69: Unique Opportunity In Esports, with Titus Walker

Can you create a side hustle for yourself in the esports industry without being a skilled gamer?   We’ll hear about that from Titus Walker in today’s episode. He’s the creator and CEO of the Ultimate Endgamers League (UEL) and according to Titus, it’s a type of league that doesn’t exist anywhere else in the gaming world.   He was building up this side hustle, until his then employer gave him an ultimatum - ditch the hustle, or lose your job.   He describes what he’s doing for esports, to what the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has done with martial arts and other fighting disciplines.   Titus has taken what was a seed on an idea, and built it out to having 200 active gamers competing for the $100,000 team prize in this season’s tournament.   What makes this league unique in the esports industry, is that its success is NOT dependent on any one single game.   What You’ll Hear:   02:50 Titus’s backstory 05:11 Not fulfilling his purpose, and being in a cyclical industry pushed him to find another income source 07:07 Buying a VR unit was a turning point 07:54 Past failed attempts have provided great learnings for future ventures 08:40 A new concept in the esports industry - focus on the skill set, not a specific game 10:36 Rather than “pigeonhole” himself to one game/developer/fan base, he found a way to speak to all competitive gamers - by creating UEL, the Ultimate Endgamers League 11:21  An Endgamer is “a master in the artform of gaming” 12:20 The five major genres in gaming 12:58 Titus’s major inspiration - the UFC 14:34 There are 2.5 billion gamers, providing a much larger audience than any major sport 15:00 Titus explains there is no other league that is doing what the UEL is doing 15:28 A ‘spin’ of a large roulette-type wheel determines which of the 33 games will be played 16:30 His league doesn’t depend on any specific games, and the games on the wheel can and do change 18:36 Titus never wanted to do this online 20:36 Gave up the revenue from doing birthday parties to focus solely on gaming and the UEL 21:42 Current revenue sources: team sales, merchandising, sponsors, advertising, tournament entry fees 24:05 Season 7 provides a $100,000 team prize giving other locations big prize money to market as they run tournaments as qualifiers for the UEL 25:40 From player to pro 26:29 Titus is given ultimatum by employer - shut down the UEL or leave 27:40 That gave him the push to go all in and focus 29:18 Getting interest from ROC Nation (JZ’s company), the New Orleans Pelicans, Washington Commanders 30:49  From The Innovator's Dilemma, if Henry Ford had asked customers what they wanted, they would have said, “a faster horse”  31:57 Story of Michelangelo, the little boy, and the Statue of David - “how did you know he was in there?” 34:03 Every bit of money coming in that is not spend on marketing, advertising, is being put back into the players including seeking sponsors 34:27 UEL promotes diversity, especially between “strategy” players and “sports” players who historically don’t mix 35:43 The community determines some of the 33 game titles 36:34 Sponsorship can be in the form of dollars for advertising, headsets, controllers, seats, etc 37:00 Age demographic is typically between 25-35, but as young as 12 and as old as 50 37:50 Community consists of over 10,000 on social, 400 gamers, 40-50 helping with productions 38:40 Why the UEL is growing 39:18 Side hustle opportunities in the esports industry  41:16 Titus suggests you can find a local community of gamers,  and connect with him to host qualifying tournaments to work towards competing for the UEL grand prize 42:22 Titus describes how this could be a side hustle 43:08 30% of the entry fees would go to the UEL 43:39 Potential revenue sources might include; teaching, training and coaching fees, local qualifying tournament fees 44:58 Best tip from Titus to start or build your side hustle 46:08 His “why” - creating opportunities for others 40:00 For Season 7: 5-10,000 viewers per match, over 200 active gamers competing, and $100,000 prize! Wrap Up: 47:36 Look outside your industry for ideas and inspiration 48:38 Leverage your “learning experiences” to be smarter,  wiser, better prepared to handle challenges, and enjoy the increased confidence   Connect with Titus and the UEL:   https://ultimateendgamersleague.com/ https://www.instagram.com/uelesports/ https://www.tiktok.com/@UELesports https://www.youtube.com/@UELesports https://www.facebook.com/UELesports   Connect with Joan: https://www.instagram.com/joanposivy/ https://www.facebook.com/posivy/ https://www.sidehustlehero.com/about/ Be on the show! https://www.sidehustlehero.com/guests/intake/