Esports Yearbook 2017/18

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Julia Hiltscher and Tobias M. Scholz eSports Yearbook 2017/18

ESPORTS YEARBOOK

Editors: Julia Hiltscher and Tobias M. Scholz Layout: Tobias M. Scholz Cover Photo: Adela Sznajder, ESL Copyright © 2019 by the Authors of the Articles or Pictures. ISBN: to be announced Production and Publishing House: Books on Demand GmbH, Norderstedt. Printed in Germany 2019 www.esportsyearbook.com

eSports Yearbook 2017/18

Editors: Julia Hiltscher and Tobias M. Scholz

Contributors: Sean Carton, Ruth S. Contreras-Espinosa, Pedro Álvaro Pereira Correia, Joseph Franco, Bruno Duarte Abreu Freitas, Simon Gries, Simone Ho, Matthew Jungsuk Howard, Joost Koot, Samuel Korpimies, Rick M. Menasce, Jana Möglich, René Treur, Geert Verhoeff

Content

The Road Ahead: 7 Understanding eSports for Planning the Future By Julia Hiltscher and Tobias M. Scholz

eSports and the Olympic Movement: 9 A Short Analysis of the IOC Esports Forum By Simon Gries

eSports Governance and Its Failures 20 By Joost Koot

In Hushed Voices: Censorship and Corporate Power 28 in Professional League of Legends 2010-2017 By Matthew Jungsuk Howard

eSports is a Sport, but One-Sided Training 44 Overshadows its Benefits for Body, Mind and Society By Julia Hiltscher

The Benefits and Risks of Sponsoring eSports: 49 A Brief Literature Review By Bruno Duarte Abreu Freitas, Ruth S. Contreras-Espinosa and Pedro Álvaro Pereira Correia

- 5 - Sponsorships in eSports 58 By Samuel Korpimies

Nationalism in a Virtual World: 74 A League of Legends Case Study By Simone Ho

Professionalization of eSports Broadcasts 97 The Mediatization of DreamHack Counter-Strike Tournaments By Geert Verhoeff

From Zero to Hero, René Treurs eSports Journey. 114 By René Treur

Family Matters: Explaining Why Parental Involvement 117 in eSports Is Changing and Why It’s Important By Joseph Franco

From Casual to Professional: How Brazilians Achieved 121 eSports Success in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive By Rick M. Menasce

How DotA is Getting Deeper 141 By Sean Carton

Competitive Gaming Between the Oceans 148 By Jana Möglich

- 6 - The Road Ahead: Understanding eSports for Planning the Future

By Julia Hiltscher and Tobias M. Scholz

Publishing the eSports Yearbook seems a lit- amnesia due to the current hype. Nothing can tle bit like Groundhog Day – Still we have to stop the growth of eSports; at least, it seems say it: what a turbulent time to be involved in like that. eSports. However, the contributions of this eSports We have both been part of eSports for nearly Yearbook show a specific critical discourse two decades, but still it amazes us just how about the future of eSports. Topics about much eSports is evolving. The amount of governance, institutionalization, power, pro- money invested in eSports each year is still fessionalization, and even nationalism high- increasing while more and more sports teams light potential obstacles for the future of eS- like the Golden State Warriors add eSports ports. Simon Gries analyses the debate about teams to their portfolio. eSports being part of the Olympic movement and focuses in-depth on the IOC Esports Fo- The International in Dota 2 had a staggering rum and how it developed. In the context of prize pool of $25,532,177. Viewer numbers institutionalization and governance, Joost are rising as well as the prize pools and spon- Koot researched the existing governance sorships. Yet, this massive eSports hype structures and highlighted their failures. This might distract us from possible crises in the focus on institutionalization highlights the future: corporate power in the eSports industry, es- Franchising in leagues is something that the pecially from the game developer. Matthew people responsible should be careful with. Jungsuk Howard describes this corporate Franchising may be reasonable for a steady power through the censorship in the profes- and stable growth, but it removes a lot of mo- sional world of League of Legends. Still, eS- mentum from eSports teams. They cannot ports shows excellent potential for the future. develop themselves as freely as they could Therefore, Julia Hiltscher explains how eS- without franchising contracts, which limits ports may become the number one sports in possibilities of new eSports organizations be- the upcoming years. Moving towards the pri- ing born out of eSports teams that made a mary source of income, sponsoring is, still, name for themselves. highly influential in eSports. Bruno Duarte and his team looked into the literature on Rumor has it that franchising fees between sponsoring and derived several benefits and $30 and $60 million are typical in the Over- risks of sponsoring in eSports. A similar ap- watch league. This led to teams that became proach was made by Samuel Korpimies, and backed by corporations with deep pockets. hereby, he is analyzing the process of spon- These companies want to see a return on their soring in-depth by utilizing interviews. investments. Simone Ho is tackling an important topic in There are many obstacles in the future of eS- eSports: Nationalism. It is undeniable that we ports, and the “old-school” eSports people link eSports teams with their nationalities still remember the franchise system of the and even if they are international, we often Championship Gaming Series and how this talk about the roots of the organization. In one league devastated the eSports world. The this chapter, she focuses on the Chinese Case eSports industry recovers as it always does, in League of Legends highlighting the na- but did we learn from those mistakes? At the tionalistic value in eSports, although borders moment, it seems like eSports has historical are technically irrelevant. In the next chapter,

- 7 - Geert Verhoeff is discussing the profession- stressing the potential peril of an impending alization of eSports broadcasts deriving that crisis by researching benefits and risks in e- the mediazation is an integral part of the pro- Sports. This underlying pattern in the chap- gress of eSports in recent years. This medi- ters shows that we have to learn from our azation logic can be linked to René Treurs mistakes as well as from our success. eSports eSports journey becoming a prominent com- is an industry of trial and error where just like mentator in eSports. This autobiographical in a video game, we try again and again until story highlights the importance of people in obstacles are overcome. Yet, eSports is an in- eSports and how they influence the broadcast dustry that is no longer a hobby. Therefore, it experience. Still, eSports is in a niche if it is essential to learn from our mistakes and comes to the public interest and especially understand the competitive advantage of e- for the older generation, eSports seems Sports. Consequently, eSports is not like any strange. However, Joseph Franco accentu- other sport, any social movement, and any ates that parental involvement is crucial for other business, the question is: Will we make the success of young eSports players. There smart decisions and benefit from its unique- is a chance to make a career in eSports, but ness in the future, or will we make the same similar to traditional sports, not everybody old mistakes? can make it. Yours, Furthermore, Rick Menasce gives an in- depth analysis of the success story of Brazil- ian Counter-Strike. Especially in Counter- Julia Hiltscher (Christophers) & Strike, the Global South usually is not part of Tobias M. Scholz any success stories, but Brazil is exceptionally successful in Counter-Strike. Sean Car- ton discusses the evolution of Dota 2 and how it changed over the patches. By that, he ... keep on gaming! is emphasizing the impact of these changes P.S. Although there is an ongoing discussion on the game and gameplay. Finally, Jana about the way how eSports should be written, Möglich is reporting about the success of cre- we are staying with the path we chose ten ating a bridge between eSports and politics. years ago. The Guardian is still writing eS- She focuses on the case of Schleswig-Hol- ports, and, at the moment, the scholarly stein, a federal state in Germany. world is preferring eSports as well. There is It becomes evident, that, despite the seem- a linguistic as well as the cultural topic in this ingly blind hype, many researchers are wording that may be interesting for an article.

Julia Hiltscher was born in 1983 in Westerstede, Germany. She established eMAG – an online e- Sports magazine – with Tobias Scholz in 2004. She has been a working student at the Electronic Sports League (Turtle Entertainment GmbH) since Feb. 2006, achieved her Master of Arts degree in International Comparative Literature and Media, English and German at Bonn University in June 2009 and has been working at ESL since. As Vice Director Community Management, she has helped to create and run lots of successful tournaments such as the Go4 series, IEM or ENC. She can be contacted at: [email protected] Tobias M. Scholz is currently holding a position as a Post-Doctoral Researcher at the University of Siegen. After graduating from universities in Germany and the U.S., he has worked as a research and teaching assistant. His field of research is human resource management and organizational behavior. In 2018 he initiated the University of Siegen eSports team Siegen Bisons and he founded the eSports Lab of the University of Siegen in 2019. He recently published the book “eSports is Business – Management in the World of Competitive Gaming”.

- 8 - eSports and the Olympic Movement: A Short Analysis of the IOC Esports Forum

By Simon Gries

eSports have come a long way in the last dec- and non-endemic companies that have iden- ade. 2018 marks yet another milestone in the tified eSports as a valuable advertising plat- history of this young phenomenon, which has form. Not only does this apply to (e)sports as pushed eSports further towards mainstream a profitable business but also to the individ- entertainment and sports culture. Its arrival in ual in order to legitimize their claim to be mainstream culture has not gone unnoticed recognized as actual professional athletes. by the world of traditional sports. After years Dedication to their sports, discipline, sports- of debate and discussion eSports have come manship, hard work, and excellence are base- closer than ever to being recognized as an ac- line themes one can encounter in eSports and tual sport. As such, it is also a phenomenon traditional sports narratives alike, with a that both challenges and reaffirms hege- strong focus on the individual as a project of monic notions and ideals projected in tradi- the self. tional mainstream sports. Sports have always had a normalizing effect On the one hand, eSports put the hegemony on the societies that practiced them by proof physicality into question by rendering the jecting ideals and desirable traits on them athlete’s bodily performance invisible in a (Gems & Pfister, 2009, p. 4). In the modern, digital space. What is more, it challenges that post-industrial age sports add much credibil- which Andrei S. Markovits calls “hegemonic ity to the rationalizing of sporting culture by sports” (Markovits & Hellerman, 2001, p. 9), employing discourses of health, national i.e. the dominant forms of sports which oc- identity, and socialization. This embodiment cupy most space in the media, in the public is also linked to the codification and regula- discourse, and in the everyday lives of the tion of sports, which standardized the way in people of its culture. These sports (e.g. base- which sports were practiced on a national and ball, football and basketball in the US, or soc- global level respectively (Markovits & Rens- cer in Europe) is what “people breathe, read, mann, 2010, p. 17). If one presumes that ne- discuss, analyze, compare, and historicize; oliberalism has in fact a hegemonic function what they talk about at length before and af- in Western culture, it is safe to say that sports ter games on sports radio” (p. 9). In this is also affected by this rationality, and em- sense, eSports can alter the definition of what bodies attitudes, strategies, and other tech- sports actually is and what kinds of sports are nologies essential to it. being popularized and mediated. On the other hand, eSports has profited mas- eSports have come a sively from neoliberal market rationales that have determined the financial success of tra- long way in the last ditional hegemonic sports. Blizzard's Over- decade. watch League, for example, is a franchise- based league with privately owned teams Because of this ambiguous nature of eSports, similar to the NFL or MLB (Darcy & Wolf, it is little surprising that the relationship be- 2018), not to mention the countless endemic tween analogue and digital sports has been a rather troubled one. Yet, in 2018, representa-

- 9 - tives of both worlds came together to negoti- bodies of sports proposing to host such a dis- ate similarities, opportunities and possible cussion forum. In the course of the event, it features of electronic games at the Olympics. became clear that cooperation and under- The exhibition StarCraft II tournament in standing of each other opens up opportunities South Korea, one week before the Winter for both sports and eSports. The role of the Olympics in PyeongChang in Feburary 2018 latter is especially interesting if one consid- was the first major test for eSports in the con- ers the adaption of rhetorical, structural, in- text of an Olympic event (Zaccardi, 2017). stitutional, and cultural patterns of sports into Only five months later, the worlds of tradi- their digital counterparts. tional sports and eSports met to discuss the There were several discussion panels on the future of their relationship and whether eS- two days of the forum which brought the rep- ports can become an Olympic discipline one resentatives and actors of both worlds today. The Esports Forum at the Olympic Mu- gether and made for excellent opportunities seum in Lausanne, Switzerland, on July, 20 to share each other’s views, probe for coop- and 21, 2018. The event was organized by the eration opportunities, address problems and International Olympic Committee (IOC) and overcome the barriers between analogue and the Global Association of International digital sports. In general, one can conclude Sports Federations (GAISF) and its subject that the Olympic movement as well as the eS- was “to explore synergies, build joint under- ports movement have much common ground, standing and set a platform for future engage- despite all their differences. Especially ment between the eSports and gaming indus- among the athletes, there was a common un- tries and the Olympic Movement” (Interna- derstanding of passion about what they are tional Olympic Committee [IOC], 2018, doing, and dedication to their respective dis- para. 3). The discussions featured a diverse ciplines. In the following I want to recap set of representatives of all parts of both the three panels of the forum, which I regard as traditional and electronic sports industries. the most interesting ones in regards to e- Not only did the conference acknowledge e- Sports as sports in the context of a potential Sports' status as an increasingly important Olympic cooperation. part of pop and entertainment culture, but it juxtaposed the phenomenon with traditional The first panel is dedicated to the leading sports. This is not to say that all participants forces of eSports who portray the history of would agree on the equation of eSports as competitive gaming and the shift competitive proper sports. However, the eSports move- gaming has brought about the world of ment is now being taken seriously by the sports. They provide insights into the inner world of sports at last, after many years of workings and the self-perception of the e- disregard and the engagement of eSports en- Sports industry. The second panel is a dia- thusiasts. logue between IOC president Thomas Bach and e-athlete Jacob Lyon, a professional

Overwatch player, representing traditional The IOC Forum and digital sports respectively. In their talk, they address commonalities and differences The Lausanne forum made the transfor- of both worlds, and raise critical questions mation of eSports from a fringe phenomenon about eSports’s future in the Olympic move- to an integral part of the entertainment and ment. The third panel I want to examine is a sports industry very evident. The Olympic discussion between traditional and cyberath- Movement has been a staple in the world of letes and how they negotiate the connection hegemonic sports for more than 100 years between analogue and digital sports. All the and has much say in what is regarded as discussions were recorded and published as a sports and how sports and athletic competi- VoD on YouTube. tion are perceived in public discourses. Therefore, it is a huge step for eSports towards being socially and culturally accepted with two of the most influential governing

- 10 - Does the eSports Industry Need pay attention, you know, it's a very attractive the Olympic Movement? demographic. It's 20 to 40 years younger than most traditional sports. It's early and I think The first panel was the one featuring the most it just keeps growing from here.” (21 July influential actors of eSports, discussing the 2018, 40:45) phenomenon in regards to its potential en- trance into the Olympic structure. The panel, Indeed, the success of eSports would not called “The World of Esports” was hosted by have been possible without the internet and Rick Fox, who was a reputable and success- its streaming platforms in particular. IPTV ful NBA player back in his day. He is the has proven to be a serious contender to the owner of the eSports organization Echo Fox role of traditional television and entertain- and was therefore a very good choice to lead ment. Streaming allows content creators and the discussion as he is familiar with both viewers to directly interact; the format is ba- scenes. His guests were Mike Morhaime, sically open to anyone with access to the in- then-CEO of Blizzard Entertainment, Nicolo ternet and invites fans to be active partici- Laurent, CEO of Riot Games, Ralf Reichert, pants in eSports culture (Scholz, 2012, pp. CEO of ESL, and Kim Cheolhag, a repre- 89-91). The defining feature of a hegemonic sentative of the Korean e-Sports Association sport is its quality as a spectator sport, as this (KeSPA). is determinant for its value in the media. Kim Cheolhag points out that this is already the The hosts and his guests recount the history case in South Korea where KeSPA is the link of electronic competition, from its earliest ar- between developers and eSports organiza- cade days to today's multi-million-dollar in- tions, and the government. dustry to give the audience and viewers an idea, where eSports come from. The benefits, As a consequence, the rise of eSports chal- as the guests point out, were the participa- lenges the power of established media con- tory, open nature of electronic competition glomerates, sponsors, and sporting organiza- that was only recognized by the developers tions which has developed as the predomi- themselves in the 2000s, when streaming nant form of professionalized sports in the platforms provided an alternative channel for 20th century. Raymond Boyle and Richard content which was not controlled by estab- Haynes describe an interrelated dependency lished media such as television or radio con- of the media (especially television), sport and glomerates. Instead, people were able to sponsorships as the sporting triangle (also re- stream games and tournaments freely and in- ferred to as the “magic triangle” (Ströh, teract with one another since around 2010. 2017, p. 61)), and is the dominant “economic eSports, as Morhaime and Laurent, explain, structure of modern sport” (Boyle & Haynes, grows exponentially and are expected to con- 1999, p. 47). All three elements are intercon- tinue growing in the near future. There is no nected and influence and depend on each single traditional sports discipline that can other: the more exposure a sport gets in the boast with such a rapid, let alone global, rate media, the more attention it gets from the of growth which turns eSports into a real con- spectators. Spectators in turn, are potential tender in the realms of sports. customers, so their interest in this sport raises its market value. In their book Understand- Mike Morhaime illustrates the shift in the ing American Sports, Gerald Gems and Ger- hegemonic dominance of traditional sports as trud Pfister use a very insightful illustration follows: for this market dynamic. Media companies “We are kind of at an inflection point, I think, are not primarily providers of information, in eSports because what you are seeing now which is practically a mere byproduct in the is folks who hadn't really being paying atten- attempt to reach as many people (i.e. mem- tion to the eSports phenomenon start to really bers of target groups to be advertised) as pos- be interested. And so, for the first time, sible. Their main purpose is to “’rent’” ESPN will be broadcasting our finals live in (2009, p. 370) potential customers to the ad- prime time, so they haven’t done that with vertising companies. The media can demand eSports before. We have a lot of sponsors to

- 11 - more money for broadcast time from the ad- American sports television, are cooperating vertisers, while sporting organization can po- with Blizzard for example. Game developers tentially get more capital from their sponsors. take on a similar role as the major leagues and organizations in sports such as the NBA, This goes so far that media companies are not NFL, or MLB, and direct the rule set of their just producing content for “providing the tel- tournaments and the balance of their games. evision channels which deliver this ‘sports The games that are being played as eSports product’, but also owning the sports clubs in- are even more privatized than their tradi- volved,” (Boyle & Haynes, 1999, p. 51). Be- tional counterparts, which can become a cause of that, media corporations “can con- problematic factor. While the NFL is in trol both distribution and content,” (p. 51) charge of the highest tier of play and enter- leading to an unequal accumulation not just tainment in football, they do not own the dis- of financial but also of cultural capital. cipline itself, no matter how influential their The strong ties between the media, compa- decisions are. A computer or video game, nies and (institutionalized) sports have accu- however, is the property of its publisher or mulated so much power and influence over developer, and players, fans, and the industry resources that scholars talk about “power are dependent on their decisions. elites” (Gems & Pfister, 2009, p. 369), when These developments, however, do not sug- it comes to the monopoly of commercialized gest that eSports will simply replace sports in sports. Gems and Pfister focus on the Amer- the future, despite indicating massive shifts ican market, which have played a major role in the usage of media (both passively and ac- in commercializing sports since the 1960s, tively), sponsorships, and notions of sports. due to high levels of privatization. The hold- Neither does this mean that traditional media ers of power include “the professional sport will have no place in the future of eSports. It leagues and the NCAA, the sportswear in- is more accurate to assume that the ties be- dustry, and the sports media” (p. 369), who tween eSports and sports will grow, and if have access to the lion’s share of “financial one looks at Morhaime’s or Reichert's as- resources, status and privileges, influence, sessment once again, it becomes clear what power and control,” (p. 369). Power elites ex- this means: traditional media, i.e. television cel their influence on sports and have effec- networks and other parts will adapt to the tively transformed the way in which sport is new demand of electronic sports and include being represented, mediated, and structured, it into their coverage. especially in a professional, commercialized context. In other words, the accumulation of Despite eSport’s growth as an industry, its power in the hands of a few is effectively a status as an actual sport has not been hegemonic construct which has much influ- acknowledged globally. Along with issues ence on which sports are cultivated and sup- that arise when players need to travel to com- ported. pete, this is also a point which probably prevents eSports from entering the Olympic eSports, however, defied the influence of movement. There is not a single body which large media companies and managed to es- governs or defines eSports in its essence, nor tablish an ecosystem on its own. Ralf is eSports a homogeneous phenomenon, re- Reichert mentions this aspect of eSports and stricted to a limited number of games. identifies a shift in power. His argument is that eSports has developed from a grassroots Ralf Reichert raises the question whether e- phenomenon to a whole new industry in the Sports are in need of the Olympics and vice course of roughly two to three decades with- versa. He is “not sure if anyone needs anyone out the initial support of big media compa- [at] this point. The IOC has been therefore nies (43:45). Only in recent years have these 100 years, the Olympic Games are a great companies shown interest in electronic sports thing. I've been growing up [sic] with it doing and reached out for partnerships with estab- quite fine on its own.” (43:28). ESports has lished eSports brands, organizations, and de- skyrocketed in the last two decades without velopers. The result is that traditional media being universally accepted as a sport, alt- companies, such as ESPN, the leader of hough the trend is pointing towards a wider

