 2019, Streamloots provides gamers and influencers tools to boost engagement and revenue from live streams and videos. Fans can purchase digital goods like stickers and GIFs to interact during broadcasts.

Key features include loyalty programs, gifting, redemptions, and built-in ecommerce capabilities. Creators earn money while incentivizing participation.

Epulze

Founded in 2021, Epulze aims to make competitive gaming accessible to all skill levels. Their low-stakes wagers allow anyone to experience esports for real rewards from just a few cents.

Epulze’s platform features daily solo challenges across popular titles with prize pools up to $1 million per month. Players can test skills and supplement income.

Fnatic

Founded in 2004, Fnatic is one of the world’s most successful and storied professional esports organizations. Their teams compete globally across major franchised leagues and titles like League of Legends, Counter-Strike, and Dota 2.

Beyond competition, Fnatic develops talent pipelines and provides apparel, accessories, and equipment for gamers under their Gear brand. This builds an ecosystem around players and fans.

Pandascore

Founded in 2016, Pandascore tracks detailed statistics for competitive gaming events in real-time. Their dashboards aggregate data like scores, team rankings, schedules, results, streams, and rosters across 100+ esports titles.

This wealth of structured live data enables fans to follow the pro scene at a glance. It also provides analytics to betting operators, fantasy platforms, teams, sponsors, and players.

100 Thieves

Founded in 2017, 100 Thieves has quickly become one of the most popular new organizations in professional gaming. Their teams compete at elite levels in major leagues for games like Call of Duty, Fortnite, and League of Legends.

In addition to teams, 100 Thieves produces gaming lifestyle apparel and accessories drops for their millions of fans globally. Their streetwear collabs consistently sell out within minutes.

Strafe

Founded in 2017, Strafe aims to be the go-to destination for esports news, updates, stats, and community. Gamers stay connected through latest match coverage, interviews, schedules, leaderboards, and more.

Key features include breaking news notifications, tournament calendars, team and player profiles, live scores, and video highlights. Fans access essentials to follow their favorite titles, leagues, and competitors in one place.

Toornament

Founded in 2010, Toornament offers software to manage competitions and events for esports organizers and players. Their tools handle registration, brackets, scheduling, live game data, and streams.

Key features include custom rule configuration, real-time match and leaderboard updates, cash prize payout capabilities, and sponsor integration options. Organizers can fully customize and brand their tournament.

Dixper

Founded in 2021, Dixper provides tools for gamers and influencers to create personalized video clips and images with fan participation. Fans purchase NFTs to unlock experiences like playing mini games with creators during streams.

Key features include digital goods management, branded templates, custom graphics overlays, and text-to-speech capabilities. This maximizes engagement and monetization from live, interactive moments.

Leagues

Founded in 2019, Leagues offers tools to develop thriving local esports communities through tournament systems, rankings, skill-based matchmaking, stats, and leaderboards. Their platform aims to expand grassroots growth.

By empowering organizers with enterprise-grade technology tailored for esports, Leagues helps unlock the massive potential for competitive gaming to positively impact communities. Their solutions drive wider adoption.

Wylde

Founded in 2017, Wylde operates esports team rosters across titles like Valorant while also operating a talent academy and Los Angeles-based content studio. Their integrated model nurtures rising stars.

Wylde takes a holistic approach spanning competitive excellence, content creation, and fostering diverse voices. Their mission is expanding access and participation in esports entertainment.

Astralis

Founded in 2016, Astralis fields a championship-winning professional CS:GO team and operates branded merchandise, media rights, streaming, events, and more under their company. Their integrated model builds their brand ecosystem.

Backed by wealthy Danish investors, Astralis helped pioneer the professionalization of esports through strategically managed training facilities, sports psychology, and commercial assets. Their success inspires new standards in esports.

QLASH

Founded in 2017, QLASH fields top professional esports teams worldwide, operates gaming talent academies, and promotes esports through media and events. Their activities span coaching, content creation, merchandising and tech.

With bases in Italy, South Korea, and Canada, QLASH aims to promote gaming as a force for positive change and progress. Their holistic approach develops athletes and connects fans across the globe.

Godsent

Founded in 2016, Godsent is owned and operated by successful Swedish esports veterans who aim to build a premier esports brand with championship-caliber teams and high-quality content.

With training facilities in Sweden, Godsent recruits and develops standout talent globally to compete at the highest levels of esports. Their operations span media rights, sponsorships, merchandising, and events.

Prodigy

Founded in 2021, Prodigy leverages their industry expertise to guide rising stars through contract negotiations, brand partnerships, content strategy, financial management, and more. Their goal is helping talents maximize opportunities.

By providing specialized support to esports athletes and entertainers, Prodigy allows talent to focus on performance and connecting with fans while benefiting from professional representation.

ESL

Founded in 2000, ESL runs official esports circuits for the most popular gaming titles worldwide like CS:GO and Dota 2 while also operating studios producing gaming lifestyle programming distributed across digital channels.

ESL helped pioneer organized professional video game competitions during the early rise of esports. Today their championship tournaments and media programming reach millions of gaming fans globally.

What is Lorem Ipsum?

From a nerdy hobby in the 1990s, gaming has grown to an Olympic competition. This growth and mainstream approval of gaming has been a great opportunity for new gaming startups that are working to take gaming to another level in all aspects.