When Will Esports Be In The Olympics?

The International Olympic Committee has been monitoring the development of esports and has been considering their inclusion in future Olympic Games. Here’s everything we know so far.

Introduction

The International Olympic Committee has been monitoring the development of esports and has held talks with the industry’s key stakeholders. The IOC’s Esports Forum, which took place in Lausanne in July 2017, provided an opportunity to better understand esports and their implications on the Olympic Movement.

The Forum brought together key representatives of the esports and gaming industry, including players, publishers, event organizers, media and technology providers, as well as IOC member organizations. Following fruitful discussions, a set of commonalities and points for further collaboration were identified with a view to supporting the growth of esports.

The focus is now on identifying those events which could be attributable to the practice of sport within the meaning of Rule 4 of the Olympic Charter and find a way to include them in future editions of the Games. In this context, it is worth noting that sportrepresented in the current program of the Olympic Games covers a wide range of activities.

Even if not all esports contain physical activity, all require immense physical and mental effort exerted over long hours by athletes who have trained like any other professional athlete for years. While traditional sports have been part of previous editionsof the Olympic Games, this does not preclude the inclusionof new disciplines either inside or outside the existingprogramme in future editions of the Games.

What is esports?

Esports are a form of competition using video games. Esports often take the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although organized online and offline competitions have long been a part of video game culture, these were largely between amateurs until the late 2000s, when participation by professional gamers and spectatorship in these events saw a large surge in popularity. By the 2010s, esports was a significant factor in the video game industry, with many game developers actively designing and providing funding for tournaments and other events.

The Olympics and esports

Esports is a form of sport competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players. The most common video game genres associated with esports are real-time strategy, first-person shooter, and multiplayer online battle arena.

The International Olympic Committee and esports

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is the governing body of the Olympic Games. Established in 1894, the IOC is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland. Thomas Bach has been the president of the IOC since 2013.

The IOC is the supreme authority of the Olympic Movement, with ultimate responsibility for approving any new sports or disciplines to be added to the Olympic program. The current program comprises 33 sports and 324 events.

The IOC has expressed interest in esports as a potential addition to the Olympic program. In October 2017, IOC president Thomas Bach met with representatives from the Global Association of International Sports Federations (GAISF), which represents international sports federations, including esports bodies such as the International e-Sports Federation (IeSF).

Bach said that the IOC was “open to hosting esports games as a demonstration sport at future Olympic Games”, but noted that they would need to ensure that they complied with the rules and regulations of the Olympics. He also said that there was a need for more research on esports and their impact on society before any decisions could be made.

In June 2018, it was announced that an “Esports Forum” would be held in Lausanne on 21 July 2018, attended by representatives from both the gaming industry and from various Olympic International Federations. The purpose of the forum was to “exchange information and best practices” between both parties, and discuss how cooperation between them could benefit athletes, fans and all those involved in both industries.

The Olympic Games and esports

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is the international governing body of the Olympic Games. The IOC is responsible for ensuring that the Summer and Winter Olympic Games are fair and are held on a regular schedule. The IOC is also responsible for the development of new sports, including esports, that can be added to the Olympic program.

While there has been some discussion about adding esports to the Olympic program, there is currently no plans to do so. There are a number of reasons why esports has not yet been added to the Olympics, including:

-The lack of a unified governing body for esports. While there are a number of professional esports leagues, there is no single governing body that oversees all of esports. This makes it difficult for the IOC to determine which events and athletes should be included in the Olympics.
-The lack of standardization in esports. Unlike traditional sports, there is no agreed upon set of rules for all esports games. This makes it difficult to determine how to fairly compare athletes from different games.
-The lack of popularity of some esports games outside of Asia. While esports is popular in Asia, many popular esport titles, such as League of Legends and Dota 2, are not as popular in other regions of the world. This could make it difficult to include these games in the Olympics without alienating viewers from other parts of the world.

When will esports be in the Olympics?

Esports has been growing in popularity and has even been featured at the Asian games. Some people are even calling for it to be included in the Olympics. So, when will esports be in the Olympics?

The case for esports in the Olympics

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been slow to embrace esports, but there is a growing movement to have competitive gaming included in future Olympic Games.

There are several compelling arguments for why esports should be included in the Olympics.

First, esports is a rapidly growing industry with a global audience. In 2018, the global esports economy was valued at $906 million, and it is expected to grow to $1.65 billion by 2021. This growth is driven in part by the increasing popularity of live streaming platforms like Twitch, which has an estimated 15 million daily active viewers.

Second, esports is already widely recognized as a legitimate form of competition. There are multiple professional leagues and tournaments with prize pools worth millions of dollars. The most popular game in the world, League of Legends, had an estimated 100 million active monthly players as of 2019.

Third, the IOC has expressed interest in adding esports to the Olympics. In 2018, IOC president Thomas Bach said that he was open to the idea of including esports in the Olympics “if they can be represented like any other sport.” The following year, the IOC held an Esports Forum to further explore the possibility of adding esports to future Olympic Games.

While there is still some resistance from some members of the IOC, it seems likely that esports will eventually be added to the Olympics. This would provide a major boost to the visibility and legitimacy of competitive gaming.

The case against esports in the Olympics

The idea of esports in the Olympics is not without its detractors. Some believe that the inherently global nature of esports makes it incompatible with the Olympics, which are meant to promote friendly competition between athletes from different nations. There are also concerns that the popularity of certain games could eclipse others, leading to a situation where only a handful of games are represented at the Olympics while others are left out. Finally, there is the worry that allowing professional gamers to compete at the Olympics would cheapen the sanctity of the Games.

Conclusion

The Future of Esports in the Olympics
While the International Olympic Committee has not yet made a decision on whether or not to include esports in the Olympics, it seems likely that they will eventually do so. With the growing popularity of esports and the support of various governments and organizations, it seems only a matter of time before esports are officially recognized as a legitimate sport. Whether or not they will be included in future Olympic Games remains to be seen, but it is certainly within the realm of possibility.