This disclosure describes techniques for tailoring sets of streaming video encoding profiles for variegated future live content based on the characteristics of prior live content (e.g., recordings of content originally provided live). Optimization of multiple sets of streaming video encoding profiles (referred to herein as an encoding ladders) to accommodate variegated live content and diverse playback conditions, includes sampling of previously-live video content, prioritization of encoding parameters, rate-quality data sampling of an encoding parameter combination space, data space pruning, and optimizing cost functions based on system constraints. As an example, each set of streaming video encoding profiles may be optimized for a respective category of live content. A video encoding profile optimized for a given category of live content (e.g., events of the given category, which may be any desirable category of live content) may be referred to herein as an event-adapted encoding profile. Potential categories of live content include, but are not limited to, sports content (e.g., sports content generally or in a more specific category such as a particular sport, a particular league, a particular team, a regular season game, a playoff game, a championship game, etc. and including any sports-like activities including traditional sports like soccer and football as well as other sports such as motorsports and e-sports events), arts and entertainment content (e.g., indoor and outdoor concerts, musicals, live variety shows, etc.), business content (e.g., business news reports, online auction broadcasts, etc.), music content (e.g., music video), newscast content, political content, science content, spiritual content, live broadcasts using fixed or stationary cameras, live broadcasts using mobile cameras, etc.