- 12 - recognition of digital athletes in the next (international organizations) levels, with years. The ecosystem of eSports has estab- clearly defined rule sets, disciplines, and lished itself next to the other major institu- structures. tions of sports, such as the Olympics, FIFA, eSports titles are the property of the compa- or the major American leagues such as the nies that develop and publish them. As a re- NFL, MLB, and NBA. Reichert proposes an sult, a common governing body regulating Olympic competition similar to Paralympics, their eSports competition does not exist. In- which is a rather interesting comparison. stead, the companies function as authorities Reichert and the other eSports representa- themselves in their eSports scenes – some tives understand the IOC forum as a valuable with more control (Riot Games), some with opportunity to increase the range of their in- a laissez-faire approach (Valve) (Ströh, dustry, yet they are also aware of the fact that 2017, p. 42). Therefore, the Olympic move- they do not depend on the IOC or GAISF. ment and the industry need to make changes The industry has grown exponentially in the in their structures and agree to adjustments if past and will continue to do so in the near fu- there was to be a cooperation. Lyon counters ture, with or without becoming Olympic. For that eSports also developed naturally, i.e. this reason, the eSports industry does not from the bottom as a grassroots phenomenon. need to subordinate themselves to the estab- As a matter of fact, as Morhaime remarked in lished institutions. the first panel, no company was aware that their product would be turned into a serious,

athletic competition that would eventually Two Worlds Clashing: grow into the billion-dollar business esports ESports and the Olympic Movement is today. There is no relevant esports title on the market whose success is entirely based on The eSports panel is followed by a dialogue its publisher designing it to become one. The called “What Defines the Olympic Move- market leaders, e.g. League of Legends, Dota ment?” between IOC president Bach and 2, and Counterstrike, are more or less based Overwatch pro Jacob Lyon. The two repre- on fan modifications. sentatives try to find common ground but also address fundamental differences that make the inclusion of computer games in the They are also aware Olympic circuit difficult. There is an interesting chemistry between IOC president Bach, of the fact that they who used to be an Olympic fencer himself, do not depend on and Lyon because their talk is respectful, and, at times, even light-hearted and humor- the IOC or GAISF ous. Bach initially states that “It's the passion that really gets us together,” (01:08:30). Pas- Apart from the structural discrepancies, Bach sion seems to be the driving force for tradi- has ethical issues with the implementation of tional and digital sports which is often cited electronic disciplines in the Olympics. He as the most common mutual feature. dismisses games from becoming Olympic that promote “contrary values” (01:26:05) to Despite all the marks of respect for each the Olympic ideals and cross a “red line” other, the more interesting part about this dis- (01:26:10). This line is violated, in his opin- cussion panel are surely the more problem- ion, when a game is “about the glorification atic issues addressed by Bach. He criticizes of violence and discrimination” (01:26:45). the lack of both a proper definition of what This argument is well-placed rhetorically be- games constitute eSports and a meta organi- cause one cannot disagree with it. The e- zation that represents all digital disciplines. Sports industry has spent years reshaping its While this decentralized model works well in image as a hyper-masculine, violence-pro- the realm of eSports, it poses problems if one moting space into a real of fair competition was to include computer games in the Olym- and respect. Yet, whether or not a computer pics. The Olympic system, he explains, is or- game glorifies violence and discrimination is ganized from the bottom (athletes) to the top

- 13 - a matter of debate. At this point, the discus- Olympic movement includes these disci- sion becomes a generational conflict between plines because they are practiced in a strictly representatives of traditional and digital competitive, peaceful way. sports, which is fought out by Bach and The panel revealed that there is much need Lyon. for talk between the Olympic world and the Bach exemplifies games that promote vio- eSports industry. This goes beyond the struc- lence or use violence as a means to victory, tural particularities of the two systems and but this would actually exclude the majority includes also ethical questions. Interestingly of the current major eSports titles, which enough, it was not the matter of debate makes the “red line” a blurry, inconsistent whether eSports can be regarded as a sport or concept. While one can see the problematic not (although it was asked which disciplines scenario of CS:GO (terrorists trying to plant exactly can be considered eSports). This bombs, counter-terrorists trying to stop question was raised in the next panel I want them) as something which can be hardly ex- to discuss. plained to the general public, games like

StarCraft, Overwatch, and League of Leg- ends are not free from violent imagery. The The Athletes’ Perspective three games require the players to battle their opponents and even rage wars against each The third panel of this forum was dedicated other. Yet, their fictional settings seem to be to the perspective of traditional athletes and less contradictory to the Olympic ideals. professional gamers in which Olympians and StarCraft II, as mentioned before, was fea- esports players discussed their notions of what constitutes an athlete. The attendees of tured at the Olympic exhibition tournament this roundtable, hosted by T.L. Taylor, en- one week prior to the Olympic Games in Ko- rea. From an athletic perspective, the game gaged the topic in a really respectful, open- was an excellent choice due to its high diffi- minded fashion. She was joined by the Olym- culty level and the strong international scene. pians Anthony Ervin, Ana Jelušić, Abhinav Yet, considering Bach's “red line” rule it Bindra, and Sarah Walker, and the e-athletes, clearly promotes violence as a means to Dario ‘TLO’ Wünsch, Kim ‘Greguri’ Se- achieve victory. Therefore, it should not have Yeon, Stephany ‘Missharvey’ Harvey, Chan been eligible for the tournament. ‘Deer’ Ka-Ching, and Jacob Lyon. What was striking about their discussion was that tradi- If one digs deeper into the matter, it becomes tional and digital athletes found a lot of sim- clear that the Olympic movement is not ilarities rather than differences. The way they strictly against disciplines that originate from talk about their professions and the prospect violent prototypes. Lyon reminds Bach that of eSports becoming Olympic teaches one the Olympics feature many disciplines that much about the self-perception of both tradi- originated from combats and war. To him tional and digital athletes. and many other players, the competitive aspect easily transcends the violent imagery of In fact, in a video of the panel discussion, the the games. The display of violence is, to him, Croatian Olympian Ana Jelušić observes hardly comparable to what violence is in re- early on: “[I]n the end it’s dedicating your ality. He elaborates that “as humans we do time and your effort and to some extent your have these intensely competitive, sometimes well-being to the pursuit of excellence in bordering on angry, violent, instincts. But I whatever you are doing” (6:36:18). The style see these facsimiles of such things as a way of her language already indicates a stance to- to let out these impulses in a healthy way” wards sports which can be characterized as (01:28:10). He argues that many disciplines neoliberal due to the individualist tone of her in traditional sports derived from martial argument. She emphasizes the importance of hard work and the individuality of each ath- practices, war training, and other violent activities, and cites Bach's discipline, fencing, lete’s goal. However, she notices also a dif- as a result of a real, violent practice. Yet, the ference in the ratio of body and mind involvement, which is seconded by Dario ‘TLO’ Wünsch, a well-known StarCraft II

- 14 - pro. He has played the game professionally expectations. Because they monitor their be- for Team Liquid since 2010 and been a staple havior themselves, the intervention of an au- in the European StarCraft scene. Wünsch’s thority is no longer necessary (Steinhoff, expands Jelušić’s argument and embeds pro- 2015, p. 23). In order to become ideal citi- fessional gaming further in a normative, ne- zens, people utilize so-called “technologies oliberal context by connecting eSports to an- of the self” (Foucault, 1988, para. 9) that are alogue training. He speaks of a shift in the to be understood as strategies and tools (not scene when it comes to optimizing the train- to be confused with actual technical de- ing. “[I]f I take care of my body and train vices),which permit individuals to effect by hard physically and diet and have a good their own means or with the help of others a sleep schedule, I’m going to be a stronger certain number of operations on their own player as well” (6:43:00). He outlines profes- bodies and souls, thoughts, conduct, and way sional gaming not as a one-sided obsession of being, so as to transform I [sic] themselves but as a complex project of the self, which in order to attain a certain state of happiness, demands a high level of discipline in basi- purity, wisdom, perfection, or immortality. cally all facets of everyday life, including (para. 9) what players eat and sleep in order to perform Self-help, the emphasis on individual well. Here, a longing for optimization is es- choices, and the notion of personal responsi- tablished which might even astonish critics bility derive from this concept and recurs in of digital sports. many critiques of neoliberalism (cf. Eagle- Wünsch agrees, however, that digital sports ton-Pierce, 2016, p. 19). Rather than excel- is less physical because only certain parts of ling direct, sovereign power, a neoliberal the body are involved in the execution of the government following this logic provides the sport, while traditional sports tend to be more means and norms for the individuals to shape demanding for the whole body. Despite their and optimize themselves in a fashion which differences in regards to the ratio of the in- is most beneficial for society at large. Tradi- volvement of their bodies and minds, all ath- tional notions of sport are closely tied to letes share a common narrative: they empha- physical action and the involvement of the size their dedication to what they are doing. body. In a Foucauldian sense, technology has The traditional and digital athletes on this always been implemented in sporting cul- panel find a common basis in the adherence tures, as there is no ‘natural’ body in cultural to neoliberal ideals of self-optimization, contexts. In her excellent study Raising the technologies of the self, and the amount of Stakes, T. L. Taylor states about the merging work they put into honing their skills, bodies of body and technology: and minds. The sporting body has always been tied up The concepts of self-optimization and tech- with technology. It is only in a fairly abstract nologies of the self were coined by Michel conjuring of idealized athleticism that we Foucault. He claims that the decentralization might imagine an isolated ‘natural’ body of authority and the promotion of the subject confronting nature in a test of skill. Contem- as entrepreneurial, autonomous entity can be porary traditional sports regularly demon- seen as the most effective approach to benefit strate this complex relationship not only be- the political body (Steinhoff, 2015, p. 27). tween various technologies on the field (be it The metamorphosis into an entrepreneur is new innovations in gear or equipment), but in achieved by internalizing expectations and the regimens of practice and body modifica- norms, emphasizing the responsibility of the tion undergone in sports medicine, physical individual. In Foucault’s work, this was ex- therapy, and advanced training. (2012, p. 40) emplified by Jeremy Bentham’s Panopticon Modern, performance-oriented sports are prison. He develops the thesis, that the sub- highly dependent on technologies of the self, jects (the inmates in this case), who are aware which help athletes to transform their bodies, of the mere possibility of being watched, in- optimize their performances, and modify the ternalize the codes of behavior. They know way in which they conduct actions necessary what is expected of them and comply to these for their discipline. This rationale suggests

- 15 - that instruments of self-surveillance and op- and thus discursive power in traditional timization are even more prominent in e- sporting cultures. Sports, due to the recording features imple- There are many sentiments against athletic mented in the games. Competitive computer computer gaming in the mainstream media. games record a large number of details on Two factors contribute to this circumstance: how the players performed, be it in respect of critics have relatively little experience with accuracy, timing, actions per minute, and so video games, especially on a professional, on. In this sense, eSports continues the in- competitive level, and what is more, the volvement of optimizing technologies in stigma of video and computer games is mis- sports, and creates even stronger bonds be- understood as child’s play which requires lit- tween sport and technology. tle more than extensive “button-mashing” Interestingly enough, the fight for the ac- (Taylor, 2012, p. 91). These arguments re- ceptance of their families, peers and society veal a clear hierarchy of sporting culture. is not a feature exclusively attached to e- Traditional, inherently physical sports are the Sports. The panel reveals that both traditional ‘real’ sports, while eSports, if at all, are rec- and digital athletes are not always taken seri- ognized as a competition that takes place in ously until they find success in what they are the players’ minds. Acknowledging eSports doing. This narrative is another key feature challenges the hierarchy of sports and the of neoliberalism: one can do anything one values they promote. As a result, eSports wants as long as you are successful with it, might play down the achievements of those i.e. make money and gain fame and reputa- who practice ‘real’ sports. By promoting pro- tion. As only the very best can achieve and fessional computer games as athletic effort, enjoy this privilege, athletes often suffer traditional athletes could feel like the mean- from the prejudices that exist in meritocra- ing of their training, practice, and time in- cies. They might feel being marginalized and vested was diminished, especially when they experience depreciation, if they do not have associate eSports with ‘button-mashing’ and the success to legitimize their efforts. The non-physicality (based on an idea of Dr. struggle for recognition is even more difficult Tracey Collins of Central Michigan Univer- if one belongs to a marginalized group, as sity). Stephanie ‘Missharvey’ Harvey mentions. In Physical strength used to the most highly re- her 15 years as a Counter-Strike player, she garded trait of workers in the industrial age, has met much opposition and suffered from and was the main criterion required for ex- sexist sentiments. celling at most sports (Wagner, 2006, p. 2). This is not just Harvey’s individual experi- Sports were therefore competitions of ence but also captured in academic literature: strength to establish one’s masculinity. Its hegemonic sports promote the predominance gendered nature was reinforced by dis- of (white) masculinity in American culture. courses of health and physical fitness. By valorizing the efforts of the (male, able- In their narratives, eSports players often refer bodied) athletes, mediating them frequently to traditional sports to enhance their claim as in the media, and by juxtaposing them to a athletic performers. Indeed, many apply “fre- militaristic cult, sports create and maintain a quent invocation[s] of [traditional] sports to strongly gendered reading which intersects help locate their activity and passion” (Tay- with images and notions on race, ethnicity lor, 2012, p. 108). They legitimize their ded- and nationality, too (Taylor, 2012, p. 114). ication to professional computer gaming by The inhabitation of athletic masculinity, Tay- utilizing a well-established image which as lor says, offers male individuals a higher spot accumulated much discursive power over the in social hierarchies granting more privi- last two centuries. Voorhees supports this leges. Traditional athleticism promotes view saying that eSports actually uses char- “strength, physical skill, and a kind of ‘sur- acteristics of traditional, masculine sports, vival of the fittest’” (p. 114) as desirable which reproduce what he calls “neoliberal characteristics which are hidden in the digital masculinity” (2015, p. 64). He suggests that space, and have, as a result, less legitimacy eSports is not based on the organizing bodies

- 16 - or professional players but “rather, they are and made similar experiences in their ca- both effects of the hegemony of the sportive reers. Unlike Chan and Harvey who play on mentality” (p. 63). The focus on competition all-female teams in their games, Kim plays and internalized economic thinking are two for the Overwatch team Shanghai Dragons. defining factors for masculinity in neoliber- She is the first female player who has made alism and key elements of the construction of it into a professional team in the Overwatch competitive play in digital games. These League and competes in a completely male principles account for the evolution of games space. She was often accused of cheating be- as leisure activity for children to serious busi- cause of her excellent in-game stats but ness which is practiced by ‘real’ (digital) ath- proved her critics wrong during an exhibition letes (Taylor, 2012, pp. 106-108). stream (Ashcraft, 2016). The sentiments of Kim's accuser were rather based on sexism Throughout the conversation, the athletes ex- than on facts. press their hope that digital sports will eventually lead to a more inclusive, and equal cul- All of these women do not simply challenge ture. It is still to be seen, whether eSports will idealized masculinity in their game, but they truly diminish coding after race, gender, or deconstruct sports as gendered, separate ethnicity, or reproduce it. The diminished in- places. The binary of a male and female fluence of physical strength in eSports cre- space, which has been massively advertised ates opportunities which render it a poten- during the Victorian Age, and has been man- tially inclusive phenomenon. Despite many ifest in many sports ever since, is about to be sexist and racist sentiments that perpetuate completely obsolete in the digital space, ac- internet culture, digital gaming can make cording to Lyon. He is convinced of the op- gender differences null and void and promote portunities for women in eSports. “I don’t be- opportunities for women to get on par with lieve that men are inherently better at eS- male competitors. ESports redefines the skill ports. I think that’s one of the powerful trans- sets and characteristic which are valued and formative facts in eSports that girls […] will estimated in traditional sports. As society be just as good as time goes on” (6:59:50). changes, also the expectations towards sport- Instead of declaring the features of the 19th ing culture and its position in society change. century man as the ideal in sports, its propo- What effect will the digitization of sports nents declare eSports as a fairer space where have on common notions of race, for in- gendered characteristics are not the key com- stance? ponent of performance any more, which is so strongly tied to the gendered body in tradi- eSports can certainly benefit counter-hege- tional sports. monic currents that defy the rules and characteristics of masculinity and its dependence explicit exhibition of the body’s materiality. It is just a matter of What is more, the digital space hides the identity of the player, at least as long as they time when eSports is refrain from participating at offline events. going to enter the The digital space negates the structural coding of race, gender, ethnicity, class and na- Olympic world for tion, as long as competitors keep playing online only. This is not to say that it dissolves good these means of stereotyping altogether, however, it diminishes the applicability of these That being said, one needs to understand that codes and disrupts their ‘natural’ appearance. established categories like race, class and The athlete panel of the Esports Forum sup- gender do not cease to exist in the digital ported this view by inviting three female space any time soon. Peter Chow-White and Lisa Nakamura, however, argue against the players to the roundtable. Apart from Har- vey, Kim ‘Greguri’ Se-Yeon and Chan ability of digitization to dissolve the categories of race and gender in their book Race af- ‘Deer’ Ka-ching contribute to the discussion ter the Internet (2012). They point out that

- 17 - digital media can and are used to reassert cat- world violence. He referred explicitly to the egorization of people, based on their race “so-called killer games” (para. 2) which con- (and other codes). Also, racial stereotypes are tradicted “the Olympic values and cannot enacted and reused in digital spaces, for ex- therefore be accepted,” (para. 2). Computer ample in World of Warcraft (2005), where games and eSports in general still have to trolls and taurens (two playable peoples) are fight with this stigma, despite all the progress fashioned after racialized Caribbean and Na- in the last few years. Yet, sports have always tive American role models (p. 8). been subject to change, and also the part technologies played in their practice. The In addition to that one must be aware that al- fact that the IOC invited and negotiated with most all professional players in any of the the eSports industry moves digital sports major scenes are still male. Yet, considering closer to the public mainstream. Several pan- the prospects given at the roundtable, i.e. the els during the forum displayed eSports is on increasing inclusion of women in the eSports eye level with traditional sports. What is system, the male predominance in eSports is more, the style of language and rhetoric, the a subject to change, and will probably be way the industry and players represent them- more inclusive as time goes on. Just like tra- selves, and the commercial structures have ditional sports, established hegemonic con- become similar to established forms of cepts are not always taken for granted. eS- sports. The ideas conveyed by eSports, ports can therefore deconstruct notions of namely values such as teamplay, work ethics, sexism or racism by making the bodies of fairness, and passion, are the same as in ana- players invisible, although digitalized sports logue disciplines. will hardly abandon categorizations altogether (and reinforces them in other con- It is just a matter of time, when eSports is go- texts). One might argue that this just overcoat ing to enter the Olympic world for good. The the problem, yet its neoliberal essence, re- inclusion of eSports as a medal event at the gardless of the problems which can arise 2022 Asian Games is already a strong indica- from its ideological frame, can empower mi- tor for this trend, as the organizing body, the norities, similarly as it did when marginal- Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), is sanc- ized athletes gained widely accepted in tradi- tioned by the IOC (Graham, 2017, para. 5). tional sports. Digital athleticism could be an- This tournament is going to be a test run to other step in this direction. examine the viability of eSports content in the context of the Olympics. Especially

China and Korea are valuable markets that Conclusion can be reached with digital competition, so it is almost a safe bet to predict a successful in- Despite the fruitful discussions that bridged troduction of eSports at the Asian Games. As some of the gaps between eSports and sports, a result, the IOC executives will be interested IOC president Bach announced shortly after in expanding the format which is also inter- the conference that "[w]e cannot have in the esting for the publishers and developers. Olympic programme a game which is pro- Eventually, eSports is going to be Olympic, moting violence or discrimination,” in one form or another. And when the time (Purchese, 2018, para. 2). With this state- comes, people will look back at the forum in ment, he points to concerns towards com- Lausanne where it all began. puter games as media that have a part in real

Simon Gries received his M.A. in English and American Studies from Ruhr-University Bochum. In his master thesis he examined the rise of eSports in American culture and contextualized the phenomenon with the traditional hegemonic sports industry. Simon has been interested in eSports since 2011 and has worked in various projects over the years. He works as an Editorial Specialist at Freaks 4U Gaming.

