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Marc Lineback

Instructor: Malcolm Campbell

English 1104

October 30, 2017

eSports: Professional Athletes, or Overrated Couch Potatoes?

When many people think of sports, they think of football, soccer, basketball, maybe

even baseball. People often dont think of playing video games as anything sport related. eSports

is the term used for video game competitions, and are played by professional teams and viewed

by millions of fans. eSports has been a growing technological phenomenon that started in the

80s as a casual, among-friends type of competition that involved popular video games. Now,

eSports prize pools are closing in on $30 million, the viewership is about to surpass the levels of

American football, and teams as well as viewers are demanding eSports be recognized as a sport.

In the 2016 League of Legends(LoL) world championship, the viewing population peaked

at 14.7 million concurrent viewers, with a total of 43 million unique viewers (Bradmore and

Magus). According to Sports Illustrated, the fourth most watched sporting event of 2016 was the

AFC Divisional Playoff (Steelers/Broncos), with a total of 42.95 million viewers (The 50 Most-

Watched Sporting Events of 2016 (So Far)). This means that had eSports been included in the

list of most watched sporting events, the 2016 LoL world championship would have made

number four on the list. Keeping in mind that footballs audience is a large part American, and

eSports is an international event, the viewership is still impressive. eSports still has a lot of
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progress to make, however, since the number 1 most watched sports event was the Super Bowl,

with 111.86 million viewers.

The prize pools in eSports have gotten very large over the years, and there is a website

that has recorded many recent tournaments. The eSports Earnings website is a site created by an

eSports fan who wanted to archive all the information for every tournaments ever held, from

humble town leagues all the way to international championships. This eSports fan remains

anonymous, but goes by GGBeyond. GGBeyond created the website so the community could

add to it, with new tournaments and while discovering old ones. Dont let the name for the

website fool you, the information the website archives consists of the players, winners, losers,

payout, dates, etc. Everything about a tournament you could want to know, you can find on

eSports Earnings. According to eSports Earnings.com, the 2017 international DOTA 2

championships prize pool was $24,687,919.00, with the first-place team splitting a little over

$10,00,000(The International 2017: DOTA 2.). This means that each player in this five-person

team received a little over $2,000,000 each, just to play a video game. However, this isnt just

playing video games, these athletes train rigorously.

Greg "IdrA" Fields, a former StarCraft II champion, says, "When I played in Korea

(from 2008 to 2011), the training schedule excluded any activity that wasn't eating, sleeping and

practicing." Basically, Fields said, in 2013 "we played for 12 hours a day with one or two days

off a month" (qtd. in Stanton). This article goes on to talk about the injuries eSports athletes face,

Physical ailments like deep vein thrombosis, carpal tunnel or back strains can be common, a

result of a mostly sedentary lifestyle and the demanding schedule (qtd. in Stanton). It is not all

bad, however, there are materials and tools that help prevent these injuries, Most teams use

chairs that help with posture, and a gamer's equipment -- mice or gaming keyboards -- is equally
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important ("like a footballer's boots," O'Dell says). At a recent tournament, there was even a

physiologist doing wrist massages (qtd. in Stanton). Comparably, football players only practice

for a fraction of that time.

Steve Silverman is an award-winning writer, covering sports since 1980. Silverman

placed in the Pro Football Writers of America awards several times, and holds a Master of

Science in journalism from the Medill School of Journalism. According to Silverman at

LiveStrong.com, the most time spent on the field in one day could be as much as 2-3 hours

during a summer training camp, Football teams spend their most time at practice during

summer training camp. At the college and pro level, double sessions occur regularly. Teams

often practice for 90 minutes during a morning or early afternoon session and then come back

and practice for up to two hours in an evening session. (Silverman). The article goes on to say

that most coaches nowadays are getting easier on the athletes, stating Modern coaches are more

concerned about practicing in the middle of a summer day than they were generations ago.

Former Chicago Bears head coach Lovie Smith would cut practice short in training camp when

temperatures exceeded 95 degrees, or the humidity was high (Silverman). Between the

popularity, income, and training regimen, eSports is building quite the case for itself.

