DisguisedToast says DSG finally had a break-even month, reveals future plans
"One year ago, I made the worst financial decision of my life and I got into esports," Jeremy "DisguisedToast" Wang said in a tongue-in-cheek manner, reflecting on his initial foray into the esports industry.
Despite budgeting $500,000, the actual spending for DSG soared to $1 million in its first year, doubling the planned expenditure.
In a video recollecting the events of 2023 and giving an idea of what's to come in 2024, he revealed that November 2023 was the first profitable month for the organisation. He also shared cautious optimism for next year to reach an annual break-even point.
DSG’s 2023 in review
Both successes and setbacks have marked DSG's journey in esports. The creation of a VALORANT team proved to be an expensive and emotionally taxing venture, from the disappointing performance despite signing Jaccob "yay" Whiteaker to the success of the Game Changers team.
In League of Legends, DSG formed a team that triumphed in the North American Challengers League during the summer split. Given the fully franchised structure of the LCS, there currently exists no way of promotion to the highest league, therefore forcing Disguised's players to look elsewhere to take the next step in their careers while DSG was forced to rebuild.
The organization's involvement in Game Changers, a system for women and marginalized genders, was a mixed bag for DSG, with significant victories marred by an incident involving a competing team with a cheater.
DisguisedToast also signed an Apex Legends team, which competed in the World Finals, and despite finishing in the bottom half, is still a scene DSG would like to stay involved in. "I'm going to do everything in my power to work with EA to continue supporting the Apex Legends scene,"he shared.
Future plans
DisguisedToast also explained his motivations for his two-year plan, sharing, "I want to create this idea that ‘Hey! Esports should be a passion thing first and a financial thing second and I think in the last few years the priority wasn't like that."
Still looking to reach an annual break-even point, DSG has launched a merch collection and will continue with its Patreon strategy, Toast revealed. Looking forward, DSG plans to field teams in at least four esports titles next year, potentially looking to add another one later on.
On top of its involvement in VALORANT, League of Legends, Apex Legends, and Team Fight Tactics, an entry into the fighting game scene is on the horizon, emphasizing passion and engagement in esports over pure financial gain.
