In 2014 I had the 4th largest eSports tournament platform (online)

1st - MLG (Major League Gaming) // Worth $45M
2nd - UMG Gaming // $3M
3rd - MainStageGames // Sold to UMG for $500k
4th - Me... an 18 year old kid

Industry valuation at the time: $190M

Then I got scammed...

Just got my first credit card, $2500 limit

Maxed it out on a completely new website with the developer that previously designed my platform (from scratch)

This was the "next level" and would've put me in a true competitors position with the major players (MLG & UMG)

Signed the contract, and anxiously awaited...

Project was set to take 3 months...

After 3/m had passed, it was always "another month/week"...

Responses came slower, if at all

Then one day it was a message along the lines of "I can't complete it but I'm keeping your money"...

I was devastated, man

Contacted some lawyers and was basically told it's a possibility to fight it, but it would ultimately end up costing me more to fight than to just take this one on the chin

Was working a full-time job I f*ckin hated to support it, but either that or school

And basically had to let it go...

Time had gone on once at this point, so the damage was done and brand reputation out the door

Industry valuations in the years to follow were:
2015: $325M
2016: $495M
2017: $650M
2018: $865M
2019: $1.1B
2020: $1.8B

You've got franchise leagues now, with major investment firms, professional athletes, and top tier businessmen getting in on it

Still think about it to this day... "what could have been"

But, that was just life both teaching and preparing me for my inevitable success

By the time I was 21, with some poor business and financial decisions and absolute desperation to fulfill what it means to be an entrepreneur... I was filing for bankruptcy

But that's a story for another thread, another time