The eSports organization reports a loss of almost $9 million for the quarter
Even though eSports competitions have continued online during the coronavirus pandemic, it doesn’t mean that involved organizations have not taken a hard financial hit during this crisis. Case in point is Allied Esports Entertainment, which has just reported a net loss of $8.8 million during this first quarter of 2020. It was completely unexpected, as that figure is nearly $5 million more than what was reported in the same period last year.
According to what the organization reports, the biggest hit was taken after its flagship eSports venue, the HyperX Esports Arena Las Vegas at the Luxor Hotel & Casino, was closed since mid-March. This also includes the cancellation of the in-person World Poker Tour events that usually take place in this arena; this situation has declined the company’s in-person revenues by 16%. “In the latter part of the quarter, it became clear that shelter-in-place orders would be issued in most cities in the United States and in other markets in which we operate around the globe, resulting in the temporary shut-down of the In-person pillar of our business strategy,” Allied Esports Entertainment CEO Frank Ng said, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Ng explained to the journal that its HyperX Esports Arena held at least 77 events in the same period last year. This 2020, however, only 67 events took place during the same period. He added that “While the COVID-19 pandemic impacted our results in the first quarter, I am reassured by the tremendous popularity of esports and poker, including WPT’s meaningful subscriber growth in March, as the nation and world remain at home.” So the leaders at the company are hopeful to make a solid comeback once regular live events are allowed again.
