After spending $32M, World of Tanks developer Wargaming is still figuring out esports

AMSTERDAM — If you spend millions of dollars on something, you would hope that you know exactly what that something is. But that was not the case for one of the biggest publishers in Eastern Europe.

Wargaming, the publisher responsible for the online multiplayer shooters World of Tanks, World of Warplanes, and World of Warships, has spent $32 million on esports, and it admits that it is still figuring out what it even is. In a talk at the Casual Connect Europe conference in Amsterdam last week, Wargaming esports chief Mohamed Fadl explained that the company is still feeling out the competitive gaming scene. And even while research firm Newzoo points out that esports is $252 million business thanks to sponsorships and ticket sales, Fadl says that Wargaming spent years wondering where to derive value from its Wargaming League (WGL) events.