- 18 - References

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- 19 - eSports Governance and Its Failures

By Joost Koot

The popularity of eSports has increased mas- form of legitimacy that will frequently be sively in recent years. With viewership at mentioned is output legitimacy. Output legit- record highs and the increased amount of imacy is legitimacy based upon outcomes available sponsorships, revenue in the indus- and results (Skogstad, 2003, pp. 321–22). try has risen immensely. Increased revenue has allowed more people to work and earn money in the industry. More and more pub- The Most Important Issues lishers seem to want to create eSports leagues in the eSports Industry for their games. Overall, the future of eSports As an emerging sector, the eSports industry seems very bright. does not yet have a unified source of govern- Amidst all this growth, it seems like the gov- ance. Instead, the main parties providing ernance side of eSports has been largely for- governance are the games publishers them- gotten. This article aims to be the first step selves, each only governing the eSports towards a solution to this problem. First by scene of their respective games. identifying some of the current governance This role is completely unchallenged in the problems; this will focus on the current core providers of governance, the publisher and industry as they have the most legitimacy to certain ethical issues that are prominent. The fulfil the role of governing authority. This is second chapter will compare the role of gov- completely based on input legitimacy gained erning authorities in traditional sports to how by being the owners of the intellectual property that is a game, and not on the outcomes governance is taken care of in eSports. of their governance. The quality of the gov- Thirdly, this report will analyze the attempts at creating an eSports Global Sports Organi- ernance provided is thus irrelevant. sation (GSO) and their success. The final This is very different from the bodies that chapter will consist of recommendations for govern traditional sports. Even often criti- the future. cized global sports organizations like FIFA eSports in this article will be defined as insti- see a decrease in legitimacy when they are perceived to do a poor job governing the tutionalized tournaments, held for entertainment purposes, that have the participation of sport, and the organization must then act in players whose primary form of income order to preserve credibility. This could be comes from their job as a professional gamer. seen in the aftermath of the corruption scandal surrounding the choice to host a world This is a relatively narrow definition. This is championship in Qatar. A traditional GSO because not all of the issues outlined in this that has this pressure to a much larger degree article are relevant for the lower levels of than FIFA is the FIA. The FIA was originally play, and there are issues unique to the lower founded in order to increase the safety of mo- levels of eSports competition that do not oc- torsports, and this is still one of its main goals cur on the professional level. (FIA, 2017; FIA, 2016, p. 3). What can be seen after many serious accidents in motor- A concept that is brought up often in the arti- sport classes associated with the FIA, is that cle is that of legitimacy. Legitimacy is the ac- they investigate and see how a that type of ceptance of authority (Bodansky, Brunnée, & accident can be prevented in the future. If Hey, 2012, p. 705). In the article two differ- regulations pushed by the FIA were to make ent types of legitimacy are important. Firstly, the sport more dangerous, they would input legitimacy. This is legitimacy based quickly lose their legitimacy whether the na- upon participants and consensus. The other tional car federations that make up the FIA’s

- 20 - members would leave or not. As seen with and the lack of regulations and policy about the introduction of the ‘Halo’ driver defense a duty of care towards players. system into Formula 1, the FIA will push Competitive integrity regulations consist of through safety devices they deem important, all rules that ensure a level playing field, en- even if they are unpopular with fans and suring the better team of players wins a com- teams (Barretto & Rencken, 2017). petition. Breaches of competitive integrity Another important difference between tradi- are among the most heavily punished infrac- tional sports GSOs and games publishers is tions in traditional sports. On top of that, that the latter’s primary form of business is GSOs, like the International Olympic Com- not eSports. While the raison d’être of tradi- mittee work together with law enforcement tional GSOs is to govern a sport, games pub- agencies like Interpol to ensure the integrity lishers are businesses aimed at selling video of the sport. Since violations of competitive games and have often existed for much integrity, such as match-fixing, are often longer than a given eSport has. ESports is linked to criminal networks this cooperation also not the main source of revenue for pub- is very important. (Interpol, 2017). lishers. Rather, costs associated with it are One of the most glaring examples of the ab- often part of their marketing budget. The sence of competitive integrity rules, is the largest games publishers, such as Valve, Ac- shortcoming of comprehensive gambling tivision Blizzard and Riot Games each make regulations. Since many eSports businesses much more money than the total revenue of are active across multiple games, regulations the eSports industry combined. are required on a supra-game level. Cur- rently, even the existence of rules differs per Absence of regula- game. Riot Games, the publisher behind League of Legends (LoL), has forbidden bet- tions for competitive ting on any LoL matches for all professional integrity and the players. This is relatively easy for Riot as they control almost the entire eSports side of lack of regulations the game. This is not possible for all eSports however, since not all publishers take this and policy about a more controlling approach to e-Sports. Valve, the developer behind Counterstrike: duty of care towards Global Offensive (CSGO) and Defence of The Ancients 2 (DOTA2) is far less involved

players with the eSports side of the respective games. This difference does not necessarily mean After a match-fixing scandal in CSGO in publishers would do a worse job than a tradi- 2015, Valve made it very clear that they tional GSO. It does mean that publishers strongly frown upon betting by eSports insid- have fundamentally different interests than ers in their games. Nevertheless, Valve has organizations whose primary form of income sometimes failed to translate their beliefs into stems from the eSports industry. The ramifi- action, even at their own tournaments. At the cation of this difference is that policy end of 2016 at the ‘Boston Major’ DOTA2 adopted by games publishers can be bad for tournament, an Analyst for the team ‘Ad the sport but be good for the publishers’ core Finem’ had placed bets on the outcomes of business. While some traditional GSOs are some matches. While this caused public out- accused of pushing policy that is only good cry, Valve made no efforts to respond to the for their organization, ultimately, they need criticism. On top of that, ‘Ad Finem’’s man- the sport and relationships with partners in ager stated that the team will continue to the sport. Publishers do not. work with the analyst (Myers, 2017). Valve’s failure to act upon this violation during their On top of the current source of governance own tournament makes it seem unlikely the being problematic, the eSports industry has company will be a positive, proactive force two other significant issues. These are the ab- for competitive integrity, as the majority of sence of regulations for competitive integrity

- 21 - e-Sports tournaments for Valve games are first national governing bodies were created not organized by Valve. (Forster, 2016, p. 2). Another aspect of eSports that can potentially GSOs fulfil many different roles in tradi- harm competitive integrity is multi-team tional sports. Perhaps the most important role ownership. In many eSports this is allowed, is setting and enforcing the rules of the game. with the exception being League of Legends, Statutes reflect this in statements like “draw in which Riot Games forbade it (Riot Games, up regulations and provisions governing the 2015, p. 12). Some teams that are exclusive game of Football” and “interpreting and en- to CSGO, Astralis, Godsent, Heroic and forcing common rules applicable to the or- Norse are all owned by the company RFRSH ganization and the fair and equitable running (Lewis, 2017b). Natus Vincere and Virtus of motorsports competitions” (FIFA, 2016, pro are teams that operate in multiple games p. 6; FIA, 2016, p. 3). Further key roles of but also have the same owner, namely traditional GSOs that are represented in their Esforce (Lewis, 2016a). statutes are promotion and further development of the sport, often on both the recrea- Something else for which barely any policy tional and competitive level (ITF, 2017; FIA, exists is player protection. Many eSports 2016, p. 3; UCI, 2016, p. 3). players are very young, and thus in a more vulnerable position (Winkie, 2015). Now eSports fills these roles differently. The rules that the norm in eSports seems to be that peo- of an eSport are largely limited by the game ple quit their jobs and studies in order to fo- mechanics that are implemented by the de- cus more on the game, this vulnerability in- velopment studio. As such, there is a much creases. A prominent example of this is Jake smaller role here for other parties. All behav- ‘Stewie2K’ Yip, who was very open about ior that is allowed by the game mechanics is ruining his school career in order to practice generally allowed in an eSports. The only more (Yip, 2017). The prevalence of team rules that can be set are for outside the game, houses in eSports makes players even more for example, rules about competitive integ- vulnerable. Team houses are often seen as in- rity, behavior, and equipment. Currently, valuable for both practice and team bonding these rules are either set by the developer or (ESL, 2014). However, this leaves already by the tournament organizers, depending on vulnerable players in a position where teams the game. control the salary and the living facilities Traditionally, the majority of promotion for (Lewis & Stemler, 2016). In this environ- eSports is done by tournament organizers and ment, players are left open for potential teams. However, publishers are now getting abuse. This abuse is not just abuse by the increasingly involved. eSports are something teams towards the players, which can mani- that shows off their products in an exciting fest in pressure for unreasonable working and engaging manner and can thus be seen as hours or to accept lower salaries. Players are a source of extra promotion and opportunities also at a risk of being abused by fellow play- to expand their user base and profit potential. ers and coaches in many different ways. This could include sexual abuse. Without proper However, traditional GSOs do not all fulfil control and a centralized, anonymous, report- the same roles. The specific role each GSO ing mechanism, it is extremely hard to pre- fulfils is what warrants the existence of mul- vent abuse. tiple GSOs and shapes that sport to be or stay unique. An example is that the FIA is focused

on increasing the safety in motorsports (FIA, The Role of Traditional GSOs 2016, p. 3). Motorsports have seen may fatal- Translated to eSports ities in their history, and the FIA’s safety regulations implemented in recent years have Global Sports Organisations emerged in the seen these fatalities drop dramatically. Simi- 19th century amidst a general trend toward larly, after all the doping scandals in profes- more organization, standardization and governance. They appeared shortly after the first major sports leagues were founded and the

- 22 - sional cycling, the UCI puts a higher empha- relevant GSO. Efforts to make the global or- sis on preventing doping than many other ganization more effective would ultimately GSOs do (UCI, 2016, p. 3). be futile if this crucial part of their organization was not fixed. As this last ‘role’ is something unspecific, it is impossible to define what part that would IeSf’s similarity to traditional GSOs is their be an eSports GSO’s role is currently ful- main source of input legitimacy. IeSf is not filled by other actors. However, it is clear that just similar in its structure, but also in rules it the problems highlighted in the first chapter applies to tournaments. In competitions asso- are currently not dealt with by any parties. ciated with IeSf’s World Championships, An eSports GSO would be the right organi- teams need to consist of players with the zation to step in and deal with these issues. same nationality and they aim to separate tournaments into men’s and women’s tourna-

ments. The justification for this is that it im- What Attempts at GSOs proves eSports’ legitimacy in the interna- Have There Been? tional sports community (Scimeca, 2014). This method of attaining legitimacy seems to Even though the eSports industry might not be mostly aimed at actors outside of the in- have a GSO that currently provides the gov- dustry. If the community’s perception was ernance, that does not mean that there are not more important to IeSf, it would have most organizations aiming to fill this gap or pre- likely changed some of its policy. senting themselves as ‘the’ eSports GSO. This Chapter will cover the two most notable On the achievements and output legitimacy attempts, IeSf and WESA. front, IeSf has mainly proven they can work for themselves, but not yet that they can work

for the industry. While the organization International e-Sports Federation (IeSf) claims to have achieved a lot for eSports, people outside of IeSf oppose this view Founded in 2008, the International e-Sports (Chaloner, 2017). One of IeSf’s most recent Federation claims to promote standardization major achievements was a partnership with in eSports, to provide eSports oriented hu- the Chinese corporation Alibaba. Through man resource training, and to continually this, they are now involved with bringing e- promote eSports and its values (IeSf, 2016a, Sports to the 2022 Asian Games. While it 2016b). would be expected that this increases the or- The IeSf has a structure closely resembling ganization’s output legitimacy, so far it does traditional GSOs. Its members are national not appear to have had a great impact on their eSports federations (IeSf, 2016a, p. 2). This legitimacy within the industry. Mostly be- organizational structure is not suited well for cause it is questionable whether this really eSports. The most watched and most promi- benefited the eSports industry. Both of these nent eSports competitions are not national achievements, like many others, would be competitions like in the majority of tradi- achievements a tournament organizer, not tional sports. Thus, an international, central- necessarily for the organization as governing ized governing authority would be more ef- organ. fective. Of all of IeSf’s member federations, the only World Esports Association (WESA) two currently relevant federations are the Chinese and Korean ones, as their govern- The World Esports Association was founded ments force teams to work with them on 13 May 2016 by ESL and 8 multi-gaming (Chaloner, 2017). Few, if any, of the promi- organizations. Founded to both professional- nent eSports brands from other countries ize eSports, and to introduce a revenue share work with their national federations. Em- between all parties involved with the project powering these individual federations would (Rosen, 2017; WESA, 2016a). therefore be a crucial step in making IeSf a

- 23 - WESA’s executive board has two members a case-by-case basis (Rosen, 2017). A weak chosen by ESL and two by the teams. The reaction to violations would show WESA to fifth member is the chair and is selected by be an organization without teeth, and dimin- the other board members (Bury, 2016). This ish any potential influence the organization gives ESL a lot more influence than any other could have on the future of the industry. individual organization within WESA.

Whether they have really increased influence within the organization depends on how well The Future of eSports Governance the teams are at being able to overcome dif- This final chapter will feature a number of ferences in interests and act like a unit. policy recommendations aimed at improving WESA aims to gain legitimacy by being an the governance of the eSports industry. organization founded and run by major e- Sports brands. Many of the multi-gaming or- eSports governance should move away from ganizations have a long and successful his- being guided by the actions of publishers and tory in multiple eSports. ESL has also been a move towards a world in which a Global major player in the eSports industry for a Sports Organization is the main governing force. A GSO would allow for more unified long time. This has thus garnered them input legitimacy. This is also the case for the sec- eSports governance across different games ond method WESA tries to create legitimacy than when different publishers govern their through. this is player involvement in the or- own games. It is also easier to bring the best ganization, which can be seen through the in- practices and lessons learned in eSports gov- clusion of player comments in WESA’s ini- ernance to newly emerging eSports when the organization that is responsible for this has tial founding press release as well as in later been responsible for governing the other e- press releases (WESA, 2016a, 2016b, 2016c). Sports, rather than a publisher trying to do this. Economies of scale also come into play These efforts have not been too successful. as the organization grows, allowing for better The community of the (currently) only eS- and more effective control and reporting ports WESA is active in, CSGO, do not nec- mechanisms. As previously presented in this essarily hold the organization in high regard, article, it is also important to have a govern- often viewing it as a tool for ESL. On top of ing body that needs the eSports industry to that, journalists have also written negative survive, as opposed to an actor for which it is pieces on the organization (Lewis, 2016b; only a minor occupation. Rosen, 2017). On the other hand, it is important for a gov- WESA has so far not had any major achieve- erning body to recognize that each eSports is ments that could give it output legitimacy. different. An example of a traditional GSO However, in 2017 it did adopt regulations that has done this is the FIM. Even though that could have this effect in the future. These different motorcycling classes are governed regulations prohibited the ownership of mul- by one organization, they ensure that the dif- tiple teams. Multiple WESA teams are part ferences between each class are maintained. of Esforce, and others had financial ties in the past (Lewis, 2016a; Schnell, 2016). Thus, In general, governing bodies should take these regulations could have a large impact. their governing role much more seriously. It is impossible to assess this right now, how- Publishers are still the most legitimate au- ever, as all teams have 18 months to adjust thority, and their interventions are seen as the (Lewis, 2017a). Only after this period, it will go-to solution for problems. The governing be possible to see if WESA’s regulations bodies seem satisfied with a secondary role, have truly forced a change in the industry. If in which they can determine minor forms of teams do not change their behavior, the other policy or make deals that are only beneficial for their own members. core question is what the reaction of WESA’s executive board will be. As the regulations In order to become a true GSO, the organiza- do not include punishments, the executive tion needs to be seen as more legitimate than board will have to hand out punishments on

- 24 - a publisher. This is obviously difficult be- Ultimately, free-riding is only attractive and cause, as was already mentioned, the publish- possible if the governing body sets up a struc- ers own the game studios that create a game. ture that it does not maintain control of. An Where GSOs can step in, however, is by upcoming GSO with vision, policies and providing policy and governance in areas structures in place to tackle not-yet tackled where publishers’ governance is lacking, for issues is, in fact, an attractive partner to work instance by tackling some of the problems with. It does not just provide to legitimacy to mentioned in the first chapter. One positive the actor that needs it, but even makes the or- consequence of this is that GSOs get some ganization an attractive partner for publish- much-needed output legitimacy. Secondly, ers. Why would a publisher spend a lot of this also creates a framework that other or- money and time trying to set up its own gov- ganizations, whether they are a team, tourna- erning structure, if they could simply partner ment organizer, or publisher, can easily sub- with a GSO? scribe to.

Out of IeSf and WESA, the latter is certainly Conclusion the organization with more potential to become a proper GSO. This is because WESA Currently, each eSports is individually gov- is actually an organization that has several erned by a game publisher. They operate with relevant actors as its stakeholders. It can be complete legitimacy, based upon the fact that argued that IeSf is either one actor or consists the game is their intellectual property. This of many irrelevant parties. On top of that, the means their legitimacy is not based on out- type of organization WESA is, with relevant come, but rather on input. This is a major dif- international brands as stakeholders, is much ference from governing bodies in traditional more suiting for governing eSports than an sports whose existence is at least to some de- organization rooted in traditional, national- gree based upon the outcomes. Another dif- ity-based, sports governance. ference is that games publishers do not derive their existence from eSports, but rather from A potential risk for governing organizations selling games. For traditional GSOs the reli- is that actors free-ride on their efforts. Free- ance on their sport is a small guarantee that riding is always a risk when providing goods they won’t act too strongly against the inter- that are non-excludable and means that peo- ests of the sport and actors within that sport. ple enjoy the benefits of a good, without pay- In eSports that guarantee currently does not ing for it (Britannica Academic, 2017). This exist. is problematic because even governing bodies founded with purely altruistic motives need sources of funding. Since IeSf and A potential risk for WESA seem to mostly operate with the interests of the organization and members in governing organiza- mind, free- riding is of an even larger con- tions is that actors cern to them. However, IeSf and WESA, or any (new) gov- free-ride on their erning authority should not be too worried about free-rider behavior. When providing efforts governance on the subjects mentioned in Other problems with eSports governance are chapter 1, free-riding is not a large risk, as the absence of uniform policies directed at these policies should be explicitly tied to the ensuring competitive integrity, and any poli- governing body, and any claims that these cies defining a duty of care towards players. policies are being followed without being a member of the organization are easily identi- While some games developers, such as Riot fied as illegitimate. Games, have more rules in place about competitive integrity than others, it still is a problem that the rules are not uniform, as many actors operate across many different games.

- 25 - The lack of ‘duty of care’ policies is highly Sports brands as their members. Neither or- problematic, for many eSports players are ganization has been responsible for any out- young. The growth of eSports has ensured comes that are positive for the industry, ra- they now often start a pro-career without a ther than their own organization. Out of the degree or having pursued higher education. two WESA is likely the organization with the The prevalence of team houses in eSports most potential to grow into a real eSports puts them in extra danger, as this means their GSO however. This is because IeSf consists employer controls both their salary and living of many national federations. This style of space. An independent organization is neces- governance is badly suited to the industry. sary in order to prevent abuse. Any GSO that is serious about governing the The most important roles of GSOs in tradi- eSports industry has to focus on providing tional sports are to set the rules of the game, positive outcomes for the eSports industry, and promotion and further development of thus creating output legitimacy. This is be- the sport. For eSports, these roles are largely cause trying to create more input legitimacy taken care of differently. Since eSports are than publishers is almost impossible since games, the game mechanics largely deter- they own the intellectual property and have mine what the rules are, and a governing created the game. By creating policy for rules body would not have a large influence on outside of the game, and that way providing this. Promotion is traditionally largely done real governance for actors in the industry, by tournament organizers and teams, but re- they can become the most legitimate actor cently games publishers have started to take and thus the go-to organization when some- part in this as well. thing needs action taken. If the governing body were to tie their policies to them, they There have been two significant attempts at could also avoid ‘free rider’s’ behavior by starting a GSO for eSports, IeSf and WESA. other actors, as claiming to follow the GSO’s Both organizations try to gain the large ma- policy without working with the GSO would jority of their legitimacy through inputs ra- make an actor seem illegitimate. ther than outputs. IeSf tries this by essentially copying the model of traditional GSOs. WESA does this by having prominent e-

Joost Koot received a B.Sc. in Governance, Economics and Development from Leiden University. In 2017 he wrote his bachelor thesis on eSports Governance. He is currently in the final stages of a M.Sc. in Public Opinion and Political Behaviour at the University of Essex.

References

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- 27 - In Hushed Voices: Censorship and Corporate Power in Professional League of Legends 2010-2017

By Matthew Jungsuk Howard

A version of this article appeared previously as a chapter in a Master’s Thesis published in May, 2018 through the University of Houston’s History department. The original document can be accessed at https://uh-ir.tdl.org/handle/10657/3298.

Media and spectator sports have enjoyed a many of the breaking stories related to it and long collaborative relationship. Historically, could control media coverage rights for the innovators like baseball’s Larry MacPhail race as they saw fit. Ultimately, the concept have capitalized on new media like radio and evolved into a symbiotic relationship that al- television to boost their profit margins (Ty- lowed both the race and the magazine to ad- giel, 2000, pp. 104). However, there are also vertise for one another and express each cases in which the reverse is true, and private other’s values and motifs (Thompson, 2008, interests in media have used latent spectator pp.17-18). sport potential to increase their own revenue. The result of this initiative was a spectator ESports typically fall into this latter category. sport ecosystem that was beholden to private As the highest authorities in eSports, devel- interest, and the themes and motifs that sur- opers often passively and actively censor rounded the Tour de France expressed were news coverage, content creation, and investi- heavily curated through not only media cov- gative journalism to align with their aims us- erage, but also the way the spectator sport ing Web 2.0 information bottlenecks like was built – i.e. the actual course of the race, subreddits. As the developer behind one of which changed annually, or the frequent the world’s most popular eSports, League of shifts from national, unsponsored teams back Legends developer Riot Games’ actions from to private, sponsored ones. The Tour’s cen- 2010-2017 offer a profile of the imprint of tral goal was to promote an idealized and uni- corporate power on eSports discourse and fied French identity and modernize the coun- coverage. try by using racers from all corners of France Video game developers are not the only to bring the gift of cycling, a modern sport, sports media stakeholders whose literal own- to all corners of the nation (Thompson, 2008, ership of the sport has affected the shape of pp. 59-63). League’s inception as a spectator the discourse surrounding it. The Tour de sport followed a similar path insofar as it is a France is an interesting parallel from the tra- game – and therefore an intellectual property ditional sports world. Like League and other that is owned by Riot Games – that was ele- eSports, the Tour was born of private inter- vated to spectator sport status by the studio’s est. Henri Desgranges and Géo Lefèvre, edi- willingness to use the spectacle to advertise tor-in-chief and editor’s assistant of the cy- for the game and vice versa. cling magazine, L’Auto-Vélo, conceived the Riot Games’ central position in its eSport idea of a cycling race that spanned all of ecosystem provided necessary support as the France as a means of keeping the magazine spectator sport grew. However, as the re- afloat. As the race’s highest authority, gional leagues became more structured and a L’Auto-Vélo would have insider access to

- 28 - truly international eSport emerged, Riot’s fierce. Many of League’s media, however, power has become problematic, in particular are new media less common in traditional as it relates to free expression. ESports jour- sports. Professional and casual League play- nalism and analysis are subject to passive and ers alike use YouTube to make concept active corporate censorship limiting blog, guides for certain champions and teach the vlog (video blog), and traditional written game to new players, while commentators sports journalism in the League world. The make vlogs discussing league structure, centralization that stabilized professional monetization, and other topics. League also made this type of censorship Of equal importance, Twitch.tv, the live possible. streaming website, is where most video game Censorship occurs in the League of Legends fans began to consume live video gaming community on three levels. First, Riot content. Viewers can watch professional Games’ power over the community shapes matches across the globe in different eSports coverage, particularly criticism leveled at the or tune in to watch their favorite entertainers company. Second, the moderators of the and professional players either playing or League of Legends subreddit are the commu- practicing. Twitch offers fans a chance to nity’s gatekeepers, and they directly control catch the pros on the figurative practice court content circulation and what users are al- and ask questions in real time about tech- lowed to post on the League community’s niques and strategies that the player uses in- central information hub, limiting the amount game. Fans and professionals alike also write and diversity of content that reaches the for online publications and blog sites like larger community. Third, members of the Medium or Goldper10. community itself, teams, players, and fans, The majority of the Western League commu- have repeatedly displayed very hostile views nity consumes these various media through of journalists and journalism coverage of Reddit.com – one of the most intriguing League. The way League eSports coverage products of the Web 2.0 era. The meritoc- has historically taken advantage of Web 2.0 racy-based content aggregation site is home by converging on the League subreddit ena- not only to the general Reddit domain, but bled these types of censorship because sub- also smaller, topically specialized subreddits. reddits collect content in one place where it Subreddits are as varied as human beings and can be easily found, but also easily bottle- address topics that range from simply, necked, sorted, and censored. “Funny,” “Gaming,” or “Movies,” to more Web 2.0 has fundamentally changed journal- specific topics like, “Explain Like I’m Five,” ism and content creation in the 21st century “Shower Thoughts,” “Writing Prompts,” or by accelerating those processes. The Inter- “Male Fashion Advice.” There is even one net’s revolution enabled a surge of grassroots called “Ask Historians.” content creation through social media. The The wide appeal of subreddits has helped emergence of the blogger, YouTuber, and make Reddit the fifth most visited website in live streamer as entrepreneurs fed off of a the United States and the 17th most visited culture of sharing, imitation, and remixing to website in the world. Reddit is able to cater create a cultural ecosystem that allows con- to a limitless number of human interests and tent to proliferate and propagate faster than was designed to be user-driven. Reddit users ever before. It represents a deviation from the post discussion topics and links to articles, older models of journalism and of newspa- videos, and blogs posts on the website or its pers, television, and magazines toward the many subreddits, and Reddit users comment amateur and entrepreneurial content creators, and vote on whether or not those posts should many of whom have little to no formal train- rise to the website or subreddit’s front page. ing in journalistic practices. The League of Subreddits manifest users’ desire to share Legends community is no different, but all content with others who would understand its media focus on one online video game, so cultural significance. In this way, each sub- readership is more limited than in traditional reddit creates its own distinct community an- coverage and the competition for visibility is chored by commonplaces – conversational

