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As the Denver Broncos defeated the Carolina Panthers in the 2016 Super Bowl, some 111.9 million TV viewers tuned into to see the game unfold. This sports program ranked as the third-most-watched broadcast in U.S. TV history. The overwhelming attraction that viewers have towards sports games, specifically when championships are at stake is undeniable.
Maybe then, it shouldn’t be surprising that the League of Legends Championship was viewed by 43 million people (either live or on replay) according to Riot Games. This championship was viewed more than any other sporting event that year, including that of the World Cup.
Yet still plenty would classify this as a video game competition rather than as an actual sport. Classifying themselves as e-Sports, or electronic sports, is declaring their recognition to been seen as a legitimate sporting event. Even with the growing presence of e-Sports leagues and tournaments like these the question is still debated on whether video gaming is considered a sport or not.
“Its hard to determine honestly,” says Bernardo Jiminez avid gamer and recreational competitor of eSports tournaments.
Out of the hundreds of eSports games Jimenez go-to game to compete in is called Skullgurls. This 2D fighting game engages players to combat against each other while playing as certain characters. Challenging their opponents the goal is to knock off the opposing player or have the most cumulative remaining health when the game’s time runs out.
“Tournaments get heated, there are commentators reporting each players every move, there are money prizes for the top players. A lot of people just don’t know the scope of what eSports is yet,” says Jiminez.
Without knowing the dynamic and makeup of e-Sports tournaments, people may just associate video gaming with individuals at home playing Call of Duty or FIFA for fun. But the composition of the e-Sports is not that. E-Sports consists of professional gamers practicing for hours of the day to hone in on their skills. Players compete with one another, building their teams to take down their challenging opponents to win the grand cash prize. Top competitors of e-Sports find themselves playing in front of a stadium of cheering fans, there for their favorite players and game alike.
This audience of fans for e-Sports competitions has only seen rapid growth over the last couple years. According to statistics from Newzoo the global audience for eSports grew from 204 million to 292 million just from 2014 to 2016 alone.
With a growing audience comes greater revenue for e-Sports. In 2017 the growing league accrued over $696 million U..S dollars according to Statista data. Further growth in e-Sports in the future projects to see an increase of revenue to some $1.49 billion U.S. dollars by the year 2020.
Projections by leading gamer of Olof Kajbjer sees e-Sports being as big as the NHL in the span of 10 years, as reported by CNN.
Still, what is holding people back from declaring video gaming on the level of competitive e-Sports as a classified sport?
In an attempt to define what is a sport, the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF) outlined key factors that need to be meet for an activity to be considered a sport. Of these stipulations it includes that the sport proposed has an included element of competition. In analyzing the time and dedication professionals put into their selected e-Sports games it is apparent there is an element of intense competition.
“Top ranked players spend 10-12 hours a day practicing and honing their gaming skills to place and win at tournaments,” said Tyler Valentin avid Smite Battleground of the God gamer.
Smite, the twelfth overall ranked e-Sports game for 2017, is an online team player streaming game. Players make up their teams playing as different god characters with varying strengths and powers to work together to counteract and defeat their enemy team. In 2017 alone this e-Sports game conducted eight tournaments with over 1.3 million dollars up to grab in prize money, according to eSports Earnings. This sense of competition is the case throughout all eSports games, some including Dota 2, League of Legends, Overwatch, Gears of War 4, among many others.
Furthermore another stipulation for a sport as determined by the GAISF is that the sport in question does not rely on any element of “luck” specifically integrated into the sport.
In the gamut of e-Sports games from battle games to first person shooters, luck doesn’t play an aspect in winning the game. Players reflexes and mental agility come to the forefront of necessary skills when competing.
“In a game like Smite it’s truly a mentally stimulating game where your team needs to constantly be aware of the power and strengths that the other team is accruing throughout the game,” said Valentin. “It’s not just going out there and causing damage to the other players and winning, there is intense strategy that plays a critical part in a teams victory.”
But even with the apparent sense of competition, skill, training, massive audience appeal and growing revenue from e-Sports some people may still have their doubts. Other varying definitions of what constitutes a sport often include physical exertion as a fundamental aspect of a sport. Although physical exertion is not outward when thinking of gaming, there are very real physical impacts from constant playing of e-Sports.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, sometimes referred to as Gamer’s Thumb, back pain and even strained necks are common complains of gamers. So with players competing the professional level of eSports and committing hours a day to practicing physical symptoms are apparent.
If still not convinced of the validity of e-Sports, it is vital to know that colleges across the nation have started up varsity e-Sports programs to train students to play at this professional level. Institutions including Colombia College, Robert Morris University and Indiana Tech among others are allotting students scholarships to come and joining their varsity e-Sports programs. Just as a football or baseball player would receive a scholarship to play their sport, so now are e-Sport players.
“E-Sports aren’t the future, they’re the present,” said Colombia College (Missouri)President Dr. Scott Dalrymple in a YouTube video. “True skill at video gaming is just as impressive and just as legitimate as excellence in traditional sports.”
It is clear that the future of sports is altered with the new dominating wave of e-Sports gaming.