Esports stars have shorter careers than NFL players. Here’s why.

Johnathan “Fatal1ty” Wendel was once the greatest professional gamer in the western world. In the nine years he competed, he won 12 championships and five MVP awards across a number of first-person shooter titles such as “Quake III Arena,” “Painkiller” and “Unreal Tournament.” By the end of his competitive career, Wendel earned $458,489 in prize money. He played his last professional match in 2007. He was 26 years old.