Traditional Sports vs. Esports

Esports has taken over the scene in the recent years. How does it compare to traditional sports?

Introduction

The recent upsurge of esports over the past years has raised many questions from the media and those not too familiar on the topic. Many people consider esports ridiculous and do not define esports as a sport. In fact, they place esports far from traditional sports such as baseball, basketball, and football. While people may think that these two activities are very different, I am here to say that esports and traditional sports are more similar than is believed by the general public.

Similarities

All major sports have leagues, whether that be football with the NFL or that be hockey with the NHL. Esports are no different in this sense. There are official leagues and tournaments for almost every level and every game. For example, the most popular esports game League of Legends has the NA LCS, EU LCS, and MSI just to name a few. Not only do esports have official leagues and tournaments, but they also have the World Championship, commonly known as Worlds, which is essentially like playoffs for traditional sports. The top sixteen teams from the 0Spring and Summer Splits of the official leagues around the world are invited to Worlds where they compete in a group stage. The top two teams from these groups stages are then put into a single-elimination bracket where the World Champions are crowned. This is the same as every traditional sports’ championships, such as the MLB World Series or the NBA Finals where the best team is crowned. The group stage into bracket format of Worlds is directly equal to the FIFA World Cup’s format in almost all aspects. Just like traditional sports, esports have leagues, tournaments, and a championship where the best in the world is crowned.

Esports are exactly like traditional sports when it comes to teams and their makeup. First off, there are owners. All professional sports team has an owner who is the financial support for the team, and this is no different in esports. On top of this there are coaches and managers. Every professional sports team needs these coaches and managers, whether they be pitching coaches, offensive coordinators, general managers, or bench coaches. In esports, coaches are needed to help with builds (what items players buy in game), pick composition (what characters players choose in game), and in game strategies. Another staff member that appears on all professional esports teams are medical trainers. Just like traditional sports, injuries are present in esports, although they do not occur as often. Trainers are needed to monitor players physical status. Next, there are the players. Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok, perhaps the most skilled league of legends player, was signed to a 2.5 million dollar per year contract with SKT. This shows that just like in traditional sports, players are signed to massive multimillion dollar contracts. On the topic of players, just like in traditional sports, esports players practice and work on their skills quite often. While practice schedules vary from team to team, in some cases esports players find themselves with schedules that have them on their game twelve hours of the day, with only one or two days off a month. Esports players not only practice and train just like traditional sports players, but do so even more intensely and more vigorously.

Esports and traditional sports are both spectator sports. In 2016, Riot, the developers of League of Legends, announced that an official 43 million unique viewers watched Worlds. For comparison, FOX Sports announced that Game 7 of the 2016 Baseball World Series had 40 million viewers. These viewers come from many different sources. For most traditional sports the games are broadcasted on television. League of Legends games have been broadcasted on stations such as ESPN before, but the main source to view these esports events is through Twitch and Youtube. With the viewers that esports and traditional sports attract comes sponsor revenue. Sponsors play a big part in esports, just like traditional esports. In soccer, jerseys will display logos such as Chevrolet and Adidas. In esports, jerseys will display brands such as Logitech and Acer. These sponsors play a big factor in both leagues and teams. Another activity that comes along with the massive number of viewers is fantasy leagues. Every great sport has fantasy leagues, and esports takes no exception to this rule. Fans and viewers are able to follow and add more excitement to the entertainment these leagues offer through fantasy leagues. The market between traditional sports and esports is very similar.

Differences

The difference between traditional sports and esports that is brought up heavily when the two are compared is obvious. Esports is short for electronic sports. The electronic aspect is the big difference. Esports doesn’t include the physical aspect that traditional sports include. In esports, while there is still athleticism and physical skill that is needed, there isn’t a big focus as far as that aspect goes. Esports is rejected as being a sport or even an equivalent of a sport simply because esports players aren’t highlighted on their athletic skills, but rather on their mental abilities. In fact, esports players put even more work and practice into their mental abilities and skills than is put into traditional sports players physical skills. Greg "IdrA" Fields, a former StarCraft II champion, says, “When I played in Korea, the training schedule excluded any activity that wasn't eating, sleeping and practicing… we played for 12 hours a day with one or two days off a month.” Esports players are required to live in team houses where the focus is all about the game and the team. In comparison, former minor league pitcher Randy Newsom says, “Most people[players] file in around 2-3 p.m. for a 7 p.m. game.” This shows that esports players put in far more time as far as practice goes. One of the beauties of esports is that because there is not a heavy physical aspect, with the right work and dedication, anyone can be an esports player. In traditional sports such as basketball, there is a lottery that is out of an individual's control. If you are shorter than six foot, you can basically kiss a career as a player in the sport goodbye. In esports, you can still be a player whether you weigh 300 pounds or 120 pounds, are five feet tall or six feet tall, or can run a six minute mile or an eight minute mile. In esports, the doors are open to all, contrary to traditional sports.

With the mental aspect included in esports comes more differences. Unlike traditional sports, in esports you don’t face your opponent(s) directly, and you cannot read their body language. In baseball, you focus on a player’s body language all the time. As a batter a player must watch the pitcher’s body to time when they throw the ball. In basketball a defender must watch his opponents and try to time when they will pass the ball, where they will move to, and when they will shoot. The list goes on with the traditional sports that require direct contact with opponents, but is nonexistent in esports.

Conclusion

The majority of the world puts down and separates esports from traditional sports simply because esports primarily requires mental skills rather than physical skills. Besides this, esports and traditional sports are almost identical. Every aspect of traditional sports can be found in esports such as leagues, tournaments, owners, player contracts, a heavy focus on practice, managers, medical trainers, sponsors, and viewers from around the world. Traditional sports and esports are more similar than is believed by the general public.