Are esports same as sports? OL players sure act the part

The twelve- team league has many traditional sports markers: regional divisions, a preseason and postseason, and even broadcast rights deals with ESPN and Twitch.

New York, July 29: Seung- Tae Choi doesn’t look the part of a traditional athlete, not with his shaggy hair, smallish build and an expression that says ready to nap rather than game on.

During all the hours he spends playing video games, though, the 21year- old from South Korea certainly acts it.

“We’re not here to have fun,” he said through a translator.

Choi — better known to his fans as Bdosin — and his teammates with the London Spitfire like to think they’re making a statement on a major stage this weekend: esports might not be the same as football or basketball, but the competition is as real and the lifestyle as intense as it is for any traditional sports star.

The Spitfire won the Overwatch League’s inaugural championship Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Choi had spent years chasing a career in the 6- on- 6, first- person shooter, and now he’s splitting a $ 1 million top prize with his Korean teammates.

London swept the Philadelphia Fusion, a club featuring players from nine countries, in two matches at the end of a seventh- month season.

“It’s like a job,” Fusion player Gael “Poko” Gouzerch said. “We’re not doing this for fun. It’s not like how you go on your sofa and play your PS4 and just do it for fun. It’s more than that.”

The twelve- team league has many traditional sports markers: regional divisions, a preseason and postseason, and even broadcast rights deals with Twitch and ESPN.

Blizzard Entertainment, the creator of Overwatch, structured the league on traditional sports, even bringing in NFL team owners Robert Kraft ( Patriots) and Stan Kroenke ( Rams) as franchise owners.

And the players’ lifestyles don’t appear to be much different from more recognizable stars.

For most in the league, the day starts after a good night’s sleep. Overwatch coaches and managers have strongly encouraged a full eight hours — the Spitfire turn off wifi in team housing at 3 am to cut down on distractions — and even employed physical trainers to further promote a healthy lifestyle.

After a breakfast cooked by a team chef, they go to work. It starts with warmups — normally some individual screen time. Then comes in- game practice, usually scrimmaging for six- plus hours. Then there’s solo time for sharpening skills.

“It’s takes full commitment at some point,” Fusion player Joona “Fragi” Laine said. “I think a lot of people need to think about their daytoday life, but at some point, you’ve got to take the leap and really fully commit to it.”

When the esports- assports debate really matters is off the field. As in, who will partner with the industry?

ESPN has a two- year deal to broadcast Overwatch matches, and gaming could even one day find itself in the Olympics — Overwatch League. Commissioner Nate Nanzer was just in Switzerland with Blizzard Entertainment to meet with the International Olympic Committee. — AP