Chefs and fitness regimes for Fifa stars who never have to kick a ball
Professional gamers set up shop in bespoke houses in hope of earning millions in eSports, writes
As the latest signings of an elite European football team, it might seem unsurprising that three young players have been put up in bespoke surroundings where their every need is catered for so they can focus solely on their training.
But this trio will never set foot on a football pitch, don football boots or even kick a ball for their team, Italian giants AS Roma. Instead they will represent the club via the football video game Fifa 19.
Last month a spacious five-bedroom house in north London was transformed into a bespoke “gaming house” for a team of professional Fifa players. The move signals the rapidly rising phenomenon of competitive video gaming, or eSports, which is heading towards becoming a billion pound industry globally.
In recent years, eSport competitions have transformed from niche affairs into mass spectator events, held in packed stadiums and with prize pools of up to $25million (£19million).
The eSports company behind the gaming house, Fnatic, already has professional teams competing in other games, such as fantasy battle game League of Legends, and has earned more than £8million in prize money.
Last year it struck a partnership deal with AS Roma to create an eSport team. In September it moved three of its pros, Conran “Rannerz” Tobin, 20, from Ireland, 19-year-old Swede, Simon “Zimme” Nystedt, and Damian “Damie” Augustyniak, 19, from Poland, into the house to focus on training for this season’s tournaments.
The players are salaried and make extra earnings from streaming games online and competition winnings.
Living with them are Enzo Serre, their coach, and Colin Johnson, their manager.
At 24, Mr Johnson is the elder statesman of the house and organises the team’s weekly schedule. A typical week involves four hours of daily practice on Fifa and dedicated regimes set out by Mr Serre, a 19-year-old Frenchman who studied to be a football coach before turning his tactical acumen from the beautiful game to the virtual one.
Describing the sessions, Mr Johnson said: “It can be a formation or ‘you are only allowed to play scoring inside the box’ or ‘I want you to work on crossing or defending crossing’, or something that they may have messed up on.”
Mr Johnson also works on the team’s physical fitness to improve their concentration levels, by organising regular gym sessions and cooking healthy meals for the team.
Some of Fnatic’s more established teams have personal chefs, and consult nutritionists and sport psychologists to improve players’ conditioning.
The rise of eSports in the UK was underscored last month when the Premier League announced it would be starting its own tournament later this year with the final due to be broadcast on Sky Sports.
Ed Vaizey, the former digital minister, who joined the British eSports Association last year as vice-chairman, said eSports was something the Government should take seriously.
He said: “If eSports is going to be a growing phenomenon, which it clearly is, I see nothing wrong with the government saying we will work with organisations and business to provide the regulatory framework that tells the world that if you want to invest in eSports, the UK is a place to do it.”
He added he would like to see a body created for eSports “like Sport England” that would develop grassroots talent.
Whereas eSport’s rise is unquestionable, its exact nature is still under debate. In the UK it is classified as a game, alongside chess and bridge, but there are moves internationally to have it recognised as a sport. This year eSport featured as a demonstration sport in the Asian Games and it is due to be a full medal event at the 2022 games.
Yet Thomas Bach, the president of the International Olympic Committee, has balked at the prospect of introducing eSports at the Olympics, saying some games are too violent, such as Counter-Strike, which involves battles between teams of “counter- terrorists” and “terrorists”.
Alongside these concerns, the World Health Organisation officially recognised video games addiction as a disorder this year and it is now being treated on the NHS.
Dr Louise Theodosiou, from the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “We would want to see very robust health and safety information about how gamers can be kept safe.”
The British eSports Association argues there are crucial differences between eSport and traditional video gaming, and that eSport has benefits when done in moderation.
Tom Dore, the association’s head of education and a science teacher at King Edward’s independent school in Bath, said: “Traditional gaming is more of a solitary individual pursuit and you are playing against a computer. Whereas eSports is competitive, it’s team based and it’s always human vs human.”
Mike Wright
‘Traditional gaming is more of a solitary pursuit, but eSports is competitive, it’s always human vs human’