- 29 - shortcuts that carry implied significances media ranking website, the League of Leg- among members literate in a common cul- ends subreddit was the world’s 60th largest tural discourse – which act as points of refer- subreddit, as of March, 2017, reflecting the ence for those who understand them. In other game’s massive popularity and the League words, the subreddits act as established community’s process of subredditization, by spaces in which community members share which its discussions and commentary from the same commonplaces, therefore stream- other forums moved to one, centralized sub- lining discussions (Alexa, 2017; Barthol- reddit (Top 100 Social, 2017). For example, omae, 1986). there are a variety of online publications focused on eSports, but they typically post This places the sub- links to their content on the subreddit to make sure it reaches its readership. Subredditiza- reddit in a position tion, therefore, creates a convenient environment for media consumption, but a very com- of paramount im- petitive one for media circulation. When a subculture undergoes subredditization, its portance as a media members are less likely to seek content beyond the subreddit, downgrading the web- bottleneck sites of online publications to secondary or While no one explicitly controls a subreddit, tertiary points of distribution. they do have moderators, or mods. Mods are This places the subreddit in a position of par- volunteers, typically selected by a subred- amount importance as a media bottleneck. dit’s creators or preexisting mod team, who On one hand, it is relatively easy to make a enforce the rules of the subreddit. These rules play at getting exposure for one’s writing or are made by either the subreddit’s creators or videos because a content creator can reach its moderation team and posted on the sub- their entire prospective audience at once. On reddit. The posting interface of these subred- the other, League’s subredditization places dits typically has a hyperlink to the subred- articles, videos, and streams at the mercy of dit’s specific rules. These typically relate to rules that are, ultimately, subjective, making behavior and self-promotion on the subred- them easy to censor and leaving the subreddit. In fact, all subreddits operate under a dit’s meritocracy – as so many others like it shared framework of etiquette. The rules of (Paul, 2018, p.65) – hollow. A ban from the the League subreddit – curated by its mod subreddit could easily mean the death of a team – condemn personal attacks, calls to ac- content creator’s following – and, therefore, tion, and Not Safe for Work content – usually career – in that subculture. anything with nudity, “smut fiction,” or ex- cessively gory content (HarleyWorking, A content creator’s lifeline is thus influenced n.d.). To enforce these rules, moderators by three levels of censorship in League of have the power to delete posts and ban user Legends subculture: the ownership level, accounts, either for a period of time or per- which operates through Riot’s power in the manently. These powers allow mods to en- community; the subreddit moderators’ level, force the subreddit rules and protect users which operates through their direct censor- from abusive behavior, but also give mods ship powers; and the community level, which the power to act as gatekeepers because, ulti- expresses League subculture’s distrust and mately, anything that a mod interprets as poor understanding of the journalistic profes- breaking subreddit rules can be deleted. This sion. The censorship problem in the League power has led to conflicts between mods and of Legends’ community is indicative of larger content creators and journalists at odds with issues stemming from the imbalance of moderators on many occasions. power between journalists and their subjects in the Web 2.0 world. Many video games, not just League of Leg- ends, have subreddits, but League is the most While questions about the interaction be- popular game-specific subreddit in the tween sport journalism’s gradient of infor- world. According to Top 100 Social, a social mation and entertainment focus has come

- 30 - into question (MacNeill, 1998, pp. 101-103), This central tension is important because of the information bottleneck in eSports media the historically symbiotic relationship be- is another essential variable in the flow of in- tween the spectator sport and the media, such formation in eSports subcultures. Sports as in the case of L’Auto-Vélo and the Tour de journalists in traditional sports are beholden France. The League eSport, at its most basic to the owners, teams, and players that they level, is Riot’s most effective advertising cover, but eSports journalists must also con- mechanism for League, and League is also tend with the enormous power of their sport’s the most effective advertising mechanism for developer and the subredditization that puts the eSport. League players follow geek con- them at the mercy of censors. The equivalent ventions and value displays of superior tech- would be if all sports coverage of American nical and skill (Taylor, 2012, pp. 110-111), football was vetted by the NFL, and the which makes the professional level and allur- league had the power to remove articles from ing form of entertainment, while the specta- circulation and blacklist journalists from tor sport helps drive Riot’s business model. continued publishing. League is a free to play game, so all of Riot’s revenue comes microtransactions – small As eSports become more mainstream, the is- purchases that give players access to purely sue of fair coverage will continue to grow as cosmetic items, called “skins,” that alter not only the teams, but the developers, the champions’ in-game appearance. When a pro moderators, and even the fans continue to re- player makes a big play while wearing a $10 strict what journalists can and cannot do skin, that skin acquires increased cultural sig- without risking their reputations or careers. nificance through visibility and nostalgia, In a world with decreasing news literacy and and its sales increase. To make this link more increased emphasis on speed over accuracy overt, Riot has integrated their eSports in journalism, one important and neglected schedule and advertising into the game’s ac- aspect of the journalistic environment in pub- tual client, so that one can no longer play lic discourse is the levels of censorship faced League and not know that the eSport exists. by those reporting on the happenings of the Web 2.0 world. As League’s developer, Riot can shape the professional game for its own purposes be-

cause, unlike the NFL or other traditional Riot Police sport leagues, it owns the actual game, not just the product of the sports media. Having In League of Legends, and eSports in general, centralized professional play under its wing, one central tension separates them from their Riot wields greater power over its spectator traditional counterparts: the duality of the sport than any traditional sport league. Thus, video game existing as both a spectator sport the company wields massive influence not and as one company’s intellectual property. just on the League subreddit, where Riot em- Riot Games, League of Legends’ developer, ployees often participate in the discussions, controls everything that happens to the game, but also in the League community as a whole. but the aims of a spectator sport and a video game are different. Both seek to entertain, Developer power in eSports industries exac- but their audiences seek different things. erbates existing power dynamics. Writing Spectators demand dynamism, flashy plays, about the place of sports journalists as gate- and superstars, while players demand com- keepers and agenda setters, Cyrus Saatsaz petitive balance, stability, and equal agency explained how sports journalists are often among game participants. These two audi- heavily influenced by the teams that they ences are extremely difficult to reconcile, cover: and some of the changes that Riot has made “The sports journalists, and especially those to the game over the years have balanced one who are assigned to a specific team and re- form of League’s entertainment, while hurt- gion, frame the message to appease both the ing the other. team and the fan base, some of which have a preference for receiving news that may have a bias for the sake of appeasing their personal

- 31 - beliefs about the team they root for. Framing, the League subreddit, personally attacking in relationship to the study of news, can be Andy “Reginald” Dinh, the owner of one of understood as the “point-of-view” on a given North America’s most famous teams (Gaf- issue or event—magnifying or shrinking as- ford, 2016). Dinh had complained about the pects of that issue or event to make them North American LCS’s narrow revenue more or less salient.” (Saatsaz, 2015, p. 15) stream for teams and the stress of pro play for players (theScore esports, 2016), and Merrill In the League of Legends community, fram- responded by claiming that the owners were ing also occurs, but beyond fans and teams. at fault for not paying their players enough In this spectator sport, eSports framing also and investing millions of dollars in League appeases the developer, Riot Games. Riot has revenue in teams for other games. However, undue commercial influence over the jour- at that time, teams had no share in broadcast nalistic objectivity of League’s eSports cov- or ticket revenues from LCS play and were at erage. Writing about League has an impact the mercy of sponsorships endemic to the on Riot’s league and Riot’s intellectual prop- computer and gaming industries. Merrill’s erty. To use the case of NFL football for con- attack launched a firestorm of criticisms trast, the NFL’s hegemony over American against Riot and himself on the subreddit be- football is implicit rather than explicit. While cause the community believed that Merrill it does hold great power over its league, the was either entirely uninformed about or flat game itself is not owned by anyone, and the out ignoring his own professional league’s league is owned by the team owners. A brave revenue structure (Gafford, 2016; ggMon- individual could theoretically start up their teCristo, 2016a; ggMonteCristo, 2016d; own football league, like the XFL (1999- Thooorin, 2016b). 2001) or UFL (2009-2012), to compete with the NFL. To that point, jour- Unlike traditional sports like football, however, professional League of Legends is not a nalists who criticize conglomerate. The teams ultimately all answer to Riot’s rules and decisions. The studio Riot Games typi- owns the leagues, the game, the broadcasts, and even started up the North American cally fear for their League of Legends Championship Series’ careers players’ union (Darcy, 2017). It employs the commentators, the referees, and everyone James “Obscurica” Chen, hoping to address else that helps the league run smoothly. Riot a newsworthy topic by examining how Mer- occupies such a central place within League rill might have become so disconnected, of Legends that its shadow looms over all wrote an article detailing the inner workings coverage of the professional game. Riot’s in- of Riot’s eSports division and unpacking fluence over League journalism has dis- how Riot’s leadership could be so unin- torted, and in some cases silenced, coverage formed of the way its leagues worked. De- and criticism surrounding the spectator sport. spite taking successful measures to help players earn a decent living, the company’s es- To that point, journalists who criticize Riot ports division ultimately failed to make the Games typically fear for their careers. Often league more financially viable for teams. in eSports, journalists specialize in one or Chen’s article explored Riot’s failure to ef- maybe two games, so being blacklisted or fectively monetize the League Champion- banned from events or from meeting with ship Series. He also examined the process be- sources is a professional fatality. That fear hind the developer’s decision to force Chris- plays clearly and decisively on journalists. topher “MonteCristo” Mykles and Chris One example of this illustrates the interaction Badawi to sell their team in just ten days. between Riot Games and the media. In Au- Riot accused Mykles and Badawi of breach- gust 2016, Riot’s President and CMO, Marc ing league rules regarding collusion, failing Merrill, made inflammatory comments on

- 32 - to pay players, instigating confrontations be- also taking on the spectator sport itself. tween team management and players, and Chen’s fears were justified initially, but Riot failing to provide a safe environment for all did not censor him, likely because his reli- players on the team. However, the developer ance on anonymous sources left his work did not produce any evidence to back up its vulnerable to challenge. Further, no other ex- claim or justify Mykles’ and Badawi’s pun- posés followed Chen’s piece. Were there ishment. Riot’s power over its intellectual other journalists with similar information property made disciplining teams possible, who remained silent due to the same fears but the system had been cloaked in secrecy Chen outlined in his piece? Were Chen’s (Chen, 2016; Rozelle, 2016). claims baseless? Chen’s credibility was dam- aged in the end. Without corroborating re- Thus, Chen’s article painted a picture of cor- ports, named witnesses, or reproducible evi- ruption, politicking, and incompetence that dence, Chen had no ground to stand on. Yet, justified the community’s inflamed anti-Riot Chen’s piece reveals a great deal about the sentiment after Merrill’s comments. The ar- weak investigative journalism in League of ticle detailed Riot’s eSports division’s inter- Legends. nal politicking and favoritism and accused it of attempting to sell Mykles and Badawi’s Later, other journalists echoed Chen’s fears. team to business associates of its director, Duncan “Thorin” Shields, an eSports jour- Whalen “Magus” Rozelle. Chen also claimed nalist, commentator, and outspoken critic, ar- that Riot selected its corporate leadership, gued, on a talk show, that journalism in e- like Rozelle, who had no sports league man- Sports like League of Legends forces its writ- agement experience, through political con- ers and reporters to make very difficult deci- nections over business acumen and experi- sions about what they write or record: ence (Chen, 2016). Chen’s sources included “On this topic here, on like criticizing people, several Riot employees and LCS team own- I can't really ever give people advice on this ers, but all anonymously. Clearly, having topic. I'll give you an example. I had a jour- their names associated with questioning nalist who contacted me recently and he said, Riot’s integrity was dangerous for both Chen 'In this game, I have similar thoughts to you and his sources. Riot could easily fire em- on things...and I have criticisms that I want ployees, or bar any source from owning a to make about the company and about the team or attending an event. In fact, Chen con- game and the teams, but I'm scared to do it fessed in the article that he feared it could because I want to one day, hopefully, to mean the end of his own career: maybe be on broadcast desks, or I want to be “It’s necessary to note that [I have] worked at a higher position, you know.' ...A lot of bad extensively for Riot before in a freelance ca- things happened to me that if I wasn't a very pacity as contributor to LoLesports. I’ve stubborn person, maybe I would've just given many close friends within its ranks, my writ- up...” (Thooorin, 2016a) ing career thus far has relied extensively These fears belie the image of eSports as upon the scene…I am very nervous to have video games simply converting to profes- written this, as I know many bridges will be sional sports. The conversion places the burned in the process.” (Chen, 2016) game’s developer in a position of absolute The anonymity of his sources and Chen’s corporate power, which creates an ecosystem trepidation spoke clearly to the possible ram- that necessarily caters to that power. On the ifications of the piece. Chen wanted desper- surface, the players, coaches, and enthusiasts ately to inform the League community about of eSports communities like League’s finally the corruption, but feared the repercussions get to live out their dreams of having their of his actions on himself and on the spectator own spectator sport. However, those who sport as a whole, which might not have sur- covered eSports were often forced to choose vived upheaval like a walk-out by popular between their careers and open, honest cov- team owners or players. In criticizing Riot, erage. Chen has, thus far, been lucky. No le- Chen took on a large company with complete gal action was taken against him and he still control over the League community. He was

- 33 - writes regularly (as of March 2017). How- teCristo, 2016c; ggMonteCristo 2016e; In- ever, Mykles, the team owner forced to sell sightOnEsports 2015; OGN Casters, 2016; in ten days, confirmed Chen’s and other jour- Rozelle, 2016). Frank Fields, a former Riot nalists’ fears through the ramifications of his employee, explained in a blog discussing the own outspoken opinions later that year. fallout from the sale of Mykles’ team that, despite Riot’s lack of transparency during its Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles, an Eng- investigation of Mykles’ team, “…it’s not lish-language commentator for Korea’s hard to see that Monte’s open criticism to- Ongamenet with meticulous research habits wards Riot and sometimes dismissive atti- and strong opinions that he expressed tude towards the Western LoL scene hasn’t bluntly, was one of the most celebrated endeared him to Riot Esports.” (Fields, minds in League of Legends. His sharp anal- 2016). ysis of League’s most complex concepts made him a central figure in the Western e- Mykles’ content, because it was both very Sports scene as well, where he had coached popular and very critical of Riot’s league Counter Logic Gaming in 2014 and bought a management, drew the developer’s ire. De- joint ownership stake in Team Renegades in spite being the foremost expert on Korean 2015. However, he ran afoul of a Riot professional League of Legends and a com- Games’ ruling stating that he had breached mentator at the World Championship from league rules regarding team ownership in late 2013-2015, Mykles was not invited to work 2016. at the Season 6 World Championship. Two of his OnGameNet colleagues were. In ef- Mykles was outraged by the lack of transpar- fect, he had been blacklisted. ency from Riot regarding the ruling and the short, ten-day window that he was afforded Riot Games’ decision not to invite Mykles to sell his team. In a series of YouTube vid- was viewed as momentous snub and marked eos, he credited Riot for their initiatives early the end of his League of Legends casting ca- in League of Legends’ life as a spectator reer. One of Mykles,’ friends and colleagues, sport, but also issued harsh criticism of their Duncan “Thorin” Shields, explained in a shortcomings in adapting to the game’s pseudo obituary that, “As an analyst, global growth as a form of spectator leisure. [Mykles] brought not only his deep Mykles’ videos were viewed over 700,000 knowledge of the Korean scene and the fruits times. Having been a victim of it himself, of his personal labour in following the West- Mykles also expressed concerns with the ju- ern regions, but also added elements of pun- dicial process by which Riot made discipli- ditry and showmanship with his flair for an- nary rulings on players, owners, and teams tics and humour” (Shields 2016). The same participating in the LCS. He was particularly day that Mykle’s non-invitation was an- angry about his own seemingly arbitrary rul- nounced, ESPN’s Jacob Wolf reported that ing and Riot’s decision not to release proof to Mykles would be working with Ongamenet himself or the community. Further, Mykles as a commentator for a different game: Bliz- complained about various rules and proce- zard Entertainment’s Overwatch (2016) dures in the LCS that he believed were inef- (Wolf, 2016a; Wolf 2016c). His career as a ficient or ineffective, as well as Riot’s treat- League of Legends broadcast personality was ment of its full-time commentators. These over. commentators, Mykles explained, were un- Riot’s decision to exclude Mykles from derpaid, restricted to specializing in only Worlds validated the fears of content creators League of Legends – which would leave like James “Obscurica” Chen when they con- them less professionally mobile – and given sidered criticizing League’s developer. Riot no options to build their own brands or make removed one of League of Legends’s most extra money through Twitch or YouTube recognizable and beloved voices from the while employed by the company (Badawi, spectator sport’s biggest stage, and appeared 2016; ggMonteCristo 2015; ggMonteCristo, to have played a role in removing him from 2016a; ggMonteCristo 2016b; ggMon- the eSports entirely. Censorship did not si-

- 34 - lence all independent content creators covering League’s professional level, but it had a in a normally essen- quieting effect. Mykles’ willingness to share his knowledge of the game and the spectator tial mechanic sport filled a need for authoritative voices The League subreddit’s central role in the within League discourse. Blacklisting him game’s system of discussion and coverage allowed Riot to control discussion of profes- has made it the indispensable vehicle for cov- sional League and make it less critical of the erage circulation in that subculture. If a company and underachieving Western netizen wants to catch the hottest news and leagues. This laid bare the tension in eSports coolest or funniest content in the League of between corporate interests and the user-gen- Legends community, they go to the League erated content common to the Web 2.0 subreddit. However, beyond serving as a world. Despite League’s reliance on Web 2.0 convenient hub for League discussions and media like YouTube, Twitch.tv, and other content visibility, the League subreddit also social media for broadcasting access and vis- acted as a sieve that allowed all content on it ibility for the spectator sport, Riot’s clear de- – a huge portion of professional League cov- sire to control its eSport stifled the free coverage and commentary – to be moderated. erage and commentary surrounding it. Moderators can police the behavior of sub- The Mykles incident illustrates Riot Games’ reddit members and censor content deemed struggle to control and influence the highly contrary to the subreddit’s rules and objec- nebulous, organic, and prolific coverage of a tives as a content dissemination platform. Web 2.0 eSports. Reddit, one of the most im- Because moderation is, largely, subjective, portant circulatory devices for League cover- this places the moderation team in the posi- age, is a huge part of that censorship and con- tion of sole gatekeepers of League’s primary trol. By virtue of its place as the centerpiece content distribution platform. The danger of League’s coverage and community, the therein is self-evident. League subreddit is also the site of most cov- Tensions between subreddit moderators and erage censorship. League’s content creation community come from the League subreddit’s central position in the community, along with the power They Reddit Here First given to moderators to act as gatekeepers. In Web 2.0 is central to the way that Mykles’ this way, the League subreddit adds an addi- situation played out. Mykles used a variety of tional layer to the traditional mass media Web 2.0 media to reach his audience, both as model. In traditional media, the editors and a commentator on Twitch.tv, the vehicle for producers of mass media act as gatekeepers almost all eSports broadcasts, and as a vlog- because they assign stories and determine which ones make it to print. They select the ger on YouTube. Further, in large part due to his following, Mykles was able to use the stories that they believe are most newsworthy League subreddit to circulate his content to and filter out coverage that they believe is larger audiences than would likely have been less relevant. In this way, they, according to possible on his own. The high viewership Cyrus Saatsaz, “…whittle the large number numbers on videos that often reached lengths of available messages into the select few of- of over forty minutes owed much to the cen- fered to an audience” (2015, pp. 13). How- tralization of League content and commen- ever, in League’s case, the subreddit moder- tary on the subreddit. ators add an additional, and equally subjective, level of gatekeeping that further curates Once again, Riot the messages that reach League’s audience. The root of this problem, as with so many Games’ footprint problems, is that moderation is required in larger subreddits. Reddit moderators are creates power issues asked to perform essential functions in the

