In the United States, many young kids traditionally dreamed of always of making it to the big leagues in various professional sports such as football, baseball and ice hockey. In the near future, that might change, where they might dream of making it to eSports leagues.
Soon that might change with video games. eSports, which stands for electronic sports, enjoy sponsorships, endorsements, deals, contracts, prize money and international fame; moreover, the video game events are in competition with traditional sports leagues for live viewership, as well as advertising.
The emergence and increase of video game competition on an international scale has demanded a great deal of attention and strategic investment. The question as to whether or not eSports are considered actual sports is another story.
eSports are doing exceedingly well from a commercial standpoint since they draw many spectators, they mimic traditional principles that are predominant in sports (such as exhilarating content, clever team names, competition and an unknown outcome), and they are “visually pleasing” for the crowds; moreover, they attract a younger demographic, which is an added bonus (where almost two thirds of their fans are in between the ages of 18 and 34, and mostly male).
In addition, from a business perspective, eSports attracts advertisers, where the outlook for video gaming sports is quite impressive. As a result, they attract such major companies as Samsung, Red Bull and Coca-Cola. They have also made attempts to monetize across revenue streams, merchandise, ticket sales, broadcast rights, and even subscription plans.
In the higher education level, eSports program are already popping up nationwide, and scholarships are also offered, thus acknowledging the economic viability, as well as the social acceptance of eSports. There are also talks of introducing eSports as an event in the upcoming Summer Olympic Games in Paris, France, in 2024.
