Game on, India: New online gaming bill levels up growth, brands & global clout

With the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025 now in effect, India’s gaming and esports industry is entering its most transformative era yet. The Bill not only bans online money games but also officially recognizes esports as a legitimate competitive sport, a distinction the industry has long awaited.

The Tech Panda spoke to two esports advocates to understand why it is so important for esports to be recognized separately from real money games and what this means for esports athletes and the ecosystem.

Clarity Fuels Growth

For years, esports in India has been wrongly clubbed with real-money games like fantasy, poker and rummy, creating confusion among investors, brands, and even parents. This Bill finally provides legitimacy and recognition, paving the way for more state-level and grassroots tournaments, scholarships, and educational integration.

Drawing the succinct difference between both, Akshat Rathee, Co-founder and MD of NODWIN Gaming, told The Tech Panda that esports is a contest of skill and physical dexterity, where outcomes are determined by training, practice, teamwork, and strategy. Online money games, on the other hand, involve chance-based play with financial stakes.

“For nearly a decade, esports in India was unfairly conflated with online money games, which created a stigma and regulatory ambiguity. But the motivations and mechanics of both are completely different.”

Animesh Agarwal, Co-founder and CEO of S8UL tells The Tech Panda that for a long time, the biggest challenge the esports industry faced was confusion.

“People often equated esports with “e-gaming” or “i-gaming,” which included real money titles like poker or rummy. That was very harmful to us because esports is built on skill, dedication, and teamwork, not chance.”

Rathee emphasizes that the separation brought by the Online Gaming Act is vital because it provides air cover for growth.

“Esports athletes now have formal recognition that what they do is legitimate sport, not a proxy for gambling. This unlocks government support, state-level programs, and even institutional partnerships with schools and universities much like traditional sports.”

Agarwal says the government’s move to recognize esports separately is a game-changer for our athletes and communities.

“It removes the stigma of being compared to gambling and tells parents, players, and institutions that esports is a structured, skill-based discipline. For athletes, this means their efforts can now be viewed at par with cricket or football, careers built on training and performance. For amateur gamers, it means the path from playing at home to competing in school leagues, campus tournaments, or even representing India globally is real and validated.”

This could be India’s chance to shine on the global stage at events like the Olympics, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, Esports World Cup, or the upcoming Esports Nations Cup 2026 by EWCF.

Brands Reallocating Budgets

Non-endemic brands (FMCG, auto, lifestyle, tech) now have the confidence to shift budgets into team sponsorships, esports leagues, and creator partnerships. We can expect a surge in in-game brand integrations like Nike’s Fortnite skins, Monster Energy in Death Stranding are global precedents.

Long-term brand partnerships are in the wings.

“Non-endemic brands in FMCG, lifestyle, tech, and automobile now have the clarity they need to confidently sponsor esports without fear of reputational backlash,” – Akshat Rathee

“Non-endemic brands in FMCG, lifestyle, tech, and automobile now have the clarity they need to confidently sponsor esports without fear of reputational backlash,” says Rathee.

He informs that NODWIN Gaming is already seeing conversations with global investors and partners shift.

“Instead of “wait-and-watch,” there is now a willingness to commit to multi-year investments because the legal ambiguity is gone. Esports is no longer seen as a risky experiment but as a long-term entertainment category, much like film, music, or traditional sports,” he states.

India is already catching up. BGMI brought Hardik Pandya and Arshdeep Singh into the game, alongside Ranveer Singh skins, making brands part of the gameplay identity. Brands will now confidently allocate long-term sponsorship budgets, not just one-off experiments.

Investor Confidence & Game Publishing Boom

This clarity de-risks the industry for VCs and institutional investors. Global capital can now flow into infrastructure, IP-based leagues, and AAA game studios from India. As India ranked 4th globally in PC game development this year (non-RMG), with 127 titles this year versus 35 last year and just two the year before. Talent is not the bottleneck anymore, capital is.

Rathee says that investor confidence has fundamentally changed now, “For years, institutional investors and VCs were cautious because they didn’t want to be associated with activities that could be misinterpreted as gambling. Now, with the bill explicitly recognizing esports as sport, the category is de-risked.”

One immediate outcome of this new-found investor confidence includes much needed capital inflows into esports IPs and infrastructure.

“We’ll see larger prize pools, professional leagues, and global-standard events being built in India,” he adds.

“For years, reports on “the gaming industry” bundled esports and money games together, which inflated numbers but confused everyone. Now, investors know what is legitimate esports and what is not.” – Animesh Agarwal

This clarity is exactly what investors were waiting for, says Agarwal, “For years, reports on “the gaming industry” bundled esports and money games together, which inflated numbers but confused everyone. Now, investors know what is legitimate esports and what is not. I believe this will open doors for more structured VC and global investment into Indian esports orgs, talent pipelines, and events.”

He adds that the expected brand partnerships at scale will not just be one-off campaigns but long-term sponsorships from sectors like FMCG, automobile, lifestyle, and tech. Like China post-2008, India could be on the cusp of building its own “PUBG moment” in years to come.

Player & Community Perspective

This Bill also ends the misuse of the word esports by RMG companies, cleaning up the narrative. It ensures research, reports, and industry data now reflect esports authentically, not inflated by RMG numbers.

The Bill has an impact on amateur gamers as well. It brings greater mainstream acceptance, with parents seeing esports alongside cricket or chess as a serious pursuit.

This clarity removes social stigma, builds trust among parents, and most importantly, creates a sustainable pathway for talent to grow without regulatory uncertainty hanging over them,” — Akshat Rathee

“For amateur gamers, this means the tournaments they play in are now aligned with a globally recognized sports structure, with clear progression from grassroots competitions to the world stage at events like the Asian Games, the Esports World Cup, or the newly announced Esports Nations Cup by EWCF. This clarity removes social stigma, builds trust among parents, and most importantly, creates a sustainable pathway for talent to grow without regulatory uncertainty hanging over them,” says Rathee.

Agarwal says that this becomes important socially, “Parents used to worry if their child was “wasting time” gaming. Now they see esports included in Khelo India, the Asian Games, and soon even the Olympic Esports Games. That recognition means a child who loves gaming can pursue it seriously without being misunderstood.”

“Parents used to worry if their child was “wasting time” gaming. Now they see esports included in Khelo India, the Asian Games, and soon even the Olympic Esports Games. That recognition means a child who loves gaming can pursue it seriously without being misunderstood.” – Animesh Agarwal

This also means unlocking of new career pathways for Indian players, across both mainstream titles (BGMI, Valorant) and other games like EAFC, Tekken, Chess, and Street Fighter.

Strengthens India’s cultural influence – “skins, emotes, and in-game items are the new sneakers as Cosmetics create social value, but unlike RMG, they don’t affect gameplay fairness.

Another winner, Agarwal says, is the creator economy group, which will see expansion. “With more brands now confident in associating with gaming content creators, we’ll see better monetization for streamers and influencers who inspire the next generation of players.”

“For players, this means more prize pools, better infrastructure, and more professional leagues to compete in. For creators, it means larger collaborations and opportunities to turn passion into sustainable careers.”

Unlike money games, leading esports titles keep microtransactions purely cosmetic (skins, emotes, collectibles) with zero impact on competitive fairness and no real-world cash-outs. Video Game Publishers like Activision and Valve strictly ban account reselling to protect integrity.

This clarity helps parents, brands, and regulators see esports for what it is, a safe, skill-based, culturally relevant pursuit.