Esports booms across Africa as youth power a fast-growing market

Africa’s esports ecosystem is entering a new phase of scale and professionalism, with a young, mobile-first audience pushing rapid market growth and turning tournaments from South Africa to Nigeria and Kenya into major regional events.

Africa’s gaming and esports market has shifted from niche to mainstream in just a few years, driven above all by demographics and smartphones. More than 60 per cent of the continent’s population is under 25, and an estimated 300–350 million people now play games, mostly on mobile devices. Market analysts estimate that Africa’s wider gaming sector was worth around US$2.1bn in 2024 and could reach nearly US$5.7bn by 2033, with esports and competitive play among its fastest-growing segments.

South Africa currently leads the continent’s esports scene. According to recent industry reporting, the country’s dedicated esports market is worth about US$29m in 2025, almost double the US$14.3m recorded in 2020. Johannesburg and Cape Town host flagship events such as rAge Expo and the Mamelodi Sundowns Esports Championship, where this year’s edition offered a prize pool of R200,000 (around €11,000). Local organisations like Goliath Gaming and Bravado Gaming now field rosters at international tournaments, while on-screen talent such as broadcaster Samantha Timms help build domestic audiences.

West and East Africa are catching up fast. In Nigeria, the number of active players has climbed to about 46.6 million, 90 per cent of them on mobile, with annual gaming revenues projected at US$300m. Lagos recently hosted GamrX 2025, billed as Africa’s biggest esports tournament, which brought together more than 1,000 competitors from 13 countries and offered a prize pool of ₦15m (roughly US$19,500). Kenya, meanwhile, staged the 2025 PUBG MOBILE Africa Cup at Charter Hall in Nairobi; 16 elite squads from across the continent competed, with South Africa’s XForce Rejects winning the title and becoming the first African team to qualify for the PUBG MOBILE Global Championship.

Governments and institutions are starting to see esports as a tool for youth development and digital innovation. Guinea formally launched its National Esports Federation in October 2025 to coordinate events and attract investment, highlighting competitive gaming as a driver of skills and jobs for young people. Regional gatherings such as the Africa Gaming Expo in Lagos have also brought together regulators, operators and fintech firms to discuss how to build sustainable ecosystems around gaming, payments and integrity.

For now, most of the money still comes from sponsorship, brand partnerships and telecom-backed events rather than media-rights megadeals. But as mobile internet access improves and local heroes emerge on global stages, analysts expect Africa’s esports audience and revenues to keep expanding. With a vast, digitally native youth population and growing institutional support, the continent is positioning itself as one of the next major frontiers in competitive gaming.