Esports

Esports – short for electronic sports – is the competitive, organised side of gaming. Players and teams compete in structured leagues and tournaments, often for prize money, with matches broadcast online and sometimes in front of live audiences in arenas. The term covers everything from small local tournaments and school or university competitions to international events.

What gets played

Esports includes many genres: team shooters, multiplayer online battle arenas, fighting games, sports and racing games, strategy games, card games and battle royales. A notable piece of history is that several of the biggest esports games began as player-made mods: Counter-Strike started as a mod, and the multiplayer online battle arena genre grew out of mods for StarCraft and Warcraft III.

How the scene is organised

The structure varies by game. Some publishers run their own leagues; others license independent organisers. Professional teams sign players, employ coaches and analysts, and compete across seasons. Below the professional level sit amateur and semi-professional circuits, community tournaments, and in the UK, school, college and university competitions that treat esports as an organised activity alongside traditional sports.

Esports and young people

Esports can teach teamwork, communication, strategy and resilience, and many young people enjoy watching it as they would any sport. It is also a highly competitive field where only a tiny number of players become professional, so it is best treated as a hobby with possible related careers – in broadcasting, event management, coaching or game development – rather than a likely career as a player.

Questions parents might ask

If a child wants to join an esports club or tournament, check the age rating of the game being played, who runs the event, how communication between players is managed, and what the time commitment is. School and college clubs usually have safeguarding policies in place, which makes them a good, structured starting point.