- 35 - anonymous world of the internet, such as pre- abusive behavior and comments, so the tim- venting spam and removing bullies or in- ing of the story seemed retaliatory. However, flammatory users from subreddits. Their job he provided screenshots of the NDA and had is to maintain a relatively stable and respect- an established a record of ferreting out shady ful discussion space. To ensure neutrality, behavior from teams, players, game develop- mods are also bound by terms of use not to ers, and other entities in eSports. He had bro- receive monetary compensation for modera- ken stories on a match fixing scandal in tion actions (Reddit.com, 2016). However, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive in January documented incidents within the League sub- 2015, went on to expose gambling scandals, reddit call the impartiality of the moderators again in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, in dangerously into question. July 2016, as well as a financial conflict of interest between two European LCS teams in Once again, Riot Games’ footprint creates August 2016. However, Lewis had always power issues in a nominally essential me- been a divisive personality who engaged in chanic. Ties between the moderators and bitter verbal duels with his detractors (Lewis, Riot Games pose a problem for neutral mod- 2015d; Lewis, 2016a; Lewis, 2016b). His eration because Riot proved willing to si- less savory behavior on the League subreddit lence criticism, causing journalists and con- allowed the moderators to impose the clear- tent creators to avoid opposing the company est case of censorship in eSports history. for fear of their future professional prospects. A similar conflict of interests shapes the sub- In April 2015, the subreddit moderators reddit’s moderation: some of mods have abused power by permanently banning gone from the subreddit to employment by Lewis’ work from the subreddit. Despite his Riot Games. For example, Riot hired Jordon earlier personal account ban, Lewis had Triggs, a former subreddit mod to be part of started posting links on his social media to their community outreach team (Lewis, specific subreddit comments accompanied 2015c). That possibility clearly promotes by captions like, “Another day, another friendly relations between mods and Riot assclown thinking it benefits the community Games to keep the door open to a possible to shut down independent reporting” (Lewis, dream job working for the developer of one’s 2015a). According to moderator Buck- favorite game. It also gave Riot direct lever- eyeSundae, Lewis’ captions had encouraged age over the subreddit gatekeepers, who, be- his supporters to abuse subreddit comment- cause of this pathway, also relied on ers, causing several to delete their accounts League’s popularity for personal success. to escape it. The subreddit mods decided to escalate their ban against Lewis from his ex- In March 2015, the DailyDot, an online pub- isting personal lifetime ban to a ban against lication, produced proof of League subreddit all of his work, written, spoken, or otherwise, moderators signing non-disclosure agree- because they viewed him as inflammatory. ments with Riot Games (Lewis, 2015c). That BuckeyeSundae justified the decision: kind of relationship between the mods and the game’s developers was new and unex- “…as time went on, it was clear that Richard pected. Reddit denied that signing NDAs was was intent on using twitter to send brigades a breach of the moderators’ user agreements, to the subreddit to disrupt and cheat the vote but the combination of moderators’ power system by downvoting negative views of over subreddit content and their close ties to Richard and upvoting positive views. He has Riot meant that the subreddit system was ripe also specifically targeted several individual for intervention by corporate entities inter- moderators and redditors in an attempt to ested in shaping and censoring subreddit dis- harass them, leading at least one redditor to cussions (GenerationBlue, 2015; Morris, delete his account shortly after having his n.d.). comment brigaded. Richard Lewis, one of eSports’ most prolific Because of these two things, we have esca- investigative journalists, broke this story. lated our initial account ban to a ban on all The League mods had recently banned Richard Lewis content. His YouTube chan- Lewis’ Reddit account from the subreddit for nel, his articles, his twitch, and his twitter are

- 36 - no longer welcome in this subreddit. We will was, however, also a third party that censored also not allow any rehosted content from this League coverage. individual. If we see users making a habit of trying to work around this ban, we will ban them. Fair warning.” (BuckeyeSundae, Journalists Versus the World 2015) The extent of Riot Games’ and the League BuckeyeSundae linked a number of Lewis’ subreddit moderators’ control weighed heav- Twitter posts as evidence for these claims. ily on the conscience of journalists and con- However, banning Lewis’ work on the sub- tent creators – particularly those who sug- reddit would not have any effect on his posts gested improvement to the professional on other social media, where the mods had game. Ironically, however, for many journal- no power. Really, the ban revealed the mod- ists, the most hostile reception for their work erators’ frustrations with the limits of their comes from the very community that it is own power, and illustrated an example of meant to serve, rather than the gatekeepers or their attempts to transcend those boundaries. agenda setters at the top. According to some The ban’s implications, however, were clear: veteran eSports journalists, the most difficult moderators were willing to completely cen- part of the job is dealing with community an- sor a content creator (Lewis, 2015b; Lewis ger. A YouTube recording of a talk show 2015e). The ban of Lewis’ work went against hosted by longtime eSports journalist Dun- the principles of the subreddit because his can “Thorin” Shields, allowed Richard journalism had nothing to do with his per- Lewis to explain that getting into eSports sonal conduct, just as Mykles’ personal criti- journalism is difficult because eSports com- cisms of Riot Games should have been munities are generally hostile to journalists. treated separately from his work as a com- Professional players, staff, teams, and fans mentator. Removing Lewis’ work was a clear all vocalized displeasure toward journalism, example of sacrificing the greater good of his according to Lewis, despite needing journal- journalism for the moderators’ peace of mind ists to help get publicity: vis-à-vis the journalist’s hostile attitude. By enacting the ban, the subreddit moderators “Write a story about financial corruption, were actively censoring one of eSports’, and write a story about players being improperly therefore League’s, most important watch- treated, and people lose their…shit. 'What dogs. The aggregate quality of investigative are you doing? That organization might journalism in the League community de- never give [anything] to you again.' Yknow, creased because the mods found Lewis’ per- well, so…what, dude? I've been blacklisted sonal conduct distasteful or antagonistic. loads of times. They always come back. They always need the journalist in the end. They Thus, the moderators directly influenced the always do. I just think it's such a…shame that state of journalism and content creation in the League community instead of banning abu- the closest we've ever had to like, kind of sive accounts. They had crossed a clear line real, genuine, moral gatekeepers, as far as I by showing that the subjective nature of Red- can tell, in eSports has been maybe one or dit moderation can easily create a hostile en- two kind of luminaries that've risen through vironment for content creation. the ranks…and journalists and we just shit on journalists consistently as a community. It's The Lewis incident also signaled a clear inexcusable – especially when it's based en- threat to journalists. Lewis had been ex- tirely on ignorance.” (in Thooorin, 2016a) tremely outspoken in his criticism of the subreddit moderators. His subsequent ban dis- Lewis was not alone in experiencing hostility couraged future outspoken voices against the from his audience. Other journalists like, Reddit system. Even disregarding the Shields, Michale “Drexxin” Lalor – an editor for esportsheaven – and Savonn “Skim” friendly ties between the mods and Riot Games, the subreddit and the developer had Kim, agreed largely with Lewis’ sentiments. actively censored their loudest critics. There Kim, for example, said that, “I definitely noticed that a lot of players...they see us journalists as the enemy...For some reason, we're

- 37 - the people that have it out for them, when in which had become one of Korea’s most suc- fact, it's actually, the other way around.” (in cessful teams. However, uncertainty about Thooorin, 2016a) the roster’s future would scare away potential sponsors, so the team attempted to maintain One example of this hostility toward journal- its game of smoke and mirrors by turning on ists in eSports came when news broke, while Wolf (Thooorin, 2016b). the World Championship was in full swing, that the roster of a fan favorite team, Korea’s Followers hoped to continue cheering not ROX Tigers, would disband after the tourna- only for one of Korea’s most successful ment that year (Wolf, 2016b). The commu- teams, but also one of its most outgoing. The nity and ROX Tigers both attacked ESPN’s Tigers were well-known for comporting Jacob Wolf for writing the story, claiming themselves differently other teams in Korea, that the article was based on speculation and eschewing jerseys for sweater-vests and absolutely false. However, a month later, bowties. The squad’s personality had played four of ROX Tigers’ starting players’ con- a central role in pulling in viewers tracts expired, and they posted goodbye mes- (Leaguepedia, 2017). sages on social media. The team’s entire ros- The team’s popularity illustrated framing – a ter of six players left that offseason (theScore concept that Saatsaz explained with regards Staff, 2016; ROX Tigers, 2016; ROX Tigers to sports journalism in general. Saatsaz ar- [ENG], 2016). gued that sports journalists are often forced The article’s reception reflected the unrecep- to approach their work so as to appeal to its tive attitudes of the community toward jour- fans, or framing it: nalism when it was news people did not want “The sports journalists, and especially those to hear. Commenters on the ROX Tigers’ of- who are assigned to a specific team and re- ficial Twitter post of their statement on the gion, frame the message to appease both the story chimed in with low expectations from team and the fan base, some of which have a journalists, saying things like, “See a lot of preference for receiving news that may have bad content published my guess is to fulfill a a bias for the sake of appeasing their personal content quota…” “What espn did makes me beliefs about the team they root for.” feel vomiting, say sorry to ROX plz,” and (Saatsaz, 2015, p. 15) “ESPN causing wild rumours is nothing new from them all they care about [is] click bait The community was saddened by Wolf’s ar- titles and people reading their rubbish” (all in ticle. Following stages of grief, sadness ROX Tigers [ENG], 2016) Perhaps the most turned to anger after the ROX Tigers released direct and stern accusation came from ROX their statement lambasting the article and themselves, “…we are actively working for claiming that it would impede their ability to the future of this team and hope this ‘news’ acquire sponsorships. Thus, journalists in the will not derail our efforts.” They accused League of Legends community face personal ESPN – ESPN! – of interfering with the attacks and criticisms for breaking bad news. team’s efforts to attract sponsors, which Lewis was both incredulous and angry at the could ensure the roster did stick together hostile reaction to Wolf’s article: (ROX Tigers [ENG], 2016). “So you are telling me that I am supposed to Both the team and its followers had a vested believe that Jacob Wolf, somebody who has interest in seeing the roster stay together. The been attacked repeatedly by the League of Tigers organization had a long history of Legends community despite having as good sponsorship troubles. The organization was a a track record as you can realistically have if rare breed, not backed by one of Korea’s cor- you’re breaking news. You’re telling me he’s porate giants, and the team had had to change decided to put it all on the line, put his job on sponsors three times in their first year. the line…and make up a story.” (in Thooorin, Shields explained that the reason the Tigers 2016a) would attack Wolf’s article was because their sponsorship negotiations likely hinged on the His partner, Shields, was equally baffled, popularity of their starting roster at the time, “…if [Wolf] has followed all the tenets and

- 38 - the standards and done his research and played essential roles in the League commu- works for a reputable site, then first of all, not nity’s development and growth. However, only his reputation is on the line, but that site despite these amazing gains for fans, the and his editor’s reputation is on the line.” (in League ecosystem relies heavily on its sub- Thooorin, 2016a). Both men argued that, reddit for content distribution and visibility. given Wolf’s track record for ESPN, the Because of the subreddit’s centrality to the League community’s ill will was derived flow of information in League subculture, from a lack of understanding about what censorship looms over journalism and con- journalism entailed. Beyond that, the Wolf tent creation. incident also highlighted sports fandom’s The community’s heavy reliance on the sub- emotional bias based on bonds to teams and reddit as its information lifeline centralized players. In Web 2.0, the highly participatory journalism and content creation on a single culture amplifies this bias and gives fans a di- platform with its own gatekeepers. At the rect line to attack those who go against it. highest level, Riot Games, the developer of In fact, none of the criticism of Wolf’s article League, has sole ownership of both the game appeared on ESPN’s website or other online and the professional leagues, allowing it to publications. Rather, the battle over the qual- silence outspoken critical voices like that of ity of Wolf’s journalism occurred on Twitter Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles. His re- and YouTube, two iconic platforms of Web peated criticisms of Riot and Western eS- 2.0. Most League community members saw ports made him many enemies inside the the article on Reddit, rather than ESPN. company. The company’s huge influence Online platforms, in contrast formal online and central role in professional League unof- publications, encourage interaction and con- ficially forces journalists and other content versation. However, the firestorm over creators to consider their position and profes- Wolf’s piece clearly illustrated the League sional goals before criticizing Riot, greatly community’s bias against journalists and lowering accountability standards through- journalism. In theory, the ROX Tigers, in the out the League community. midst of the World Championship playoffs at There is also censorship by the moderators of the time of the article’s release, clearly had a the League subreddit, who have powers over vested interest in the situation, so their testi- the dissemination of content. While, in the- mony about their roster should have evoked ory, the moderators are neutral, unpaid vol- skepticism. However, the fans identified unteers, in 2015, mods were given access to more with the players and ROX Tigers brand Riot resources if they signed a non-disclosure than they did with the ESPN reporter telling agreement, clearly demonstrating the poten- them that the dream was collapsing. Still, his- tial for corruptions of moderation practice tory revealed the truth, and once the roster’s (Lewis, 2015c). Further, the case of journal- last member, Han “Peanut” Wang-ho, left in ist Richard Lewis’ content ban realized the December 2016, ROX did not release any moderators’ willingness to use their power to further statements regarding Wolf’s article. control League’s journalists and content cre- Their attempt to secure a sponsor by turning ators. They framed this clear-cut case of di- the community against a journalist had failed rect censorship as a personal reprimand ra- (Volk, 2016). ther than a punishment for Lewis’ opinions. However, the episode raised questions about the mods’ impartiality in dealing with critical Conclusion voices, especially in the context of the NDA The Web 2.0 era has made the world a more story. connected place. The emphasis on user-gen- Finally, the community itself serves as the erated content and social media has created a third level of censorship in the League com- vibrant, grassroots content creation ecosys- munity. Many of the journalists and content tem online that is an integral part of the creators gained popularity using the possibil- League of Legends community. Twitter, Fa- ities that social media and Web 2.0 have pro- cebook, YouTube, Twitch.tv, and Reddit all vided. However, Jacob Wolf’s case shows

- 39 - that those boons can quickly become curses. about mindsets, techniques, and strategies. The inherent bias of sports media fans in fa- However, the resulting intense connection vor of their favorite teams and players, com- between the fans and the professional game bined with the community’s general bias is also a problem because fans that idolize against journalists, has made breaking news their teams are emotionally attached to them, content dangerous for journalists’ and con- leaving news journalism vulnerable to the vi- tent creators’ reputations, not to mention olent swings of both well-known personali- their mental health. ties within the League community and that community itself. Such layers of pressure over journalism and content creation created a hostile environ- Ultimately, hostility toward journalism and ment for eSports coverage. Teams that desire content creation has an impact on their out- positive coverage rail against journalists that put. League coverage focuses more on what uncover bad news. Journalists like Savonn teams and players do in-game, where incon- “Skim” Kim revealed their sense that the trovertible statistics like wins and losses can community believes esports journalists have back them up, or on profile lauding heroes it out for eSports (in Thooorin, 2016a). The the community already reveres. Thus, the hostility plays out live on social media like League community’s organic foundations Twitter and Reddit for all the community to exhibit Web 2.0’s possibilities and down- see. In an environment of imitation and par- sides for sports journalism and content crea- ticipation, that hostility has tremendous me- tion. Many of the features key to eSports’ metic gravity that feeds upon itself and am- surging popularity – a rabid fan base closely plifies as newer users learn to resent and des- connected to its idols, stability provided by a pise journalists from others. developer very involved in its professional scene, and a central location where content In theory, eSports like League should benefit could be easily distributed to the whole com- from a closer link between their teams, play- munity – have since been proven to be dou- ers, personalities, and fans. Web 2.0 plat- ble-edged swords. The example of League of forms like Twitter allow fans to converse Legends reveals dark possibilities for the fu- with personalities in the professional leagues ture of neutral and honest journalism, both in directly. On Twitch.tv, fans can watch pro- eSports and the wider world. fessional players practice live while asking questions of the best players in the world

Matthew Jungsuk Howard is a PhD student in Communication, Rhetoric, and Digital Media at North Carolina State University. He received his Master’s Degree in History from the University of Houston in May, 2018. Before and during his time in graduate school, he worked for three years as a staff editor and later editor for the Collegiate StarLeague, where he ran their League of Legends content from 2016-18.

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- 41 - Lewis, R. (2016, July 16). Phantoml0rd and LoL’s Competitive Scene. Retrieved from CSGOShuffle. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcPP4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dY3lt 5gj72M. GjUBUo. theScore Staff. (2016, November 25). ROX Tigers Morris, K. (n.d.). Riot Games Non-Disclosure Post Goodbye Messages as Contracts Ex- Agreement. Retrieved from pire. Retrieved from https://www.scribd.com/docu- https://www.thescorees- ment/260225994/Riot-Games-non-disclo- ports.com/lol/news/11836-rox-tigers-post- sure-agree- goodbye-messages-as-contracts-expire. ment?ad_group=114526X1573490X0e760 Thompson, S. (2006, 2008). The Tour de France. a51fbbcab738edf302bfcf903a0&cam- Berkeley, CA: The University of California paign=SkimbitLtd&key- Press. word=660149026&medium=affili- Thooorin. (2016a, November 11). Esports Salon ate&source=hp_affiliate. Ep 4: Journalism (feat. Richard Lewis, OGN Casters. (2016, March 23). MSI. Retrieved Drexxin and Skim). Retrieved from from https://nexus.vert.gg/msi- https://youtu.be/YREOLY5I95U. 30f7f6cdd946#.j7ak1uwya. Thooorin. (2016b, August 24). Thorin’s Thoughts Paul, C. A. (2018). The Toxic Meritocracy of – Tryndamere Tastes His Shoe Again Video Games: Why Gaming Culture is the (LoL). Retrieved from Worst. Minneapolis, MN: University of https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oILT- Minnesota Press. lJLDaZI Reddit.com. (revised 2016, May 27). reddit.com: Thooorin. (2017, March 7). ROX Tigers Behave User Agreement. Retrieved from Despicably (LoL). Retrieved from https://www.reddit.com/help/useragree- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wx8w ment. 8VJVUcc. ROX Tigers (2016, Ocotber 17). Official State- Top 100 Social. (2017, March 26). Top 100 Sub- ment. Retrieved from http://www.twit- reddits by Subscribers. Retrieved from longer.com/show/n_1sp74or. http://top100social.com/top-subreddits-by- ROX Tigers [ENG] (2016, October 16). Official subscribers. Statement Read: tl.gd/n_1sp74or. Retrieved Volk, P. (2016, November 25). ROX Tigers play- from https://twitter.com/tigerslol_eng/sta- ers say goodbye on Facebook. Retrieved tus/787866801954754561. from http://www.rifther- Rozelle, W. (2016, May 8). Competitive Ruling: ald.com/lck/2016/11/25/13747518/rox-ti- Renegades and TDK. Retrieved from gers-lol-players-disband-smeb-pray-go- http://www.lolesports.com/en_US/arti- rilla-peanut. cles/competitive-ruling-renegades-and-tdk. Vomygore. (2013, November 9). The Korean Saatsaz, C. (2015). Sports Journalists as the Gate- Hype Train Team Fighting Style. Tchoo keepers of Cultural and Social Movements: Tchoo Get Out Of The Way! Retrieved from A Comparative Analysis of the Media’s https://www.reddit.com/r/leagueofleg- Coverage of Jackie Robinson, Jason Col- ends/comments/1q8wp5/the_ko- lins, and Michael Sam (Master’s Thesis). rean_hype_train_team_fighting_style_tcho San Diego State University, San Diego, CA. o. Shields, D. (2016, September 8). The Thorin Wenner, L. (1998). MediaSport. New York, NY: Treatment: Celebrating the Full Monte. San Routledge. Diego State University Wolf, J. (2016a, September 16). OGN to Launch https://gamurs.com/articles/the-thorin-treat- Overwatch League, DoA and MonteCristo ment-celebrating-the-full-monte. to Cast. Retrieved from Taylor, T.L. (2012). Raising the Stakes: E-Sports http://www.espn.com/es- and the Professionalization of Computer ports/story/_/id/17558894/ogn-launch- Gaming. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. overwatch-league-doa-montecristo-cast. theScore esports. (2016, August 22). Reginald On Wolf, J. (2016b, October 16). Sources: ROX Ti- How Riot’s Major Patch Changes Hurt gers to Disband After Worlds. Retrieved

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- 43 - eSports is a Sport, But One-Sided Training Overshadows Its Benefits for Body, Mind and Society By Julia Hiltscher

Gamers Are in Motion and Beispiel auf einer Slackline." - „Im Sport eSports Is a Sport geht es immer um eine Anforderung, der ich mich mit meinem Körper in meiner Umwelt We live in a world in which digital gadgets, stelle.” such as health trackers, have changed many people’s health for the better. We are a digit- A closer look at Hackls definition immedi- ized society who care about our wellbeing ately shows that his definition by no means and our planet more than ever before - but excludes eSports from the pool of sports de- still, sitting in front of a computer is often as- fining features. Gamers are in motion. Their sociated with several negative prejudices. whole body performs movements which they cannot maintain over a long period if they do Yet, this is the prejudice in the past, we fre- not pair their training with a balanced cardio quently got confronted with when we are workout, which the top players always do. looking for respect as people working in the Without cardio fitness, they cannot endure world of eSports. Three-time Olympic and tournaments and play competitively for a World Champion Georg Hackl is a former lu- long period of time. Speed is extremely sig- ger from Bavaria. About eSports he said: nificant for eSports, as is coordination. “Wenn einer die Knöpfchen von seiner Spiel- ekonsole, seinem iPad oder seinem iPhone Fortunately, professional gamers do not re- bedienen kann, und dann meint, Sport zu ma- ally have to fight these prejudices, as the ac- chen, dann hat er etwas nicht verstanden” ceptance among society everywhere grows (Sport.de, 2019). for many reasons. We have become a We have become a society of gamers. At least 2 billion people play video games society of gamers casually compared to the 4 billion people with regular access to the internet. In South In English that would translate to: “If a per- Korea, there is a government department son can press buttons on a console, iPad or dedicated to the development of eSports. We iPhone and thereby believes to be engaged in are a digital society in most parts of the a sportive activity, then this person misun- world. A father of an aspiring professional derstood something”. Hackl, in his role as gamer in Seoul says: coach of the German lugers, sees sport as a bodily challenge that someone competes in “I think it's changing even in my demo- (within his or her environment). He says that graphic, especially with eSports being fea- sport is about exercise paired with power, en- tured at the Asian Games. Nowadays, peo- durance, speed and demand for coordination ple's reactions are more, ‘Oh, that's interest- (as an example he mentions Slacklining). ing,’ rather than outright disapproval when I tell them about Tae-min's [his son’s] gam- This is the original quote: ing.” (Kim, 2018) “Sport ist für mich erst einmal Bewegung in At the same time, as people spend more irgendeiner Form - ob in Verbindung mit thoughts on health and the environment, Ausdauer, Kraft, Schnelligkeit oder einem more people understand that success in life, hochgradig koordinativen Anspruch wie zum

