SOUTH KOREA ESPORTS

BY ZAK, AIDAN, EVIE

 South Korean Esports: How it is classified
In South Korea, esports is considered to be a sport.
The Korean Esports Federation has been especially
active in trying to get the official recognition of
esports from nations around the world. It’s no secret
that South Korea I sone of the biggest esports
markets in the world and they are not afraid of using
this position to actively support other nations’
esports movements.
 South Korean Esports: National Bodies and organisations

KeSPA (Korea e-Sports Assaciation)

The Korean e-Sports Association is a South Korean
organisation that manages Esports in South Korea. They
were created by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and
Tourism. This was the Korean government’s way of
getting ahead of the curve back in 2000. KeSPA is
responsible for managing all major Esports events that
take place in South Korea. The KeSPA is made up of
people from the Korean Olympic Committee alongside
the International Esports Federation.
 South Korean Esports: National Bodies and organisations

IEOC (International Esports

Omnipotent Committee)
The IEOC are headquartered in London and are
paired with over 70 countries in an effort to grow
Esports. IEOC Korea is focused on supporting
Esports in South Korea by holding regional
tournaments across Korea. They held their first
international tournament in Tokyo back in 2020.
They are heavily focused on getting the younger
generation into the ‘sport’ in an attempt to start
up and Olympic type system for Esports.
South Korean Esports: National Bodies and organisations

IESF (International Esports Federation)

The IESF are located in South Korea and they

promote Esports by hosting meeting and the
yearly IESF World Championship. They currently
have over 50 countries in their federation. Besides
hosting international Esports tournaments, they
established standards for Esports referees, players,
and competitions. In addition, they have a school
for Esports referees called the International
Esports Referee Academy in Busan.
 South Korea Esports: Most Popular Game Company

A wide range of the most popular games in South Korea

are made by the publisher Activision Blizzard. This is
due to the popularity of fantasy games and the specific
playstyle that their games offer to not just the younger
generation but also to every gamer in the region.
 South Korean Esports: Most Popular Games

Most Popular: League of Legends

League of legends is the most popular game South

Korea, with over 20 million accounts made making
up a large majority of players. About 38% of total
playtime of game sin South Korea was on LoL. Due
to this there are a large amount of tournaments
hosted annually throughout the region for the
game.
 South Korean Esports: Most Popular Games

2nd most popular: StarCraft

StarCraft is yet another incredibly popular

game throughout South Korea. This is due to
the games accessibility to a wide range if
players and the countries appeal the strategic
elements of the game which teach children
and others many good life skills. Alongside
this many have found job opportunities
within the game.
 South Korean Esports: Most Popular Games

3rd most popular: Overwatch

With nearly 3 million monthly active players

Overwatch has come to be one of the most
popular games throughout South Korea’s gaming
population. This is due to the multiplayer aspects
and the fun factor that people love and enjoy
along with so many others, but it also offers a
large competitive opportunities for so many trying
to become pro in video games.
 South Korea Esports: Most Popular Team
T1 is a South Korean Esports organisation that specialises in
StarCraft and League of Legends. The team is a joint
venture by SK Telecom and Comcast Spectacor. The team
was first founded in 2002 by a StarCraft player named
‘BoxeR’ under the name team Orion. In April of 2004 SK
Telecom inherited the team after they began sponsoring
the team a placing an investment in the team of over $2
million US. Players: LoL Roster
• Top – Zeus
• Jungle – Oner
They have won many championships with the most prominent being in • Mid – Faker
2013, 2015, and 2016 League of Legends World Championships. • Bot – Gumayusi
• Support – Keria
• Mid – Sky
South Korea Esports: Events and Tournaments
The WSL (World Super League of Esports)

WSL is an annual global e-sports competition where the world’s best e-

sports gamers participate under the accreditation of the International e-
Sports Federation (IESF), which has 92 member federations around the
world.
WSL selects players through regional preliminaries in four divisions: Asia-
Oceania, America, Europe, Middle East Asia-Africa. The preliminary
consists of the open tournament and pro-gamer or pro-game team
invitation. The open tournament that anyone can participate in as an
amateur esports event and pro-gamers or pro-game teams are invited
through fan votes because WSL is a PRO_AM tournament. At the end of
the year, the fans can see the winners of respective game title in the WSL
global finals.
Difference between attitudes for Esports: UK v South Korea

The organisation and structure of esports in south korea are slightly

different compared to the united kingdom. South Korea is known as
the birth of esports and it has developed at a swift pace compared to
other countries. They take esports very seriously and claim it to be a
sport. However in the United Kingdom, esports is recognised around
the country but not as heavily as it is in South Korea. The UK
government claims Esports to be just a game and hobby like chess
instead of an actual sport in which some agree and others dont.
However there are multiple associations in the UK trying to push
Esports out there more and get people to recognise its true beauty
and skill and to not take it as just a hobby/game.