Best Pokemon Champions Builds (Early Meta Tier List & Guide)
Free Parking: The LCS’ Struggle to Incentivize the Bottom of the Pack
Publish Date: August 20, 2022
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In 2016, I sat alone in a DC coffee shop. Sporting a suit that reflected my youth and a binder filled with financial models, it was potentially the biggest moment of my life. For the past two years of business school, time outside of the classroom was spent drinking and attempting to explain the business potential of esports. And for the first time, I had someone eager to listen.
A cold e-mail to a friend of a friend of a professor turned into a four-hour car ride for what could have potentially only been a five-minute coffee. Or worse: cold feet entirely. Over ten emails, two phone calls and a large Excel spreadsheet, there was a general understanding that the conversation would be to explain the esports market. But the underlying motive was to get financial backing to potentially pursue an entrance into the space.
In October of 2015, Immortals would purchase their way into the LCS as a successful venture capitalist-backed organization, the first real success in this category after Ember failed to qualify for the LCS with their investor-backed concept. Yet their purchase at a premium would eventually lead to their downfall — something predictable just a split into their project.
But while the financials of the company would crumble behind the scenes, it did create an opportunity for others to potentially do it better.
Maybe even another business school student could do it.
He walked in dressed in the finest flannel LL Bean had to offer and navigated to the chair across from me. Immediately pointing out that he thought ties were terrible and doesn’t think he would ever wear one again — probably the most life-altering advice I received from our entire exchange — the conversation started light.
And that was his expertise: if you could casually talk about the topic and be entertained or fascinated by it, it was worth your time and money.
Over the course of four hours, five coffees and an unbelievable oatmeal, I rarely spoke. It would be four hours of stories, insights and commentary. He rarely touched the binder, seemingly already memorizing all of the content that was sent his way.