I’m slowly coming around to competitions and their importance in the community worldwide, and I think this is a valid point that he is making here.
It’s a complex issue, but there really isn’t any reason why the model of East Coast Masters couldn’t be adapted to other Regional competitions and even Nationals/Worlds.
What are your thoughts? Does anybody here actively participate behind the scenes at competitions?
Cash prizes in yo-yo isn’t anything new… Nothing else seems different than most contests, but I couldn’t get through more than 5 minutes of this video so I probably missed something.
Agreed! It’s pretty crazy that you get 0$ for winning the world yoyo contest!!!
Wait, WHAT, THEN HOW DO PEOPLE MAKE A GOOD LIVING OFF OF THIS SPORT?
sponsorships and royalties off selling yoyos I guess.
Imo you should get something like $10k for winning Worlds.
People don’t. At least competitively. Unless you’re near world champion level and sponsored by a big company
It would appear that the economics of the ECM model don’t scale. That is to say, the larger the event, the less money there is to hand out as prize money, presumably because the costs to put on events above a certain size increase faster than the money gathered from sponsors, vendors, and contestants.
I haven’t watched the video, but i do want to say that yoyoing just isn’t a very profitable thing to do; Whether it be producing them or playing with them at a high level, there is little to no money to be made.
It would be really cool to see huge prize money bonuses being handed out, but i honestly don’t think that will ever be a reality.
The barrier to entry is too high with yoyoing. It takes most people a few weeks of practice to be able to fuddle through even very basic tricks. Fidget spinners had such a huge explosion of sales because unlike yoyos, there’s no skill required to enjoy.
Instant gratification is king in this current age, and although yoyos can be a lifetime of fun and incredible memories for people willing to put in the work, most don’t want to have to commit to the initial practice it takes, making it very difficult for the market of yoyos to become large and profitable.
It’s a very niche community, but i truly think it’s best that way.
A positive side effect to the community being so unprofitable is that you know that people who yoyo at a very high level are doing so because they truly love what they do, not just because of the money/fame they get from doing it.
Just my 2c