In light of these three components, there is still much more to support eSports becoming a

sport. Doctor Seth E. Jenny is an assistant professor at Winthrop University, who wrote a peer

reviewed article, Virtual(Ly) Athletes: Where ESports Fit Within the Definition of eSports.,

for the Quest Magazine. In this article, Jenny explores the philosophy behind what qualifies a

sport, and how the characteristics of eSports can fit into those qualifications. According to Jenny,

A sport must; Include play (voluntary, intrinsically motivated activity), be organized

(governed by rules), include competition (outcome of a winner and loser), be comprised of skill
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(not chance), include physical skillsskillful and strategic use of ones body, have a broad

following (beyond a local fad), and have achieved institutional stability where social institutions

have rules which regulate it, stabilizing it as an important social practice (5). Following those

seven qualifications for sports, Jenny applies them to eSports to give a visual representation, or

graphic, of the comparison between the two, as well as providing examples that dont fit the

criteria.

When it comes to play, Jenny argues that Games have been defined as structured play

(5). This being said, eSports certainly qualifies, while any activity not intrinsically motivating

would not qualify, and therefore not be a sport. For example, watching television could not be

considered a sport, because it does not include play, nor is it intrinsically motivating.

Organization is an important element to determining whether anything could be

considered a sport. In LoL, for example, there are rules and objectives, as well as a way to win

and a way to lose. On the other hand, tag could not be considered a sport because it lacks proper

organization.
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When it comes to any sport worth watching, competition is a must. As mentioned before,

any video game in the eSports league (DOTA 2, LoL, SMITE, Call of Duty, to name a few) must

be fiercely competitive, considering the amount of training and the amount of money on the line.

Additionally, a game without competition, like Solitaire, could not be considered a sport.

Jenny explains that a sport must be compromised of skill, he means that the outcome

must not be determined by chance. For example, Yahtzee could not be a sport because no matter

how much skill you have, you cant control dice. On the contrary, eSports games mentioned

before such as SMITE, DOTA 2, etc., require a very precise amount of skill in the form of fine

motor skills, which will be explained later.

Having a broad following is the last, but certainly not least, of these smaller, easier to

prove characteristics that not only eSports possesses, but also makes up a sport. As stated in the

second paragraph, Sports Illustrated published an article that listed the most watched sporting

events of 2016. When comparing that data to the numbers that LoLeSports.com provides, it is

clear to see that eSports has a large, international following. However, as Jenny explains,

Clarkball could not be a sport because it is not popular, and does not have a large following (5).

With that being said, the first major category is institutionalization. As Jenny puts it,

Institutionalization refers to an activity having a long history in which: (a) rules are developed

and standardized; (b) learning of the game becomes formalized; (c) expertise develops; and (d)

coaches, trainers, officials, and governing bodies emerge (13). The importance of the

development and regulation of rules cannot be understated. The standardization of rules allows

games and tournaments of any type to be held anywhere adhering to those rules. With traditional

sports, the standardization, development, and implementation of rules are regulated by the

organizations that govern over the specific sport. As an example, Jenny uses the IOC, the
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United States Olympic Committee (USOC), the National Collegiate Athletic Association

(NCAA), and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) (13). Jenny goes on

to explain how these organizations work together: [they] work independently, sometimes

competitively, and oftentimes in concert to allow for uniform rule development and

standardization with the result of competitive structure. This has provided relative stability for

the sports under these organizations (13-14). This is important, because these organizations

have had decades to work with and around each other to institutionalize traditional sports. In

comparison to eSports, Jenny explains that, due to the fact that eSports is still in its relative

infancy, the explosion of growth has resulted in several competing organizations developing

championship events (e.g., The International, ESWC, World e-Sports Games, World Cyber

Games, etc.). This poses several potential threats for institutionalization of eSports (14).

Ironically, the explosion of growth and popularity of eSports may be its downfall as being

classified as a sport.

The next majorly debated category is inclusion of physical skill, and social institutions

that regulate it. To begin with physical skill, Jenny uses the terms Fine motor skills and

Gross motor skills (9). Fine motor skills are defined as precise movements with increased

accuracy and control which utilize smaller muscle groups (Jenny 9). For example, the small but

complex movement of the wrist when aiming a shot with a racket in tennis, or delicately

manipulating a joystick on a controller as to get just the right amount of power and direction.

Conversely, gross motor skills are skills in which large muscle groups (e.g., quadriceps,

hamstrings, gluteus maximus, etc.) produce movement (Jenny 9). Examples of this include

kicking a ball, running, jumping, and so on. Only two sports out of the fifty-six in the Olympics
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do not include gross motor movements, shooting and archery, making eSports not the first

sport to be majority fine motor movements. (Jenny 10).

