North American streamer Disguised Toast has unveiled a Patreon to help support his esports team, Disguised.
In a YouTube video discussing the finances of running his team, the influencer admitted that costs had ballooned since starting the team just four months ago.
Last month it was revealed that the organisation is on track to spend over $1m (~£796,000) in 2023, with brands apparently reticent about sponsoring the organisation. Speaking in the video, Disguised Toast expressed his frustration about esports organisations who sometimes fail to deliver real value for brands because esports organisations are “terrible at making content.”
The Patreon will include a weekly video by Toast updating fans on the team. It will also give subscribers an exclusive look at the team’s finances including salaries and revenue. The streamer added that he sees supporters as informal ‘investors’, entitled to get an inside look at performance and corporate news.
Disguised recently entered League of Legends’ NACL earlier this year. However, the organisation did depart with its VALORANT line-up after failing to re-qualify for the North American VCT Challenger League.
While it may be one of the first esports teams to appear on Patreon, Disguised is not the only organisation to attempt to raise revenue through a subscription model for fans. Fnatic launched a similar fan programme supported by blockchain technology in 2022, while organisations like G2 have tried to deepen enthusiastic fan engagement through membership apps.
The Patreon, Toast claims, will help raise the salaries of both employees as well as shoring up the general finances of the team, which has brought in $0 in revenue to date.
