Giving autographs on the fly is not that easy. Precision, speed, and apprehension of all surfaces are the key words. Fabien Devide, alias “Neo”, receives in his hands a thin yellow and black flag from the soft hands of a teenager. “Hold it tight”, kindly orders the thirty-year-old, founder of the esports structure Vitality, who then affixes his signature to it. A knowing look as if to say silently “I’m in control”, before concluding with a broad smile: “It’s Raphaël Varane [ancien vice-capitaine de l’équipe de France de football] who taught me everything”. His players, Dan Madesclaire, “apEX”, the Dane Emil Reif, alias “Magisk”, or the Northerner Mathieu Herbaut, better known as “ZywOo”, also perform with meticulousness on caps, backpacks, jerseys, sometimes directly on the body. And they never say no to a little bonus photo. Professional work.
On May 8, about 300 people had obtained their ticket to enter the HQ at 102 boulevard de Sébastopol (3rd arrondissement of Paris), where the headquarters of the team with the logo in the shape of a bee, its jersey shop are located. and of giveaways, as well as a state-of-the-art cybercafé, geared towards playing video games. A day that brought a little “concrete” and “fervor”, explains “Néo”, in a universe where the action takes place entirely behind the screens. The affiliation with the stars of the Blues, it does not stop only at autographs. Vitality, the largest French sports organization, is also claiming a title of world champion. The team participates in the “Major” of the famous team shooter counter strike, for the first time organized in Paris, until May 21. The Accor Arena is almost full for the final stages from Thursday to Sunday, which may crown “apEX” and his teammates as the best team on the planet. The broadcast is operated by the British company Blast.tvwhich employs “400 people” for the production, confides to L’Express its director Robbie Douek, who was able to count on the support of Emmanuel Macron in person to announce the event. The latter hopes for new viewing records. During an edition in Stockholm, in 2021, some 2.7 million spectators had connected simultaneously to follow the fights, and several tens of millions for the entire show. As much as a weekend of “Formula 1”, enthuses Robbie.
A player from the Vitality team demonstrating on the Counter-Strike shooter
© / Chloe Ramdani
Prophecy
Vitality stands at a crossroads. “ZywOo”, in top form, is one of the best players in the world. And this is the last annual “Major” of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, before the next appearance of a new version (CS 2). “We dream of a ‘France98’ effect for esports”, says Nicolas Maurer, co-founder of Vitality, in an alcove of his hive on boulevard de Sébastopol. A final victory, the 1.25 million euro tournament prize, the “home cup”. And then the massive fallout for a young discipline still in search of legitimacy. Nearly 240,000 new football licenses had been subscribed the day after Zizou’s coronation at the Stade de France. What if tomorrow, a generation dreamed of being the next “ZywOo”? “Every sport requires a person to admire, a superstar. It allows a whole bunch of people to hope to become as good as him”, wants to believe his teammate Magisk.
The structure blows out its 10 candles this year. So far the adventure is a pretty one success story. “Néo” and “Nico” meet when they are video editors for the same box. “Neo” is the gamer of the duo. A real one, of those who come back with red eyes from their weekends connected to volunteer competitions, “LANs” where the rewards are used at most to buy a few snacks. At the time of their meeting, fashion is at call of duty, another shooting game. Nicolas is less familiar with this world, but sees the full economic potential of the project. With the growing popularity of multiplayer modes, “the consumption of esports will last. And there is no age limit for taking an interest in it”, he indicates, for the moment little denied by the figures. Currently, some 10.8 million French people over the age of 15 consume or practice esports according to the latest barometer of the discipline published last November, more than double than in 2018. The average age of a game player lambda video is 39 years old.
