eSports conquers the hearts of spectators and players

Filled stadiums and huge crowds cheering for their stars: What was true for most of the major sports before the corona crisis has only been possible virtually since the pandemic.

eSport fans have it good. The tournaments streamed around the world, held on consoles or on PC or mobile devices, bring the masses together, even if everyone is sitting in their own private room.

Even before Covid-19, the number of players and fans rose steadily. Around 13 million Germans watched eSports events just over a year ago. Digital sports were particularly popular among 16 to 24 year olds, of whom around 44 percent attended eSports events or championships. Most of the fans watched recordings. Live streams were only popular with around twelve percent of Germans, but this is not due to the interest, but rather to the time difference to the main venues.

In a number of countries, eSports are already recognized as a real sport. Germany is still struggling with this, although the Bundesliga has been one of the pioneers for years when it comes to its own eSports kickers.

Acknowledged or not, eSports on a professional level requires a high level of nerve strength and concentration, which must first be acquired. Anyone who has practiced the fine art of counting cards in blackjack, for example, will know how much brains it takes to keep track of things even in seemingly simple games. This overview is essential for the most popular eSports games in order to assert oneself in the virtual field.

ESports have become a gold mine for the best players. "League of Legends" was number one among the games last year. The action-packed strategy game in which two teams of five champions each selected from 140 characters try to destroy each other's bases, kill monsters and in the end emerge victorious from bloody battles.

"League of Legends" recorded more than 478 million viewer hours in 2019. Around four million spectators were counted at the semi-finals of the World Championships alone.

In second place was “Counter-Strike: Go”. The realistic scenes, in which an anti-terrorist unit tries to free hostages taken by terrorists and to defuse bombs, was watched by more than 284 million hours. Around 1.2 million fans attended the final of the IEM Katowice Major 2019 via screen.

But eSports games based on classic sports are also growing in popularity. The “FIFA” series is almost the father of all eSports games. Hobby footballers have been able to play on the console since 1993. The game, released every year in a new version, is a bestseller worldwide. “FIFA 20”, published at the end of September 2019, went over the counter around 1.5 million times in the first three months of sales in Germany alone.

World championships in the console game have been held since 2004. The “FIFA” eWorldCup is held every year among the top 32 out of millions of candidates in the qualifying rounds. The virtual world championship holds the Guinness book record as the largest online eSports game.

The current title holder is Mohammed "MoAuba" Harkous, who is under contract with Werder Bremen. Fans can currently experience him on match days of the virtual Bundesliga. The online encounters are further proof of how strongly eSports are on the rise, for players as well as for pure spectators.