- 44 - goes hand in hand with healthy and sustaina- with” (Lasaitis in Carpenter 2018) indicate ble routines. This makes it easier to under- this difficult and stressful environment. stand that outstanding mental performances, such as in eSports, can only be possible with a healthy lifestyle. This makes professional eSports: Entertaining Large Audiences gamers role-models for 21st century youths. They are at home in a digital world, where Watching professional gamers perform can they deliver breathtaking performances, be an electrifying experience. People travel while they are taking good care of them- around the world to see professional players live in an arena, even though they could selves and their social contacts, maintaining watch these celebrities in the exact same healthy bodies and minds. matches from the comfort of their own home. At home, people can switch on live streams on their PC or TV monitors and be very close One-Sided Training Takes Its Toll to the action. An addiction to gaming is very dangerous, as Hearing about fans who despite all this still any addiction can be, whether it be sports, al- book tickets and travel around the world to cohol, books, fatty, salty and sugary foods see a grand final of their favorite eSports and television. The manager of professional competition must sound strange for outsid- League of Legends team KT Rolster knows: ers, but seeing fans entranced by a moment “When people immerse themselves in some- of brilliance shows the effect eSports can thing and become addicted to it, then they have, and why people go on such seemingly can cross the line. Our bodies might be very unnecessary trips. tired or in poor condition. These things hap- For research purposes, the internet offers var- pen not only while playing games. Even ious possibilities to see professional gamers when people work out, some people can have in action, with a focus not only on the in- a heart attack.” (Lee, 2015) game action but also footage of the players’ Yet, in the whole interview and article with hand-movements. BBC journalist Dave Lee about his visit to In one video for instance, we can see South see the KT Roster, we can only see healthy Korean professional player Sound competing food and long hours of playing League of in the World Championship Series Chal- Legends as the main aspects of the training. lenger League Qualifier. Bae “Sound” Sang There does not seem to be physical training Hwan was well known for his success in the such as cardio workouts and stretching exer- GOMTV Global Starcraft II Team League cises. (or GSTL), which held multiple events each What we see however, is a picture of player year in South Korea from 2011-2013. Lee Young-ho’s arm, who needed to have an Bae Sang Hwan is now retired from StarCraft operation, because “repetitive strain injured (as of August 2013), but he formerly com- […] his muscles, deforming them and mak- peted for team StarTale. ing surgery the only option to save his illus- trious career” (Lee, 2015). The video shows his monitor, keyboard and mouse while he is playing (StarTale_Sound But not only addiction or physical health is- 2013). The sound of the keys and the mouse sues do exist in eSports, there are also the clicking is also captured by this video. mental issues which are becoming increasingly observable. Professional gamers take When the game is still loading, Bae Sang breaks or even quit their career as they expe- Hwan is already hitting keys with his left rience a burnout (D’Orazio, 2018). Com- hand and clicking his mouse with his right ments like “I’m at my house all day, trying to hand. He is moving his mouse from side to get better” (Jablonowski in Campbell 2016) side, maybe checking if it is working or “It’s very hard to find a balance between a properly and calibrating once more between healthy amount of rest and optimal prepara- his extremities and his brain, how much tion, and it’s a dilemma every team wrestle movement on the mousepad is resulting in

- 45 - how much movement on screen. Before this because he loves what he is doing right in scene, in the first seconds of the video, we that moment. can clearly see that Bae has a positive out- He has trained hard and must care about his look on the challenge, as he is smiling natu- effort not going to waste. He prepared for any rally and obviously enjoying himself. Only possibility that could happen and developed after seconds in the game, it becomes clear a variety of strategies and counter-strategies that flexibility of his left hand’s fingers is ex- for any situation. He studied his opponent extreme and can only have been established by tensively. He does something extremely dif- hundreds of hours of training. He is not only ficult with thousands of people watching on moving his fingers very fast, he is also in- stream, yet his heart will not race as hard as sanely accurately, never missing a single key. it would if he was really nervous and in a bad Actually, his fingers hit the keys so fast, it mood. If he is genuinely smiling, it must becomes almost impossible for any be- mean he is quite calm. holder’s eyes to follow the movements and keep up with which keys have been hit. It is fascinating to get drawn into these Healthy and Effective Training in eSports scenes: Humans focusing, making themselves forget about the viewers, making the Rober Yip is the performance coach for the world stop around them, showing their top professional LA-based team Immortals. performance which they have been working They competed for $65 million in prize on for years. In these moments (it is not even money in 2015. Yip states: “…the days of moments we are talking about, since the ten- slacker hoping to make it big in gaming are coming to an end. You're getting paid a lot of sion can last hours) eSports triggers the same money but at the same time, you have to treat emotions as “traditional” sports such as soccer. it like it's an actual job. It's fun, but it's very, very demanding” (Smith, 2016). Yip then describes that his program consists of fitness People who manage training, meal planning, a structured life- to reach their goals style, holistic wellness program, time for social life and active recovery periods. He are impressive, they stresses that this is important because otherwise they could be “burning out”, since they inspire us are still “very, very young” (Smith, 2016). Everyone knows what that math’s test in We don’t know if StarCraft player Sound had school feels like or any sports competition a similar coach like Yip. We can only assume that he or she cares about. There is so much that he has kept his body fit, eaten the right tension, a discrepancy between: I know I can food, gotten the amount of sleep he needs, do this, because I prepared myself. But can I and he seems like naturally having a positive really do this, can I prevail? What if things outlook on his game. We all want that, we go wrong? Why is famous StarCraft profes- want to effortlessly structure our days, go sional Sound smiling at this very moment, through healthy routines that make us fitter right before the match starts? and smarter with ease, then go to that exam or competition or job interview with a smile It is a psychological trick to smile in the eye and perform. That’s what we all want, we of the storm: we can prime ourselves to per- want to have goals that make us get up with form better if we better our psychological a smile every day and we want to reach these state by smiling (Layton para. 3). The act of goals. smiling can make us feel better. However, in this YouTube video showing Sound perform, People who manage to reach their goals are I think he is not priming himself for getting impressive, they inspire us. The more impos- into a better mood by making himself smile sible the goal, the more we are in awe. The (which can be told by the eyes, ibid. para. 2). eSports audience today knows how much I think Sound is genuinely smiling, smirking, work is behind the players’ success. Viewers

- 46 - talk about healthy routines being the key to hours of chess or soccer can be harmful too. success in eSports. There need to be regulations in place for professional training in order to set good exam- All players and viewers know that winning is ples. not about sitting in front of the PC and nothing else. Young people today understand If structural work which is already happening “Mens sana in corpore sano” (A healthy more and more will be firmly established be- mind lives in a healthy body). The Latin aph- tween the stakeholders, the benefits pro- orism is known everywhere in digital sports. vided by the world of eSports for our soci- It is what Robert Yip is describing in his ety are numerous: work as a trainer of digital athletes: Training eSports reaches the young generation. E- for an eSports competition only works out Sports is very popular and therefore offers with a holistic approach. great opportunities for young people. It is im- Professor Dr. Ingo Froböse, Head of Center portant that the government sees the chances for Health through sports and movement at in eSports and promotes a holistic training in- the German Sport University Cologne talked cluding cardio, stretching and healthy diets to ESL about training in eSports. Froböse paired with recreational breaks and time for tested eSports players (stress tests and inter- social contacts. It is important that teams views) during the ESL Pro Series Finals and stick to healthy training plans and communi- compared them to professional athletes. Fro- cate healthy training strategies to their fans. böse stated: “We have seen that this target Player’s need to have contracts that guaran- group can be compared to professional ath- tee time and equipment for healthy activities letes in some areas” (Saedler, 2014). For a and recreational and social activities. Propa- successful training, Froböse describes a ho- gating unhealthy training methods is never a listic approach that focuses on three aspects good idea, as e.g. learnings from Tour de that he describes as pillars “nutrition as well France show. People should have a holistic, as on mental and physical aspects” (Saedler, healthy view on sports, teaching young peo- 2014). Froböse recommends integrating all ple that they can only be a number one cyclist pillars and not leaving one of them out, as “it if they take drugs is just as wrong as teaching may work, but it will never be an excellent young Starcraft players that they can only be result” (Saedler, 2014.). world elite if they never stop gaming now even for a sip of water. There is dedication to

one’s hobby and one’s sport, and there is Opportunities over-the-top unhealthy addiction. Between that is a thin line that our society and our pol- As a scientist, I am especially interested in itics are responsible for. people from the world of “traditional” sports who refuse to see gamers as sportspeople. eSports offers extensive chances for health Hackl is right when he says that eSports is and equality. eSports is very diverse. It has not like luging or slacklining. Yet, eSports no borders, nobody is excluded, there is no being very similar to traditional sports is an competitions needed that are specially made opinion with a scientific basis, as Froböse’s for women, there is no special Olympics. research shows. Everybody is welcome to sign up in any competition. Compared to traditional sports, eSports has at least as many positive aspects to of- eSports competitions are a unique and fer as traditional sports, but some work has healthy mental challenge. eSports is ex- to be done. It is crucial that leagues, clans and tremely compelling to competitive minds, governments help to establish structures in such as Mesut Özil. He is not the only sports which the benefits for health can come to fru- professional who is openly starting a gaming ition. career. It totally makes sense, as for soccer and videogames, one has to be in top-notch Playing too many hours without additional mental and physical shape. The mental stress physical exercise and recreational time can is the same, the training amount is the same, be unhealthy for body and mind, as too many

- 47 - the peer pressure is the same, the competi- enrich our lives. If a person is a more intel- tions are the same, the feeling of success is lectual, eSports can be a hugely satisfying the same, defeats create the same chemical challenge, as it offers strategic challenges reaction in our bodies. One has to get up back that allow for a flow-experience. This can be on track again and again, train hard, stay fo- a perfect mental treat for someone who is al- cused. Sports and digital sports go hand in ready used to training physical strength and hand perfectly. In each of them, there is a ful- mental resilience. filling mental and physical challenge that can

References

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- 48 - The Benefits and Risks of Sponsoring eSports: A Brief Literature Review

By Bruno Duarte Abreu Freitas, Ruth S. Contreras-Espinosa and Pedro Álvaro Pereira Correia

As of today, eSports are a worldwide phe- already bigger than the 151 million that com- nomenon (Hiltscher & Scholz, 2017) of high prise the American Football audience (Win- economic significance (Ströh, 2017) and nan, 2016) and is rivalling the volume of the large international reach (BI Intelligence & basketball audience. These high numbers are Elder, 2017). This popularity has attracted extremely important (Sylvester & Rennie, the attention of multiple companies inter- 2017) because high levels of visibility are the ested in capitalizing on its success. Specifi- main reason why traditional sports have been cally, just in 2016, more than 600 sponsor- the major sponsorship medium (Bennett, ship deals were made in the eSports market 1999), and now eSports are rivalling regular (Shabir, 2017). However, little is known sports’ visibility levels (Ströh, 2017). For ex- about this industry (Ströh, 2017), especially ample, while the opening ceremony of the regarding the area of eSports sponsorships 2012 iteration of the Summer Olympics was (Hallmann & Giel, 2018). As such, consider- watched by 40.7 million people in the United ing that the eSports market presents brands States (Statista, 2016) and the 2018 edition with, not only very attractive sponsoring ben- was watched by 28.3 million (Statista, 2018), efits (Ströh, 2017), but also with brand the Mid-Season Invitational 2018 eSports threatening risks (Shabir, 2017), this litera- tournament had a total of 60 million online ture review addresses, in a descriptive man- viewers (Esports Marketing Blog, 2018; ner, the benefits and risks that come with the Fusco, 2018). Because of this, enhanced sponsoring of competitive gaming tourna- brand awareness has been the main benefit ments. The used literature included only sci- that brands seek from eSports sponsorships entific and academic articles, books, news (O‘Beirne, 2010). media, and professional studies related to eS- Being an extremely popular market (Ströh, ports and eSports sponsorships, and did not 2017) has allowed the eSports scene to be make use of data outside the scientific, pro- valued at roughly $1.13 billion in 2017, with fessional, or journalistic environment. an expected increase to $1.24 billion by 2018 (SuperData, 2017). In relation to revenue, in 2017, the eSports market generated about The Benefits of Sponsoring eSports $756 million and is expected to generate Due to all of its sponsoring benefits (Härig, around $1 billion by 2018 (SuperData, 2018). 2015), eSports has become an important mar- These high figures have led brands to spon- keting channel for consumer brands (CGC sor eSports with the goal of driving their Europe, 2015). The first and main reason sales and revenue (Lu, 2017). And this objec- why this new medium has attracted so many tive is not out of reach as the eSports audi- sponsors is due to its massive audience ence is characterized by being wealthy indi- (Ströh, 2017). As of now, the eSports audi- viduals (CGC Europe, 2015; SuperData, ence is comprised of between 299 million 2015) and avid spenders (CGC Europe, (SuperData, 2017) and 330 million fans, and 2015; Eventbrite, 2015; SuperData, 2015). this number has been experiencing a yearly Such spending power has attracted several growth of about 13.5% (Newzoo, 2018). As brands to this market (Härig, 2015). Further- it stands, the current mass of eSports fans is more, eSports fans are technological influ-

- 49 - encers. It is estimated that one gaming enthu- 2017). By being involved in something that siast has the ability to influence the techno- is important to them (Pitkänen, 2015), fans logical buying decisions of about four people will start having a more positive perception (CGC Europe, 2015). The characteristics of of the sponsoring brand. And the brand will these fans has allowed eSports sponsors to not only benefit from an enhanced brand im- earn significant revenues (Shabir, 2017). age, it will also gain prestige, credibility While in 2017, eSports sponsorship revenues (Shabir, 2017), build brand loyalty. This lat- reached a total value of $266.3 million ter benefit is only made possible because eS- (Newzoo, 2017), it is expected that, in 2018, ports fans have proven to be loyal to the this value will increase to $359.4 million brands and people that support this industry (Newzoo, 2018). Besides enhanced sales, (Pitkänen, 2015). These various benefits will some sponsors of South Korean eSports have further enhance the sponsor’s probability of reported return-on-investment (ROI) ratios a significant return-on-investment (Shabir, of about 500% (Taylor, 2012). 2017). The bilateral communication prowess of the Contrary to other sponsoring mediums, streaming technologies that characterize eS- where people tend to see sponsorships and ports has given rise to the unique opportunity advertisements as unwanted and cumber- of establishing a continuous and contagious some presences, in eSports, fans seem to communication between sponsored profes- have a much more positive and understand- sional players and their fan-base (Ströh, ing perception of these marketing invest- 2017). The fact that these pro-players are ments (Ströh, 2017). With the industry’s constantly performing live streams on plat- growth and evolution into the edges of main- forms like Twitch allows them to stay in con- stream culture, there has been an increasing tinuous contact and interact with their fans fear that the eSports audience would grow through the live-chats of these streaming ser- tired and become skeptical of the ever-in- vices (Nielsen Esports, 2017). This allows creasing presence of sponsorships in eSports. sponsoring brands to stay in constant contact However, market research has proven other- with this target-market and enhance engage- wise. On average, 55% of fans presented pos- ment (Ströh, 2017). Considering that pro- itive attitudes towards the presence of spon- gamers are seen as celebrities (Jin, 2010; sors both in tournaments and streams, Ströh, 2017), they serve as important influ- 38.25% had a neutral attitude towards such encers and advocates of a brand (Ströh, practices, and just 6.75% showed negative 2017). If pro-players show support for a spe- feelings about brands entering the eSports cific brand, fans will follow and buy that scene (Nielsen Esports, 2017). A research sponsors’ products (Shabir, 2017). conducted by Ströh (2017) also showed similar data, with fans having largely positive at- In this day and age, long are gone the times titudes towards eSports sponsorships. How- when companies had complete control over ever, the researcher noted that fans do recog- their brand image. At the present time, con- nize that these sponsoring brands are not al- sumers also have the ability to control a truistic entities. Still, they realize that they brand’s image, with their opinions being eas- are a necessity for the economic well-being ily posted online for the entire world, and po- of the industry. Because they know that the tential customers, to see (Nunes, Bellin, Lee, very existence of what they love is dependent & Schunck, 2013). In this sense, the sponsor- on sponsors, fans perceive sponsorships in ing of eSports allows any brand to be per- this medium as something likable and even ceived as more positive and modern (Ströh, necessary, instead of annoying or disturbing. 2017). This is because when a brand sponsors eSports it is showing that it supports, not only Furthermore, it has been found that, in eS- this new industry, but also its organizations ports, both endemic and non-endemic brands and professional players. That is, the brand is can find success as sponsors (BI Intelligence showing that it supports and is adding value & Elder, 2017; Ströh, 2017). Although it is to something that this audience clearly cher- true that companies whose product offer is ishes, which in this case are eSports (Shabir, related to the gaming industry still have the

- 50 - upper hand when it comes to sponsoring eS- ports (CGC Europe, 2015), representing 95% quite hesitant to of total eSports sponsors, competitive gaming’s cost-effective ways of reaching the sponsor eSports, re- masses is increasingly attracting more and search has found more non-endemic brands (Ströh, 2017). For example: Gillette was one of the sponsors of that the eSports au- the 2017 iteration of Intel Extreme Masters (IEM), PokerStars sponsored Team Liquid, dience also has a and Vodafone sponsored the G2 eSports team (Shabir, 2017). While not investing as positive attitude to- much as endemic brands, non-endemic sponsors are still significant contributors to the wards the presence continuous growth of this industry. Even of non-endemic though non-endemics are still quite hesitant to sponsor eSports, research has found that sponsors the eSports audience also has a positive attitude towards the presence of non-endemic As we have seen until now, the main benefits sponsors. The study revealed that they are of eSports sponsorships are: enhanced brand glad that non-endemics are entering the scene awareness, increased sales and return-on-in- as sponsors and that 70% want more of these vestment, higher engagement, improved kinds of brands to sponsor eSports. Further- brand image and brand loyalty, audience ac- more, non-endemic brands tend to have the ceptance of sponsorships, success of both en- same level of brand recall as endemic ones demic and non-endemic brands, and access and have found the same level of success. An to an elusive demographic. Now we will example is the German financial services move on to the risks that this new medium is group Wüstenrot Bausparkasse AG, which presenting to sponsors. was the main sponsor of the 2016 edition of ESL (Electronic Sports League) Früh- lingsmeisterschaft and reported to be very The Risks of Sponsoring eSports happy with the sponsorship results and that Despite being a new and exciting industry, they wanted to continue sponsoring eSports eSports present several issues (Mooney, (Ströh, 2017). 2018) that have the potential of affecting its Another benefit from sponsoring eSports is entire ecosystem, including sponsors. It is the access that it provides to its main demo- crucial that brands become conscious of graphic (i.e. millennials) which are quite de- these risks as they may lead to several, and sirable to sponsors (Shabir, 2017). This is be- serious, negative effects (Ströh, 2017). cause eSports fans represent a demographic The act of sponsoring brings forth the risk of that is becoming increasingly harder to reach being associated with disreputable behavior, via traditional media channels (Li, 2016). which has the very high potential of signifi- However, in eSports, this demographic is the cantly damaging the sponsor’s image. medium’s main audience and, like stated be- Shameful behavior may come from multiple fore, is quite open to sponsorships and adver- sides, including from the sponsored party or tisements inside the competitive gaming from the spectators themselves (Crompton, sphere (Ströh, 2017). As such, the act of 1994). Although aggressive behaviour has sponsoring eSports exposes brands to a tar- been a rare sight in eSports (Hamari & get-audience that cannot be as easily reached Sjöblom, 2017), the same cannot be said for through any other means (Cunningham et al., toxic behavior, which has had some unfortu- 2018; Shabir, 2017). nate appearances. In general, the more competitive the scene around a specific gaming Even though non- title is, the higher the odds of there being endemics are still toxic behavior. Some examples of toxic be-

- 51 - havior include: antisocial behavior, foul lan- challenges that they may present (Holden, guage, and breaking of multiple other rules Kaburakis, & Rodenberg, 2018). of co-existence. These are serious issues as Competitive gaming’s popularity has turned they tend to lead to a bad viewing experience it into the seventh biggest betting market, re- (Neto, Yokoyama, & Becker, 2017). Another ceiving more bets than golf and rugby similar form of disreputable behavior is sex- (Schneider, 2015; Winnan, 2016). However, ism which, coming from a scene that is still while there are indeed legal ways of betting largely dominated by a male audience, has in eSports, there have also appeared several led to multiple women (both fans and profes- illegal eSports betting websites. There are sional players) to have a constant fight with various online eSports gambling websites heckling, harassment (Mooney, 2018), and that are not regulated nor licensed, and do not discrimination issues. These occurrences check the bettor’s age or if he is from a coun- compose a serious threat to the sponsors’ im- try where gambling is illegal (Mooney, age because negative news can easily spread 2018). And with today’s online platforms, it and damage their brands’ reputation (Ströh, is very easy for anyone (including minors) to 2017). gamble on eSports (Shabir, 2017). As such, Besides this, there have also been several oc- illegal betting has turned into a serious prob- currences of corruption, including: doping, lem that is putting the integrity of the entire match-fixing, cheating, gambling, and DDoS scene at risk (Ströh, 2017). (distributed denial of service) attacks (Ströh, The growth of this industry has also led mul- 2017). tiple professional gamers to manipulate the The alluring and ever increasing million-dol- results of their own matches in order to ben- lar prize pools of competitive gaming have efit from bribes or gambling (i.e. match fix- resulted in some individuals to attempt to en- ing). This has resulted in some scandals. hance their chances of winning through Some examples include professional players cheating methods. Some examples of these being arrested South Korea and a pro-gamer occurrences include the use of complex mac- attempting suicide after declaring that he had ros, aim bots, wallhacks, and software that been ordered by his team manager to pur- grants players with hidden, but valuable, tac- posely lose in order to profit from the gam- tical information. As of now, one of the most bling market. Although match fixing is cur- famous cheating incidents happened during rently low in the eSports sphere, the indus- the CS:GO finals of the 2014 edition of try’s accelerated growth may eventually at- DreamHack. During the tournament, two tract the attention of organized crime (Ströh, teams had already been caught cheating and 2017). disqualified. However, during the finals, Another form of manipulating results is Fnatic was caught exploiting a glitch and, through DDoS and other cyber-attacks, when confronted with this allegation, ac- which seek to slowdown or disrupt the inter- cused the opposing team of also exploiting net connection of specific pro-players. The another glitch. These incidents discredit cyber attackers who do this usually look to competitive gaming and tarnish the sense of make a particular team win in order to (once sportsmanship (Winnan, 2016). again) benefit from the gambling market. Another form of cheating is doping (Ströh, This is another aspect that threatens the in- 2017) and it has quickly turned into quite a tegrity and legitimacy of the eSports scene. serious issue in eSports, with one profes- Still, several organizations like ESIC (Es- sional player stating that everyone is doing it. ports Integrity Coalition) have done their best Drugs like Adderall have become popular in to fight corruption (Shabir, 2017). the scene and there are even specialized Although several studies have showed little drugs being sold over the internet whose to no evidence that gaming promotes aggres- cocktail-like combinations of stimulants siveness, obesity, or antisocialism, multiple pose serious threats to players’ health. Fur- politicians, parents, academics, and others, thermore, little is known about these drugs side-effects and how to counter the health

