Women are increasingly challenging China’s male-dominated esports industry where players demand millions to compete professionally in the esports industry, currently though to be worth $493 million (R6.9 billion) globally.

China boast the world's’ largest internet population, with the government estimating that more than 730 million of China’s 1.3 billion people have access to the internet.

There are an estimated 170 million esports players and fans in that country alone.





While women participation has increased exponentially the past few years, their prize money and sponsorships are still puny compared to that of male contestants.

Alice Zhang, one of the few professional female esports players in China, says she doesn’t mind being paid less, as long as she is able to do what she does.

She spends up to 10 hours a day training to compete professionally and is a member of LLG (an acronym for Love, Laughter, and Girls) – one of China’s top female esports teams.

As the industry grows and female participation increases, the gender-gap will decrease, a hopeful Zhang says.

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