Jenny goes on to compare the differences in virtual activity versus physical activity:

consider the gymnast, who trains for years to gain control of ones entire physical being. The

gymnast displays whole body precision in performing skills to gain victory on an event. The

gymnast risks real-world physical injury with every skill performed (Jenny 10). As the

gymnast becomes better and more skillful, an increase in physical danger occurs as the skills

become more complex. In contrast, the gamer uses fine motor movement of the hands with a

game controller to control an avatar in a game. Jenny explains that with eSports it is the avatar

that risks injury, and often is killed, but in the virtual world, and the avatar feels no pain. Neither

does the gamer as the injury and death of the avatar are virtual and no consequences exist. The

gamer simply begins a new game (10). This reasoning is a large reason why eSports has not

been considered a sport yet. Another key argument pertains to the obesity crises in America, and

how it negatively impacts the view of eSports.

Jenny explains why this is, It is possible mainstream society sees video gaming as the

antithesis of sport; empirical research has repeatedly found that sedentary screen time (e.g.,

seated video gaming) correlates to increased obesity and/or decreased exercise (10). In a

country where obesity is an epidemic, it is no wonder why people are wary to call eSports a

sport. Jenny goes on to talk about the recommended time for video games:Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention recommended that children accumulate 60 minutes of daily PA while

reducing sedentary screen time (i.e., seated video gaming). Likewise, the U.S. Department of

Health and Human Services recommends no more than 2 hours of daily television, videos, or

video games for children ages 2 to 12 years (10). Herein lies why many are hesitant of calling
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eSports a sport, parents and many citizens of America are afraid of what glorifying video games

as a sport could cause to obesity rates. Jenny goes on to conclude with, Until eSports include

motion-based video games (MBVGs) that track gross motor physical body movements within the

game, the general public may not accept eSports as real sports (10). While movement-based

video games do exist, and are popular with many households, they have not yet taken root in

eSports. This is a trivial fact when considering the growth of eSports, new games and

tournaments join leagues and competitions every year. Just as well, virtual reality games are

increasing in popularity, and becoming more available to the public, which will inevitably lead to

their inclusion in eSports eventually.

In conclusion, to be a sport, an activity must include these seven characteristics, as

explained by Jenny, [Include] play (voluntary, intrinsically motivated activity), be organized

(governed by rules), include competition (outcome of a winner and loser), be comprised of skill

(not chance), include physical skillsskillful and strategic use of ones body, have a broad

following (beyond a local fad), and have achieved institutional stability where social institutions

have rules which regulate it, stabilizing it as an important social practice (5). When checking

boxes, eSports certainly contains play, organization, competition, skill, and a broad following.

However, there are two characteristics still up for debate, inclusion of physical skill, and

institutionalization. As for both, time is key. While MBVGs may not have taken root in eSports

yet, it is apparent that at the rate the technology is progressing, it will be soon.

Institutionalization is also achieved through time and settling, with so many different

organizations trying to be the sole governing body, it would seem that eSports is its own worst

enemy. However, becoming a sport is beneficial for all, and hopefully, eventually one or

multiple governing bodies will take the joysticks.

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Works Cited

Bradmore, and Magus. 2016 League of Legends World Championship By the Numbers. LoL

Esports, www.lolesports.com/en_US/articles/2016-league-legends-world-championship-

numbers. Accessed 25 October 2017

Jenny, Seth E., et al. Virtual(Ly) Athletes: Where ESports Fit Within the Definition of eSports.

Quest, vol. 69, no. 1. Nov. 2016, pp. 118,

http://www.tandfonline.com.librarylink.uncc.edu/doi/full/10.1080/00336297.2016.11445

17?scroll=top&needAccess=true. Accessed 25 October 2017

Stanton, Rich. The Secret to ESports Athletes' Success? Lots -- and Lots -- of Practice. ESPN,

ESPN Internet Ventures, Web. 29 May 2015,

www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/13053116/esports-athletes-put-hours-training-reach-

pinnacle. Accessed 25 October 2017

Silverman, Steve. How Long Do Football Players Have to Practice a Day?

LIVESTRONG.COM, Leaf Group, Web. 11 Sept. 2017,

www.livestrong.com/article/457203-how-long-do-football-players-have-to-practice-a-

day/. Accessed 25 October 2017

The International 2017: Dota 2 Championships - Tournament Results & Prize Money. e-Sports

Earnings, Web. 2 Sept. 2017, www.esportsearnings.com/tournaments/24181-the-

international-2017. Accessed 25 October 2017

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The 50 Most-Watched Sporting Events of 2016 (So Far). www.si.com/extra-

mustard/photo/2016/07/15/50-most-watched-sporting-events-2016-so-far. Accessed 25

October 2017