Esports has arrived and everyone is getting on board
Australia's Esports fan base has doubled in the last year with the help of new streaming services that are drawing in millions of new devotees.
Recent data, published by the data analytics firm Nielsen, has also revealed that Australia’s Esports fan base has doubled in the last year.
“Video games are here to stay and competition is here to stay,
“It’s in an area that has enormous growth overseas … locally you have people like the Essendon Football Club who have their own Esports team competing in League of Legends,” says Scott Taylor of Australian Sports Camps (ASC).
The ASC is an organisation that offers holiday camps to young people aged between six and sixteen years of age and recently established an Esports camp with competitive gaming rising in popularity.
“Our mission is to assist and inspire kids to love sport and that could be Esports or it could be cricket or netball,” says Mr Taylor.
The Melbourne Esports Open, held at Rod Laver Arena, attracted sponsors like McDonald’s and Hungry Jacks, showing that Esports is moving towards being taken seriously as a form of sport.
“US sporting organisations are getting their own Esports teams, it’s a way of better engaging with that younger fan base … It’s here to stay,” says Mr Taylor.
So, why are fans watching Esports? The Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA), says that 52% of fans follow Esports because they want to learn new strategies to improve in the game but fans also want to make friends in online communities.
“It’s not all about playing video games,” said Mr Taylor.
