Evolution of Professional eSports Teams

Fact 1

The large similarities that eSports has with traditional sports have led the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) to announce that eSports will become an official medal sport at the 2022 Asian Games, representing a main-stream recognition of competitive gaming (Graham 2017).

Graham, B. (2017). eSports to Be A Medal Event at 2022 Asian Games. News Article. The Guardian.https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2017/apr/18/esports-to-be-medal-sport-at-2 022- asian-games.

Fact 2

While eSports is growing in popularity across the globe in California, eSports is now considered a California Interscholastic Federation sport (CIF), meaning that eSports teams can now represent their schools by playing video games just like any other sport (CIF Esports Initiative, 2020). This big step forward by CIF makes the case that eSports is gaining popularity and is held to the same standards as any other sport.

CIF Esports Initiative - California Interscholastic Federation. (2020). Retrieved 2 July 2020, from https://www.cifstate.org/esports/index.

Fact 3

tudents all across America are constantly engaged with video games at home. According to the Pew Research Center overall, 84% of teens say they have or have access to a game console at home, and 90% say they play video games of any kind (whether on a computer, game console or cellphone) (Teens, Social Media & Technology, 2018).

Teens, Social Media & Technology. (2018). Retrieved 2 July 2020, from https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2018/05/31/teens-social-media-technology-2018/

The evolution of professional esports Team Development

Leagues

Teams wear brand logos on their jersey, use products/equipment where applicable and produce social media content around their sponsors. The streaming platforms can allocate screen space, influencers or even entire channels to a single brand. Event organizers can provide name placement, showcase them in highlight reels or, for hardware companies, literally build the events on the back of their latest product lines. In fact, market research has demonstrated that the sales for gaming hardware and peripherals increases significantly with esports viewers, who want to buy better gear to maximize their own competitive performance. This has resulted in an entirely unique consumer group within the gaming industry.

Tournaments

With the esports industry surging into the new decade, there will be much more action this year than last. At its core, the scene thrives around competitive video gaming and competitive gaming peaks at offline, or lan, tournaments. Esports encompasses many events but only the biggest esports tournaments truly highlight the industry’s reach.

10 Biggest eSports Tournaments in 2020

League of Legends World Championship.
Fortnite World Cup
The International 10
FLASHPOINT Season 1 Championship
League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational
Call of Duty League Championship.
ESL One: Rio 2020
Overwatch World Cup
EVO 2020
Hearthstone World Championship

Olympics

Intel has announced it will host an esports tournament in Tokyo during the lead-up to the 2020 Olympics. Players will compete in Street Fighter V and Rocket League for a price of $250,000 for each game. Online qualifiers will kick-off early next year, with a live qualifier event in Poland in June. Due to COVID-19 the big debate now is whether eSports will be part of the Olympic games in 2024. The case is made via the TED Talk.

The role of esports in Career Technical Education

Math

Offering esports is a smart way for high schools to encourage students to pursue careers in STEM and CTE fields. When students take part in esports in school, coaches can nurture a passion for CTE pathways such as STEM and guide students to explore STEM careers. Source
Esports also bolsters fluency in science, technology and math skills, he said, as students can apply theories and formulas to in-game strategies, while also strengthening their scientific reasoning and problem-solving capabilities.

Source

Technology

eSports also helps students learn how to win humbly, lose gracefully and even improve themselves physically. They may not be running laps, but playing games can fortify hand-eye coordination, brain function, rapid calculation and spatial reasoning skills.

Source

Career Technical Education Courses for Grades 8-12th

The field of esports can provide students with the academic and technical skills necessary to succeed in future STEM and non-STEM postsecondary learning opportunities and careers. How can we help prepare those students? What are those career pathways that lead to careers in the field of esports?

We are currently developing a Career Technical Education curriculum that involves a multiyear sequence of courses for students in grades 8-12th that integrate core academic and technical knowledge with 25 courses. The curriculum is being designed around the four major esports sectors:

Strategists
Organizers
Content Creators, and
Entrepreneurs

The curriculum will provide pathways to at least 15 careers including but not limited to:

Event Planner
Analyst
Fandom Art
Marketing
Theory Crafter
Shoutcaster
Streamer
Journalist
Web Developer and more.

The courses are currently under review with the University of California for high school course approval. We will make them available upon full course approval.

Source

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