- 52 - continue to accuse gaming of negatively af- 2017). The multiple governing bodies and fecting peoples’ lives (Crawford & Gosling, leagues create a confusing and conflicting 2009). As we all known, gaming is not as so- environment (Winnan, 2016), which is fur- cially accepted as sports, often being per- ther worsened by the lack of a single, clear, ceived as nothing more than a waste of time and identifiable governing body that covers that leads to addiction (Peša, Čičin-Šain, & all tournaments and events (Sylvester & Ren- Blažević, 2017). Unfortunately, both the vid- nie, 2017). Lastly, the scene is still quite vol- eogame industry and its audience have con- atile, with multiple teams and organizations tinuously suffered from such stereotypes. that, despite appearing commercially viable Furthermore, the media has had the tendency at first sight, suddenly disappear (Shabir, to blame videogames for school shootings 2017). and other incidents. This massive spreading Such instability poses an extremely high risk of negative news about videogames and eS- for brands, as there is the probability that the ports puts sponsoring brands at the risk of organization or team that they sponsor may suffering from collateral damage (Ströh, suddenly disappear, making significant 2017). amounts of investments go to waste (Shabir, The gaming industry’s accelerated pace also 2017). The multiple problems associated means that new videogames are constantly with the infancy of this industry have led being released. Game developers want to re- multiple authors to compare it to the Wild lease their newest games as soon as possible West (Holden & Ehrlich, 2017; Hollist, in order to create new sources of revenue 2015; Li, 2016; Shabir, 2017). (O’Beirne, 2011). However, this, coupled As was shown, the main risks of sponsoring with the constant restructuration of licensing eSports are: disreputable behavior (including deals, means that the list of games that are toxic behavior, doping, match-fixing, cheat- featured at tournaments is constantly being ing, gambling, and DDoS attacks), adverse altered (Zolides, 2015). Even extremely pop- social and media influence, instability of ular games tend to eventually be replaced in games and genres’ popularity, and infancy of the eSports scene (CGC Europe, 2015). Be- the industry (including lack of regulation, le- cause of this, brands that sponsor a single ti- gal issues, fragmentation, lack of a main and tle are at risk that the game they are sponsor- all-encompassing governing body, and vola- ing loses popularity, which will lead to a tility). According to Ströh (2017), companies much smaller reach for their advertising mes- do not want to be associated with these as- sages (Ströh, 2017). pects because all of these issues put the im- The last problem of eSports is the infancy of age of the sponsoring brands at risk. its own industry (Shabir, 2017). Having only attained a significant level of popularity by around 2010 (Franke, 2015), this market is Conclusion still in its adolescence (Fields, 2011). This means that the industry still has some prob- Through this literature review it was possible lems to face (Keiper, Manning, Jenny, Ol- to observe that, although there is a signifi- rich, & Croft, 2017). Problems that any cantly limited academic and scientific litera- young industry usually has to face (Winnan, ture on the subject of eSports (Ströh, 2017), 2016). and more so on eSports sponsorships (Hall- mann & Giel, 2018), this industry offers sev- Among those issues is a severe lack of regu- eral opportunities to sponsors, which can lation (Mooney, 2018; Winnan, 2016), and a greatly benefit their brands (Ströh, 2017), but lack of coherence in them (Sylvester & Ren- also presents several risks, which have the nie, 2017), which give birth to several legal potential of provoking lasting damages (Sha- issues and lead to a climate of considerable bir, 2017). uncertainty (Shabir, 2017). The scene is also still quite fragmented, with multiple tourna- There have been several successful sponsor- ments happening at the same time and featur- ships in eSports (Ströh, 2017). The brands ing the same tiles (Sylvester & Rennie,

- 53 - that have been able to capitalize from the suc- true full potential (Asociación Española de cess of this industry have benefited from an Videojuegos, 2018). According to Franke improved brand image, enhanced awareness, (2015), the continuous evolution of eSports greater loyalty and engagement from cus- is showing signs that they are slowly solving tomers, higher sales and ROI, and access to these problems and steadily turning into a an elusive demographic that accepts sponsor- generally more organized and standardized ships, even from non-endemic brands. Be- industry. cause of all these very attractive potential It is important to note, however, that most of benefits, authors like Shabir (2017) have la- these issues are not exclusive to eSports. The belled this market as an “advertising great majority of other sports also suffered goldmine” (p. 26). from these problems in their first decades of existence, and still continue to suffer from eSports industry has several of these issues today. Regardless, they still manage to survive, be profitable, at- always shown its re- tract sponsors, and provide them with great silience and perse- benefits. And eSports are proving to be no different (Winnan, 2016). verance, being able Despite its hazards, there is hope for the fu- to overcome and ture, and it seems to be a bright one for e- Sports. Since its small beginnings to the pre- survive through sent internationally popular and stadium filling tournaments, the eSports industry has al- every obstacle that ways shown its resilience and perseverance, being able to overcome and survive through threatened its exist- every obstacle that threatened its existence and growth. This medium has always had a ence and growth unique behavior (e.g. not being dependent on However, despite the marketing attractive- traditional media to survive) and imple- ness of the eSports industry, it also presents mented innovative tactics (e.g. taking ad- multiple risks for interested brands (Ströh, vantage of the new streaming technologies). 2017). By sponsoring, companies are suscep- Regardless of all of its shortcomings and tible to being associated with any kind of dis- risks (Shabir, 2017), the benefits of the in- reputable behavior that may occur in the dustry, coupled with its resilience and ability scene, to be negatively affected by the still to remedy undesirable aspects of the scene, existing adverse social and media perspec- means that brands have a lot to gain with eS- tives on gaming, and to have unsuccessful in- ports sponsorships (Ströh, 2017). vestments due to the very unstable popularity It is undeniable that the scene is not perfect of games and due to the infancy of the indus- as of now, but it is also undeniable that the try, which creates a very unpredictable and era of eSports has already begun and is prov- volatile environment. ing to be extremely successful. This market These risks, which have the potential of sig- is evolving much faster than any other sport nificantly damaging the brands’ image, pre- ever has (Winnan, 2016), and, as it develops, sent a problem for all stakeholders, including it will become more efficient, attractive, val- sponsors (Shabir, 2017). In order for an in- uable, and profitable, which in turn will offer dustry as big as eSports to maintain a sustain- greater benefits to sponsors (Ströh, 2017). able and balanced environment, it needs to Furthermore, even at the present time, any solve these problems (Sylvester & Rennie, sponsor has the potential to find great success 2017). However, the market is still at an in- in the eSports industry (BI Intelligence & El- fant stage of economic development and der, 2017). needs more time to grow in order to reach its

- 54 - Bruno Duarte Abreu Freitas – [email protected] – completed his bachelor’s degree in Languages and Business Relations, and his master’s degree in Cultural Management (where he was the best of his class) at the University of Madeira. Having gained a large interest for the fields of marketing, management, and entrepreneurship, Bruno decided to apply his knowledge to his other areas of interest (i.e. gaming and eSports) and is now doing his PhD thesis on eSports sponsoring at the University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC). Ruth S. Contreras-Espinosa is a full-time PhD professor at the University of Vic - Central Univer- sity of Catalonia (UVic-UCC). Co-founder and coordinator of the Observatory of Communication, Video Games and Entertainment INCOM, at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and UVic- UCC, a multi-disciplinary research group established on April 2014. She has been collaborating with international organizations in a huge variety of projects such as external evaluator at the Portuguese Agency of Evaluation and Accreditation (A3ES) and as a Member of the scientific ad- visory board on Brazilian Symposium on Computer Games and Digital Entertainment (SBGames). [email protected] Pedro A. Pereira Correia has a PhD in Interactive Digital Communication and Marketing (Uni- versity of Vic), and he is Lecturer at the University of Madeira and ISAL, Funchal, Portugal. Mem- ber of Research Center CiTUR - Center for Research, Development and Innovation in Tourism. External Senior Expert to support the implementation of the European Structural and Investment Funds (2018). A major player in numerous operations and projects with proven multi-disciplinary and management skills. Extensive marketing and social media knowledge.

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- 56 - Schneider, S. (2015). eSport Betting: The Inter- https://pt.scribd.com/docu- section of Gaming and Gambling. Gaming ment/269675603/ESports-Market-Brief- Law Review and Economics, 19(6), 419- 2015-SuperData-Research 420. SuperData. (2017, February). European eSports Shabir, N. (2017). Esports: The Complete Guide Conference Brief. Retrieved 6 April, 2018, 17/18: A Guide for Gamers, Teams, Organ- from http://strivesponsorship.com/wp-con- isations and Other Entities In, Or Looking to tent/uploads/2017/04/Superdata-2017-es- Get Into The Space. Wroclaw: Inde- ports-market-brief.pdf pendently published. SuperData. (2018). 2017 Year in Review: Digital Statista. (2016, August). Average Number of Games and Interactive Media. Retrieved 7 Viewers of the Summer Olympics Opening April, 2018, from https://www.super- Ceremony in The United States From 1988 dataresearch.com/market-data/market- to 2016 (in millions). Retrieved 5 Septem- brief-year-in-review/ ber, 2018, from https://www.sta- Sylvester, R., & Rennie, P. (2017). The World’s tista.com/statistics/237448/viewers-of-the- Fastest-Growing Sport: Maximizing The summer-olympics-opening-ceremony-in- Economic Success Of Esports Whilst Bal- the-us/ ancing Regulatory Concerns And Ensuring Statista. (2018, February). Average Number of The Protection Of Those Involved. Gaming Viewers of the Winter Olympics Opening Law Review, 21(8), 625-629. Ceremony in The United States From 2002 Taylor, T. L. (2012). Raising the Stakes: E-Sports to 2018 (in millions). Retrieved 5 Septem- and the Professionalization of Computer ber, 2018, from https://www.sta- Gaming. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press. tista.com/statistics/587463/winter-olym- Winnan, C. D. (2016). An Entrepreneur's Guide to pics-opening-ceremony-number-viewers- the Exploding World of eSports: Under- usa/ standing the Commercial Significance of Ströh, J. H. A. (2017). The eSports Market and e- Counter-Strike, League of Legends and Sports Sponsoring. Marburg: Tectum Ver- DotA 2. Kindle eBook: The Borderland lag. Press. SuperData. (2015, May). eSports: The Market Zolides, A. (2015). Lipstick Bullets: Labour and Brief 2015. Retrieved 7 April, 2018, from Gender in Professional Gamer Self-Brand- ing. Persona Studies, 1(2), 42-53.

- 57 - Sponsorships in eSports

By Samuel Korpimies

As technology keeps evolving and growing, Research Objectives new possibilities keep emerging. Technolog- The objective of this thesis is to research how ical advancements were made in most fields, sponsorships in eSports are formed. The re- like for example industrial production and search is supposed to expand on the current how people can communicate with each knowledge that exists about how eSponsor- other, one field in particular has grown im- ships are acquired and how a successful mensely: Video games. Video games can sponsorship partnership is maintained and nowadays be played on most smart-phones, measured. This also includes how the spon- on consoles and PCs. This has also increased sors can measure how well their sponsorship the amount of people who play these games. is performing. Games are becoming smoother and the graphics have improved from simple 2D In the literature review sports sponsorship video games to massive 3D multiplayer motives and effectiveness measurements are games, where players can compete together analyzed in order to study whether they can against the game or play against each other. be applied to eSports sponsorships. One of Similarly, to traditional sports, people com- the objectives is to figure out whether spon- pete against each other in various video sorships differ in sports and eSports. games to prove their skill.

Electronic sports (eSports) has been one of the most rapidly growing industries for the Research Questions past years (Pitkänen, 2016). In eSports pro- The research questions for this thesis derived fessional teams or individuals play video from the research objectives are the follow- games against each other in tournaments or ing: leagues. During the last few years a number of companies have gotten involved in e- 1. What is the sponsorship acquiring pro- Sports, whether it be through companies cess in eSports? sponsoring events, teams or players, or even 2. How is value created through sponsor- acquiring their own teams to play under their ships? company name (e.g. the computer system 3. How is the effectiveness of eSponsor- manufacturer iBuyPower). ships measured? However, because eSports is a relatively new phenomenon, the field has not been studied Definitions or researched by academics extensively. This presented the opportunity to research the eSports – Professional gamers play video field and industry of eSports more closely in games competitively against each other in this thesis. Especially the business side of eS- tournaments or leagues ports is quite under researched. For that rea- eSponsorships - Sponsorship deals between son, sponsorships in eSports were chosen as eSports entities (e.g. teams, events, tourna- the topic of this thesis. More particularly, the ments etc.) and companies. These deals are decision processes that are behind the differ- supposed to benefit both parties involved. ent stages of a sponsorship deal are dis- The eSports teams get money or other prod- cussed. ucts from the sponsors and the sponsors get visibility for their company from the eSports teams.

- 58 - Sponsor – The company that provides a team, sponsorships it would be almost impossible club, organization or other individual with to host large scale events. (Lund & Greyser, money, services or products. 2016) Sponsee – The legal or natural person that re- This section of the review begins by defining ceives goods or money from the sponsor in sponsorships as a concept, followed by the exchange for promotions history and development of sponsorships. Thereafter, the decision making of sponsor-

ing corporations is addressed and finally how Literature Review the effects of sponsorship is measured. This literature review reports on the current state of sports sponsorship research. Sports Nature of Sponsorships sponsorships research was chosen over eS- ports sponsorships because the field of eS- A sponsorship is a deal between usually two ports has not been researched enough by ac- parties, the sponsor and the sponsee. It is pos- ademics. The first part of the literature re- sible that there are more entities involved but view aims to set out what sponsorships are in generally just the two. The sponsor can be a general, what their part is in the modern mar- natural or legal person. The sponsored party keting mix of companies and what the recent can be a person (e.g. athlete, artist), a team developments in sports sponsorships have (e.g. Manchester United), a company, an been. Then the review discusses how compa- event (e.g. the Olympics, FIFA World Cup). nies and academics measure the effective- The sponsor provides the sponsored party ness of sponsorships. physical goods, cash or gives them other services. In return the sponsored party promotes After this, eSports is looked at in general. their products, services and brand. (Pitkänen, The similarities between the sports industry 2016) and the eSports industry are also examined to see whether sports sponsorship theories can A sponsorship is not an advertisement be- be applied to eSports. cause the two parties have a business relationship with each other (Pitkänen, 2016). The last part of the literature review is the Through the promotion of the sponsored conceptual framework, which explains what party the sponsor is hoping to reach out to the the steps in sponsorships are that companies target group (Walraven, 2013). This way the need to take if they want to use sponsorships sponsor doesn’t directly advertise their prod- as a marketing tool. The methodology of the ucts or services but rather shows the target thesis is influenced by the findings of the lit- audience of the sponsor that they support the erature review and conceptual framework. sponsored party. Sponsorships are a positive Qualitative interviews can provide a better way for companies to reflect their values to look into the steps companies are taking the public. Through sponsorships companies when entering sponsorship deals. can show their target audience that they are at the very least interested in the activities of the sponsee. This way sponsors can distin- Sponsorships guish their brand from competitors. This section will focus on the sponsorships in (Pitkänen, 2016) sports. Sponsorships in eSports have not Pitkänen (2016) has been one of the only au- been researched as much as traditional sports thors to discuss eSports sponsorships, which sponsorships, but because of the many simi- is why his arguments are utilized frequently larities between eSports and traditional in this literature review. Compared to a lot of sports it is possible to transfer and apply the research on sponsorship, Pitkänen’s work is sports sponsorship theories and knowledge to recent and up-to-date. The author, however, eSports (Pitkänen, 2016). For many events makes the assumption that sports sponsor- like the Olympics or teams and athletes, ships can be compared to eSports sponsor- sponsorships are essential, since they are of- ships without any primary research. ten their main source of income. Without

- 59 - Hoek, Gendall and West (1990) conducted a the same reasons corporate sponsorships ex- study in New Zealand to find out what are the ist today: to gain a better brand and popular- objectives of sports sponsorships. 19 compa- ity. nies were interviewed for the study. Hoek et Corporate sponsorships, however, have al. (1990) found six main objectives which evolved greatly since then. Sponsorships are listed below from the most important to used to mostly exist because of the generos- the least important: ity of firms. They weren’t a real marketing ● Be more generous (This means that device. Firms just wanted to show that they companies want to support events or cared about or were interested in an event or sports teams out of goodwill) sport. (Walraven, 2013) Strengthen brand image ● However, as more and more firms started to Create more awareness about the com- ● realize the potential sponsorships had in their pany marketing communication mix the industry Generate better sales ● grew vastly. With the growth of sponsor-

● It’s a passion of management ships, the budgets also grew immensely. “In ● Recruit new employees the current sponsorship market million-dol- The study was limited to New Zealand which lar contracts are the rule rather than the ex- might influence specific outcome of what the ception.” (Walraven, 2013, p. 10) objectives of companies are. Other studies on The biggest areas of sponsorships are in the sponsorships are also in specific geograph- sports market. Sponsorships used to be pop- ical areas or they are done in a very specific ular mainly in the United States of America industry (e.g. Hoek et al., 1990). Thus, it is and Europe, but as the industry grew, the difficult to generalize the results of surveys Asian markets also became very attractive or studies. However, most of the research for sports sponsorships. Especially due to in- done on the objectives of sponsorships will ternationalization, it has become easier to give the same results that strengthening sponsor events or teams around the globe. brand image and more sales are the objectives of corporate sponsorships. Walraven (2013) makes it clear that, due to the fact that firms started to realize the poten- Furthermore, the study by Hoek et al. (1990) tial of sponsorship marketing, the industry was conducted in 1990 and since then the has grown, but the author doesn’t give any sponsorship industry has grown immensely. indication as to why and how firms are so Nowadays companies might value some ob- sure that sponsorships are an effective mar- jectives differently than 20 years ago and the keting tool. This, however, is a big relevance of this study might be compro- knowledge gap in the entire sponsorship in- mised. For instance, a lot of companies are dustry. Most scholars agree that sponsorships using sponsorships as a marketing tool, are effective but don’t have any theoretical which might mean that generosity is not as model, which the majority of scholars would important anymore as strengthening the agree on using, to prove the effectiveness of brand’s image. a sponsorship.

