Hey everyone,
We're back with another dev diary for Esport Manager: Road To Major, and today let's discover a topic without which no professional esports team could function, sponsors! We know that financial management is key, which is why we've spent a lot of time ensuring the sponsorship system is realistic, deep, and full of interesting decisions.
How to Earn? Introducing "Marketability"
Money is the driving force behind every team, and sponsors are your primary source of income. But how do you attract the biggest and best deals? The key is your team's Marketability. This will be expressed as a percentage and visually represented by five stars (or ten half-stars).
What makes up Marketability?
World Ranking Position: The higher you are, the more attractive you are to sponsors.
Every 5 positions in the top hundred earns you +2%.
Being in the Top 10 brings an additional +5%.
And reaching the Top 3 adds +5%! You can gain a maximum of 50% this way.
Individual Player Marketability: Your star players have their own value. The more popular and successful your players, the better for the entire team. This contributes a maximum of 30% to the team.
Facility and Staff Bonuses: Investing in your facilities and qualified staff pays off! These factors contribute the remaining 20% to your overall Marketability.
Each sponsor will offer you a contract with several key parameters:
You can only get as good a deal as your marketability level is, this value can never exceed your current Marketability but it can go lower. It's up to you to improve your reputation and attract better deals!
Contract Duration: How long (months) the sponsor will collaborate with you.
Upfront Payment: An immediate financial injection.
Monthly Payment: A stable income for your budget.
Bonus Payment: A one-time reward for achieving specific goals.
Sponsor Types and Their Offers
You will be able to have 1 main sponsor and 4 side sponsors.
Main Sponsor
The main sponsor will offer the longest and most beneficial contracts, usually ranging from 6 to 12 months. Their bonus offers will be ambitious but financially very attractive. For weaker teams, this could be qualifying for the Major, while for the best, it might be reaching the final stage of the Major tournament.
Other Sponsors
These partners will offer shorter contracts, typically 2 to 6 months, with smaller monthly payments. However, their bonus offers will be very interesting and strategically important, such as winning a certain number of matches, triumphing in an X-Tier tournament, reaching the finals or semifinals of an X-Tier tournament, or hitting a specific rank in the world standings.
Details That Delight!
To perfect the realism, we've implemented a system where sponsor logos will appear directly on your team's jerseys! Each style will have predefined positions, sizes, and rotations for logo placement.
What sponsorship goals would you set for your team first? Let us know!