How Coronavirus Can Help eSports – Let’s find out…
Recently there has been a huge debate and comparison between eSports and traditional sports. No matter how popular the esports industry has been during the last decade, it can’t still complete with traditional sports. Be it fans, stadiums, events, prize money, players, etc – everything about regular sports is huge.
For instance, you can’t League of Legends is inarguably the top esports game in the world. On the other hand, soccer leads the regular sporting world. Now, if you try to compare the two games, it would be an unfair comparison. If LoL is big, soccer is humungous. BUT so was Russia before WW-II.
We are talking about the Pre Coronavirus era right now…
Enter Coronavirus Period:
The outbreak started in China in December 2019. No one took it seriously until it started to spread like wildfire. A month later it was declared a global pandemic and even the most technologically advanced nations had no answer to its devastations.
At the time of this writing, COVID-19 has affected more than 1,727,000 people worldwide. According to experts, the pandemic has still not reached its peak. So, the number is likely to go up.
Who would have thought the whole world go in a lockdown? The world that we live in is no more the same. Since we are about esports in particular and sports in general, we will shift gears.
The traditional sports world is probably the worst hit by coronavirus. Almost all major events are called off, the ones that are taking place are witnessing empty stadiums, and most players are practicing self-isolation.
Coronavirus Can Help eSports: Chance For eSports to Step Up
Scott Steinberg is a gaming analyst and according to him, this is the time for esports to steal the limelight. Prime-time television has always been more focussed on covering traditional sporting activities. Since there are no sporting events happening at the moment, he thinks, esports can permanently make its mark in the sporting world.
This is what he has to say,
“We are reaching a point where the average person probably grew up with gaming in their household. All eyes are on online gaming, and they now have a chance to shine.”
The old-school networks like Fox and ESPN are hungry for gaming content and eSports can provide them with just that. These networks might not be able to get the same kind of sponsorship, viewership, and profit right from day one but if the lockdown continues, eSports has a huge opportunity.
Turning Sports Audience To Gaming Audience
Laurel Walzak, a specialist in esports is pretty optimistic about the future of esports already,
“The motivation for watching a live sports event is different than streaming an esports game. An ESPN broadcast features different camera angles, audio, music, and on-air talent. When it’s sports video games on Twitch, the visuals of the games, players and their hands and eyes matter most,” not all the charisma that comes along with a Monday Night Football game.“
So, there are some challenges but the opportunity is huge.
Pro athletes like @NBA star Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) turning to #esports during #COVID19 🏀 @RTARyerson‘s @laurelwalzak tells @CNBC she is optimistic about the future of gaming & its ability to convert sports fans into gaming fans https://t.co/T7RBW48uS3 pic.twitter.com/Y1NG8pWkR0
— Ryerson FCAD (@RyersonFCAD) April 7, 2020
How Coronavirus Can Help eSports – Conclusion:
Fans like being up close and personal with their favorite players and esports provide an atmosphere where this could be easy.