A happy coincidence, Vitality benefited 10 years ago from visibility as well as new sources of income from streaming, via YouTube and the Twitch platform specializing in gaming. A certain “Gotaga”, friend of Neo, is the big star of the game Call of Duty. He carries with “Néo” the sports section of Vitality, which very quickly earns his stripes and allows him to survive. Everyone keeps their job on the side, for safety. Nicolas, meanwhile, talks to the big shots. In 2019, it is the consecration: Vitality raises 14 million euros. The structure is becoming a little more professional and, a new nod to the Blues, is opening a performance center at the Stade de France. It is diversifying and recruiting intensely on League of Legends (LoL), the other major title of the esports scene. Fans flock together: an official supporter club, the Golden Hornets, was born in 2018. Vitality now has nearly a million subscribers on Instagram, more than 700,000 on Twitter, and 270,000 followers on its WebTV on Twitch. Each player also feeds his small community. Vitality employs about forty of them.
Model Battle
This is where things get tricky. Esports remains, despite everything, a young industry without broadcasting rights, and whose game publishers and broadcasting platforms (YouTube and Twitch) capture the majority of revenues (the global market is estimated at 1.5 billion euros per year). However, to remain competitive, esports salaries have until recently experienced strong growth. The latter thus represent “the majority of Vitality’s expenses”, recognizes Nicolas Maurer. “For the best paid players, it is not uncommon to reach 50,000 euros a month,” informs Jérôme Coupez, head of a player representation agency, Prodigy Agency, some of whom are in the ranks of vitality. With income from sponsorship, the annual income of a “ZywOo” is estimated at more than one million euros. That’s more than many football players. “counter strike is the game that costs the most for a structure. Very few formations can afford to have a competitive team capable of playing a Major”, assures Bertrand Amar, director of the Esport section at Webedia.
To all this is added other costs, not insignificant, like the staff, from mental trainers to leading coaches. Vitality has notably secured the services of bronze medalist in canoeing and kayaking at the Rio Olympics, Matthieu Péché, as manager. All these little people are sent more than half the year to the four corners of the planet for competitions. “Every year, I spend more time with the team than with my girlfriend”, laughs yellow Magisk, just back from Rio (Brazil). “I believe a lot in the future of esports, but less in that of the teams”, blows a connoisseur of the environment in the face of this debauchery of means.
Vitality therefore also relies on brands: Hummel, Crédit Agricole and Aldi are official partners of Parisian training. The sale of jerseys and objects also makes it possible to earn a little money. Vitality is finally embracing the shift to Web3 with a blockchain-based app that rewards its teams’ most ardent followers, while fueling it with quests and collectables. “The whole industry looks at what we offer,” says Nicolas Maurer. Vitality nevertheless remains addicted to fundraising. In January 2022, the company was again bailed out with 50 million euros. This big ticket commits him.
Vitality’s first Major match is scheduled for this Saturday at 4 p.m. “It’s the tournament of a lifetime”, summarizes “Néo”. Because the post-“Major” is uncertain. No one knows what the new version of counter strikecompeted by new generation games, with “pop” graphics, less realistic (and therefore less bloody), like Valorant Or Fortnite. Characteristics better accepted by the youngest and their families. Finally, competing models of the bee structure are beginning to emerge. The Karmine Corp and more recently the Gentle Mates rely on top influencers. Kameto for the first. The Youtubeur-star Squeezie (18 million subscribers) and… Gotaga, the former from Vitality, for the second. “As they are carried by an influencer, these teams immediately have a strong audience, and they make it possible to better sell sponsorship tickets to brands”, explains Bertrand Amar. A decisive advantage as the economy has recently contracted. This new model is therefore considered the most viable at the moment. Except by Vitality, of course. “Bet everything on the influence, we gave. We too have gone through this path, and already with Gotaga”, observes Fabien “Néo” Devide.
The structure tries to stand above the fray. By focusing on substantive topics, for example. Cédric, a 20-year-old Parisian who met at the May 8 event, appreciates Vitality’s efforts to develop women’s esports, which is still too little present in a video game world often criticized for its misogyny and cyberbullying problems. “It’s a real sign of openness. The difficulties these girls went through to find a place in the industry, it upset me.” Then, by highlighting its status as a pioneer. Unstoppable. In esports, experience is extremely rare. “I think we just grew up,” concludes Neo.