There are rumors and speculations, but actual salaries remain largely unknown. Greele’s salary admission created a buzz in the esports community not just because it’s a big number, but because fans don’t often get to hear concrete salary numbers within the esports industry. It’s no stretch to assume LCS players like Yiliang “Doublelift” Peng and Zachary “Sneaky” Scuderi could make a similar amount of money if they turned to full-time streaming. Of course, there are many other variables that would dictate Shroud’s true annual salary, but it’s safe to say he most likely makes more as a streamer than he would as a pro player. That’s not even counting Twitch, where he was estimated to make around $112,000 a month based on his subscriber count, and that’s before factoring in donations and sponsorships. Since YouTubers get paid between $2 and $7 per 1,000 monetized view after the platform takes its cut, it can be estimated that Shroud makes $440,000 a year from YouTube ads alone. His YouTube channel has over 5.5 million subscribers, accumulating over 480 million views. While there are no confirmed salary numbers out there, retired Counter-Strike: Global Offensive player Michael “Shroud” Grzesiek most likely makes much more money through streaming than he ever did while competing with Cloud9.

But famous LCS players have the potential to make immense amounts of money by streaming. Many esports players have retired to the full-time streamer life, usually referencing stress as the reason. It’s possible that teams are paying their top players more and more to ensure that these salaries remain more lucrative than a full-time streaming career. Could big names in the LCS be skewing the average? The base minimum salary in the LCS is $75,000, according to Greeley. This sudden influx of cash could easily lead to players earning bigger paychecks.Īnother theory is that the average number is inflated based on the salaries of the LCS’ superstar players. Last year, it was reported that teams had to pay $10 million for a franchise slot in the LCS. Esports is a rapidly growing industry, especially in and around League of Legends. Many League of Legends fans are speculating that the overall growth esports industry is the main reason. There are a couple reasons behind LCS salaries jumping to such a staggering amount in such a short time. The reason for the rapid rise of LCS salaries This is a salary that rivals that of Major League Soccer players in 2016, according to an ESPN report. In just over two years, the average has gone from $105,000 to $300,000. The shocking six-figure amount is more than double what the average LCS salary was in 2017.

Csgo pro player salary