This study puts both esports gameplay and spectatorship into consideration and pinpoints how individual and structural factors explain why people play and watch esports to better understand the complexities and intricacies of esports consumption. Results indicate that both measures commonly associated with active audience, and structural theories played a significant role in explaining esports consumption. Specifically, esports gameplay was explained relatively more by structural factors than by individual factors. Different from esports gameplay, esports spectatorship was driven significantly more by individual factors. Preferences, motivations, availability, and access significantly predicted both esports gameplay and spectatorship. Sports fandom and use of interactive features, on the other hand, only predicted esports spectatorship but did not influence gameplay. By employing an integrative approach, this study aids in the development of conceptual framework that will serve to predict esports consumer behavior.

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Social media provides an area for athletes to engage with a mass audience and, in turn, has users create a narrative about the athlete in a collaborative effort. Using a platform, such as Twitter, offers numerous affordances for network interactions, which result in the shaping of online identities. Gaining insight into how resource mobilization impacts dialog and identity construction of an athlete is essential as sports have the unique ability to reach and influence a broad audience. This article explores how J.J. Watt used resource mobilization on Twitter to aid the Hurricane Harvey relief, and how his identity was socially constructed over a 3-year period. Based on a textual analysis of 2,965 tweets, the results show that Watt was able to use his celebrity status and active involvement to achieve the largest crowdsourced fundraiser in history. Further, Watt’s actions transformed his identity as a football player into a humanitarian.