History and Developments Sponsorships vs. Meenaghan (1998) explains how sponsor- Other Marketing Instruments ships are changing the corporate marketing It is important to note how sponsorships dif- communication industry. While Meenaghan fer from other marketing instruments in order (1998) talks about how commercial sponsor- to assess how sponsorships are affecting the ship has only existed since the late 1960s, Ar- marketing mix. Sponsorships are often com- thur, Scott and Woods (1997) state that sports pared to advertisements, because they can sponsorships have been in existence since 65 both be used to achieve same goals. Both BC in some way. According to Head (1988), sponsorships and advertisements are sup- Caesar sponsored the gladiator festivities for posed to make viewers exposed to the brand

- 60 - and create awareness about products or ser- groups are more active and emotional. Usu- vices offered. Sponsorships and advertise- ally sponsorship reaches people in their free ments can be used together and as using one time individually and communally in which doesn’t make using the other one less effec- people are more receptive and committed.” tive. (Walraven, 2013) (Pitkänen, 2016, p. 22) Advertising is a more direct way of com- According to Pitkänen (2016) marketing is municating with the audience compared to more effective when the audience is in a set- sponsorships (Walraven, 2013). Sponsor- ting, they want to be in. Because of the indi- ships bear the risk that the sponsored party is rect nature of sponsorships, the audience is the one creating brand awareness and the also not “forced” engage with the brand. sponsors are not directly in control of how They are still exposed to the sponsor but not the sponsored party represents the brand or in an aggressive way like in advertising. how they create awareness about products. Another difference between advertising and On the other hand, McDonald (1991) de- sponsorships is that sponsorships can reach a scribed that advertising was looked at from bigger audience. The audience isn’t just tied another perspective than sponsorships by to the people who see ads, but people across viewers. The audience is more skeptical borders can more easily be influenced with about advertising than sponsorships, because sponsorships than with direct advertising. sponsorships are not seen as direct advertis- Direct advertising to all regions would be a ing. However, Meenaghan and Shipley lot more time consuming and expensive than (1999), believe that as sponsorships have be- sponsorships. (Walraven, 2013) come a more and more popular way of marketing, the target audience have become more aware that sponsorships are a marketing instrument just like advertising. Decision Making Process There is a relatively long gap between when This section of the literature review concen- McDonald (1991) wrote his paper and when trates on how companies make the decision Meenaghan and Shipley (1999) wrote theirs to sponsor sports and how they then choose which is why the papers have different views the athlete, team or event which they want to on sponsorships. Seeing as corporate spon- sponsor. Robinson, Faris, and Wind (1967) sorships have only been around since 1970s, created an 8-stage RFW Model of Organiza- eight years was a long time for the industry. tional Buying Behavior. This model has The target audience has realized that spon- widely been used by researchers and compa- sorships have other objectives than goodwill. nies around the world. However, Johnston Neither McDonald’s or Meenaghan and and Spekman (1982) cited in Arthur, Scott, and Woods (1997, p. 225) disagreed with the Shipley’s papers are very recent, so the audi- steps in Robinson et al. model. According to ence is likely to be even more aware of sponsorships being a key part in the marketing Johnston and Spekman (1982) the purchas- mix of companies. There have not been any ing behaviour is dependent on how difficult relevant studies on this subject since 1999, or complex the purchasing project is. All the which is interesting in the light of the rapid steps do not have to be taken if the purchase growth sponsorships have experienced dur- is very simple. Other scholars agreed with ing this time. Most academics refer to Meen- Johnston and Spekman (1982) that the 8- aghan and Shipley’s research on the matter of stage RFW Model doesn’t work in every sce- how people are aware of the objectives of nario. Robinson et al.’s RFW Model might sponsorships. In general, Meenaghan’s arti- be too simple to be used in every business to cles are cited in most of the significant peer business purchasing decision. Many academ- reviewed articles used in this literature re- ics and companies can still use the 8-stage RFW Model as a basis for their work. view. “Sponsorship also creates positive atmos- Robinson, Faris and Wind (1967) also intro- phere and preferences in places where target duced the three purchasing positions a company can be in:

- 61 - ● A new purchase by the company Two Approaches to Sponsorships ● Altering a purchase, they have made be- According to Pitkänen (2016) there are gen- fore erally thought to be two approaches to spon- Making the exact same purchase as be- ● sorships which can make sponsoring a com- fore petitive advantage for the sponsor. These two Studies about this theory done by other aca- strategies hope to achieve the same things, demics have proven that the Buying Decision which are brand loyalty, brand exposure and Grid by Robinson et al. can be applied in a create awareness about products and ser- significant amount of products. (e.g., Ander- vices, but through different means. son et al., 1987) (Pitkänen, 2016) Arthur et al. (1997) created The Sport Spon- The “Shotgun-approach” is a strategy where sorship Acquisition Model based on other a company spends a lot of resources to spon- theoretical models that have been proven to sor an entity that is already famous, for ex- work by other academics. The model example a famous athlete or huge event. The plains how companies assess and choose sponsor and the sponsee try to create a con- sponsorship deals. It consists of four (4) nection so that people associate a brand with stages: this famous athlete or event. In the second sponsorship strategy to gain a competitive ● A company receives propositions from advantage a company sponsors an athlete or businesses/teams/events that are in need team that isn’t very big yet. “The main idea of sponsorships. Scholars have not been is to hope for the team to develop so that it able to find out the number of sponsor- enhances the image of the company, at the ship proposals a large company receives same time supporting the team.” (Pitkänen, per year. It depends a lot on the company 2016) itself. (Arthur et al., 1997) ● The company assesses each of the pro- There is no definite answer to which strategy posals, internally or using external help. is better for a firm. It is hard for scholars to These depend a lot on the Buying Deci- compare strategies because different compa- sion Grid by Robinson et al. nies have different strategies and objectives. The actual agreement to engage in spon- ● soring. Arthur et al. found out that this decision was not only based on factual Measurement of Sponsorship Effects and rational considerations but that emo- The objectives of sponsorships are to create tional components also play a significant brand awareness and to make people aware role of your products or services. Because these The choosing of the right event/per- ● are intangible things it is very difficult to son/team to sponsor. measure the effectiveness of sports sponsor- While Arthur et al. (1997) only conducted ships. Farrelly, Quester and Burton (2006) their research by interviewing sponsors of believe that sponsors and sports organiza- one certain event, the sponsors were from tions are at the moment not getting the most very different industries. This shows that the value out of their sponsorships. “[...]sports decision process was similar across indus- organizations (rights-holders) often fail to tries. On the other hand, there was not a lot exploit the full potential of their sponsorship of geographical diversity in the sponsors. In partnerships”. (Farrelly et al., 2006) different company cultures other actors Walraven (2013) states that most companies might make the purchasing decisions which do indeed value or rate their sponsorships Arthur et al. did not disprove. Nevertheless, falsely. Hoek et al. (1990) agree that compa- Arthur et al. (1997) used proven theories to nies don’t do enough research about how make their model valid. well their sponsorship is working out. The biggest reason behind this is that there is no sufficient theoretical framework that could

- 62 - be used to easily assess how the sponsorship of control for extraneous variables” (Hoek et is affecting sales and brand image. al., 1990) Hulks (1980) believes that the two ways to Pham (1991) and McDonald (1991) and assess how well a sponsorship works is to (1) Hoek et al. (1990) all came to the conclusion see how much and in what way the media that sponsorship measurement is very diffi- presents the sponsee and (2) how big the au- cult. There is still a big knowledge gap in dience is. However, Pham (1991) disagrees sponsorship measurement. No theoretical with the first way to assess how well a spon- model has worked out as well as scholars and sorship works. According to Pham (1991) it sponsors had hoped. It is almost impossible isn’t an objective of sponsorship deals to gain for scholars to research sponsorships on a more exposure on media. He argues that global scale so for example Pham’s (1991) there needs to be a way to assess how differ- research about the sponsorship effects were ently people react to the sponsor and if there only in a single football game. To observe are any differences in the attitudes towards relevant amount of people the study would the sponsor before and after the sponsorship have to be conducted on a huge scale, at deal. It has to be noted that Pham did his re- which point cultural differences would inter- search in 1991 and sponsorships have be- fere with the research. Significant relevance come a huge industry since then. Sponsor- would be achieved if it was conducted in sev- ships are nowadays used as a marketing tool, eral geographical regions and over indus- which often does in fact mean that media tries. coverage may be one of the more important Furthermore, there are also outside factors objectives sponsors are trying to achieve. that make evaluating sponsorships harder. Another method to measure sponsorship ef- The fact that most companies have other fectiveness is to use consumer surveys marketing strategies in their marketing mix (McDonald, 1991). These surveys give a other than sponsorships, makes it especially clearer picture of how brand awareness, hard to figure out which marketing strategy awareness about products and services are af- affected the audience and in what way. (Hoek fected by the sponsorship, and what the de- et al.,1990) sires of the sponsorship audience are There is also more than one type of sponsor- (McDonald, 1991). However, McDonald ship, which means that event sponsors should (1991) does realize that it is almost impossi- measure the effectiveness of the sponsorship ble to know what the audience thought about in another way than the sponsors of an athlete the brand and the products, and what the de- would do it. sires of the audience were before being exposed to the sponsorship. Measuring how the sponsorship potentially affected these three eSports Background sponsorship objectives should according to McDonald be the goal of sponsorship effec- Electronic sports, or eSports, is the competi- tiveness measurement. tive side of the gaming culture. The players Pham (1991) tried to measure change in the or teams play video games against other attitudes towards sponsors by observing how players on electronic systems, e.g. with a PC. the audience of a football game reacted to More specifically, eSports means the profes- sponsor billboards. The conclusion of this sional or amateur players playing video observation was, however, inconclusive be- games in tournaments or leagues online, cause there were no real measurements of which are sponsored by various companies how aware the audience was about the spon- (Hamari & Sjöblom, 2017). Often these tour- sors before and after the game. His experi- naments or leagues are broadcasted to live ment was only about how the audience re- streaming websites like twitch.tv or even displayed on national TV like TBS acted. “Overall, studies of sponsorship effectiveness have yielded inconsistent findings. (eleague.com, 2016). Part of the reason may be methodological eSports has grown rapidly during the last weaknesses such as small sample size or lack decade and especially during the last few

- 63 - years. It was estimated that eSports had 134 real differences in the structures of the eS- million viewers worldwide in 2015 with a ports industry and traditional sports. The global eSports revenue of $612 million (Con- teams are also built in the same way as in tra- ditt, 2015). Because of the huge growth of ditional sports. A sports club owns the team eSports more and more sponsors have tried and arranges travels, organizes in which tour- to join the industry (Gaudiosi, 2015; Cun- naments or leagues the team participates in ningham, 2016). and pays salaries (astralis.gg, 2016). There have even been traditional sports clubs that

have expanded into eSports, which shows eSports as a Sport how similar the industries are. For instance, the football club FC Copenhagen recently In this part of the literature review arguments (2017) acquired a Counter Strike: Global Of- are presented which indicate that the eSports fensive -team (Wolf, 2017). The viewership industry can be compared to the sports indus- number in eSports is also very similar to tra- try. This is necessary because there has not ditional sports. However, eSports are mostly been a lot of research about eSports done by viewed on the internet unlike traditional scholars and this can prove that sports spon- sports that is most often viewed on the tele- sorship theory can be also be applied to the vision (Casselman, 2015). eSports sponsorship industry. There are some differences between the eS- Most of the debate in the public between tra- ports and sports industries. For example, ditional sports and eSports is, whether e- there are no player unions in eSports that may Sports can be a sport (Usmani, 2015; Young, conflict with sponsorship deals. The game 2016). However, this is irrelevant for this developers, however, may interfere some- section, because the most important thing is times and tell teams that they can’t have cer- whether the business elements of the spon- tain sponsors. For example, the game devel- sorships are similar between the two. There oper Riot of League of Legends has banned is a significant knowledge gap about this. the popular gaming online store G2A.com There are no scholarly or peer reviewed arti- from sponsoring teams that play in Riots own cles about this matter. league LCS. (Wolf, 2015) While the differ- While the differences between the eSports and sports industry have to be noted, they are ences between the not significant enough to state that sports sponsorship theories could not be applied to eSports and sports eSports. industry have to be noted, they are not Conceptual Framework The literature review pointed out the theories significant enough and models that are used in the decision- making process in sponsorships. The first to state that sports step potential sports or eSports sponsors need sponsorship theories take is to figure out what their sponsorship objectives are (Hoek et al., 1990). The spon- could not be applied sorship acquisition process described by Ar- thur et al., which is based on Robinson et al. to eSports. new purchasing process, has four steps the company needs to take. The last of these Leagues and tournaments in traditional steps is to actually chose the right sponsee. sports are generally constructed in the same Pitkänen elaborated on the two different ap- way as in eSports. eSports player and teams proaches sponsors can take: the shot-gun ap- are even recognized as athletes in the U.S. proach and the approach to sponsor a small (Tassi, 2013). This means that there are no and growing team. This affects the last step

- 64 - of the sponsorship acquisition process. After Interviewees deciding on a company or organization to In order to conduct qualitative interviews on sponsor, whether it be a sports or eSports the subject of eSports sponsorships, compa- team, the effectiveness of the sponsorship nies involved in eSponsorships were con- needs to be measured to find out whether the tacted. For the research, both eSports spon- sponsorship is reaching its objectives. How- sors and the sponsees, were chosen because ever, as scholars have not yet found a way to they have information about the topic at measure the effectiveness, it is difficult to hand. generalize how to do it. Choosing both sponsors and sponsees might

also result in different viewpoints about the Methodology same topic. The interview questions for sponsors and sponsees were not all the same The primary research method of the thesis is and they were modified to fit the interviewee. qualitative as the goal is to get a clearer pic- However, whether sponsors or sponsees ture of the sponsorships in eSports. Qualita- were interviewed, the goal was to find out tive interviews were chosen as the primary their views on sponsorships in eSports. source of data. Contacting the different companies hap- As the area of eSponsorships has not been re- pened through different means. Depending searched by academics extensively, there on the company they were contacted through was no real data available about the sponsor- email, telephone, their website’s own “Con- ship acquisition processes in eSports. Quali- tact Us” -page or via various social media tative interviews offered a very flexible envi- outlets. In the initial contact the companies ronment to gain more knowledge about spon- received set of questions prepared for the in- sorship participation and practices in eS- terview. This way the companies had the ports. Through quantitative surveys the depth ability to find the right person who was most of the answer and findings would have been fitting to answer the questions. The people significantly lower than by using qualitative who were initially contacted were asked to interviews. During a qualitative interview the forward the email to the right person in the interviewee and interviewer are able to lead company who knew about their sponsorships the discussion in the direction that is appro- in eSports. priate for the time being. The sizes of the companies contacted and in- The interviews conducted were semi-struc- terviewed varied. Both big multinational tured. This means that there are questions firms and small sized companies were con- made before the interview but as the discus- tacted. The level of involvement in eSpon- sion moves along other questions are brought sorships were also very different between the up depending on the direction the interview companies. This meant that some of the com- is going (Harrell & Bradley, 2009). panies contacted have sponsored several All interviews were done over the phone or events or teams for a long time, while other Skype. This way the interviews were struc- companies had just started out with eSpon- tured like discussions where the interviewer sorships. could ask the interviewee to specify some- Due to the fact that some companies were in- thing if necessary. Before each interview the ternational companies the interviews were interviewee was asked if it was okay that the done in English. The companies from Fin- interviews would be recorded. By recording land were interviewed in their native lan- the skype and phone calls it was easier for the guage. interviewer to concentrate on the interview itself and didn’t need to make notes. Later it Over all twenty-seven (27) eSports sponsors was possible to listen to the interviews again and eSports teams were contacted during the take notes about all the important points initial contact. Three (3) out of those twenty- made by the interviewee. seven agreed to do the interview. The three interviewees will not be named in this thesis,

- 65 - but will simply be referred to as Interviewee The last big limitation was that during the in- A, Interviewee B and Interviewee C. terviews the interviewees were not able to give any exact numbers or names. This meant Two of the three interviewees (Interviewee A that it was very difficult for them to general- and Interviewee C) work for eSports organi- ize their answers. zations. Sponsee A’s organization is well established and has had a lot of success at an international level within the eSports scene. Findings They have been involved in eSports for over a decade and have a lot of experience both in In this section, the findings of the thesis will the teams and in the organization. Sponsee be represented based on the qualitative inter- C’s organization is fairly new and rising views conducted. The results are divided into within the scene. They have had good suc- four themes. The first part discusses how eS- cess on a national level but limited success ponsorships are acquired and what the objec- on an international level. The third inter- tives of both the sponsors and sponsees are. viewee (Interviewee B) is a Finnish company The second theme is how the effectiveness of that in the past has sponsored an eSports or- eSponsorships can be measured. In the third ganization. Their experience with eSports part of the findings the factors for successful sponsorships is quite limited, but they have eSponsorships are discussed, based on the been involved with sports sponsorships ex- answers from both sponsors and sponsees in tensively. The interviewees have different the interviews. The last section reviews the levels of involvement and experience with differences between eSponsorships and eSports sponsorships. sports sponsorship, which were discussed during the qualitative interview.

The interview questions are available in the Limitations appendices. There are two different sets of There are three main limitations to the re- questions, the first set of interview questions search done for the thesis. These limitations were asked when interviewing a sponsor and might skew the answers and findings of the the second set of questions was used in inter- research. views with eSports teams. The first limitation is the small sample size of the research. Only three interviews were eSponsorship Acquisition Process conducted with three different companies that are involved in eSponsorships. This In this section, the reasons for sponsorships means that if the sample size would have in eSports will be discussed. Furthermore, been bigger, some trends could have been the exact acquirement process from both spotted more easily. With a small sample size sides, the sponsor and sponsee, will be exam- like this, it is possible that while one of the ined. interviewees believes something to be true, it might be that other companies function to- As eSports as an industry has grown for the tally differently. last fifteen years, so have the sums of money that sponsors are investing into the scene. Another limitation to the research is that This also means that the objectives of spon- most companies did not want to do the inter- sors have changed over this period of time. view. While most companies simply did not At the beginning of eSports lifecycle spon- reply to the initial contact, some companies sors were often making eSponsorships be- gave the answer that they could not answer cause of goodwill. They weren’t seeking the pre-set questions because they are trade profits in the same way as in sports sponsor- secrets. One representative of a company ships around that time, but companies that made the point that it could help their com- had employees who were themselves inter- petition if they were to do the interview even ested in competitive video gaming would though full confidentiality was offered. sponsor events. Another reason for why companies decided to do sponsorships around the

- 66 - beginning of the 2000’s, was to gain good breaker for sponsors. Especially small com- faith and a good reputation with the teams panies are sometimes more looking for the and organizations in eSports. This way the team to advertise the sponsor in a very direct sponsors could build better relationships with way. the teams. By being one of the first sponsors An example of this kind of advertising would in the scene, teams and eSports organizations be that a professional eSports player of the would then remember that this particular team should give the sponsor a shout-out dur- company had been involved and supported ing an interview. However, Interviewee A’s the industry since the very beginning when company does not want that their players the profits for the sponsors were close to non- have to do anything that is frowned upon by existent. (Interviewee A, Sponsee) the community. Giving direct shout-outs for Interviewee A and Interviewee B agree, that sponsors or their products during interviews the main goal of sponsors nowadays is to get are often seen as “sellouts” by the eSports eyes on the logo of the sponsor. According to community. The teams do not want to make Interviewee A, companies are realizing that their players have to do anything that could 16-32 year olds are leaving traditional media hurt their reputation, so direct advertisements devices (e.g. TV) and everything is becoming can be the deal breaker when negotiating a digital. This is one of the selling points eS- sponsorship partnership. (Interviewee A, ports teams make when negotiating about Sponsee) sponsorships. The sponsorship budget that companies have The size of the company of the sponsor and is another big factor for why many sponsor- sponsee matters when it comes to how spon- ship negotiations fall through. Interviewee A sorship deals are initiated. Small eSports states that many companies that approach eS- teams have to actively contact companies ports organizations have a false sense of how that could sponsor them. An unknown organ- much money it will cost to sponsor them in ization or team is the one that has to initiate order to get a certain amount of exposure by sponsorship deals with companies (Inter- the eSports organization. The organization viewee B, Sponsor). On the other hand, eS- cannot give the same deal for a different price ports teams that are already established and to one sponsor than to another. A hypothet- are known in the eSports community do not ical example is that an eSports organization need to make sponsorship requests, but get has promised one sponsor three (3) social approached by companies that are interested media posts per month in exchange for in forming a partnership (Sponsee A and 100,000€. Another sponsor wants the same Sponsee C). amount of social media exposure but can only offer 10,000€. In this case the eSports In the negotiations about a partnership be- organization has to decline the offer or coun- tween a company and an eSports team, the teroffer what they can do for 10,000€. (Inter- team needs to pitch what the sponsor will get viewee A, Sponsee) for what amount of money or products. When pitching, an established eSports team can As eSports teams are competing against each give estimates of social media outreach that other not only in games but also in who can their organization has. The potential outreach get the better sponsorships, the eSports or- is often the best pitching point, because the ganizations infrastructure has become ever sponsors can get a clearer picture of how more relevant in the last years. A good infra- many people are actually going to see their structure is a great pitching point during ne- logo. (Interviewee A, Sponsee) gotiations and if the sponsor is deciding between several established eSports organiza- There are several factors that sponsees and tions. An organization with a lot of capable sponsors need to agree on when negotiating. staff will be better at creating quality content Both parties have to recognize that sponsor- for the fans, which will also be a great outlet ship objectives should be long term, which to promote the sponsors. means that they are not advertising. Accord- ing to Interviewee A this can often be a deal

- 67 - Effectiveness Measurement openness in sponsorship partnerships was highlighted during the interviews. According In this part of the findings, the ways of how to Interviewee A (Sponsee) and Interviewee sponsors measure the effectiveness of their C (Sponsee) it is the only way to create a sponsorships will be discussed. trusting environment in which both parties Measuring the effects, positive or negative, have the feeling that the other party is trying of sponsorships is very difficult according to their best to fulfill everything that was dis- all interviewees. There is no definite way of cussed during the acquirement process. It al- finding out what the effects of a sponsorship ways has to be remembered that it is another deal have been. This is largely due to the fact human on the other line of the conversation. that most sponsorship objectives are very Interviewee A emphasized that it is easy to long term. The main objective of a sponsor- forget you are dealing with people when dis- ship is to create brand awareness. This means cussing things over email. Humans make that sponsors want as many people as possi- mistakes, which is why it is so important to ble to see their logo and know about the ex- be open about what has happened and what istence of the company. However, measuring will happen in the future. (Interviewee A, how many people have actually changed Sponsee) their mind about the sponsor is not possible Flexibility was brought up as the key word with the methods right now. for a working and successful eSponsorship According to Interviewee A (Sponsee) most partnership. When deliverables are not on sponsors have their own ways of following time it is especially important to be flexible. up on their sponsorships. One way for spon- These have to be communicated well to the sors to calculate the outreach their sponsor- other party so that no one is in the dark about ship has had, is using affiliate links. For ex- what is going on. If a deliverable is late for ample, if an eSports team posts a link to the one reason or another, the eSports organiza- sponsor's website, the sponsor can see how tion has to explain why this is and what they much traffic was actually brought to their will do to fix it. However, according to Inter- website through the affiliate link. However, viewee A in some countries which are very Interviewee A emphasizes that affiliate links contract strict, very minor things can hurt the only show the short-term effects of sponsor- relationship of the sponsor and sponsee a lot. ships. The longer a company sponsors a Companies, that come from countries in team, the more likely are the fans of that team which the culture values that every point in to get a good impression of them. The trust the contract is always delivered as described from the target audience towards the sponsor without any room to move, struggle main- does not come in an instant, which is why af- taining good relationships in eSports. (Inter- filiate links do not show the entire picture. viewee A, Sponsee) In the interview with Company B (Sponsor) An example was provided by Interviewee A another approach to measuring the effects of about the matter of the importance of flexi- sponsorships was brought up. Company B bility. There are two so called “dry months” does not try to measure the effects of their in the year in eSport: August and December. sponsorships. They are satisfied with the In these two months there is not a lot going partnership if the sponsored party simply on in the eSports scene. This means there are does all the deliverables on time. This means very little big tournaments and in December that they are not looking in to measuring how most people are on holidays. However, in many people were affected or how many these months the eSports teams are still sup- people were exposed to their products. posed to put out a certain amount of deliverables. For example, three social media outputs about the sponsor on facebook.com. The Factors for Successful eSponsorships eSports organizations have very little quality content to put out, because it is “off-season”. In this section, the factors which make an eS- This means their Facebook-feed consists of ports sponsorship successful are discussed. mainly promotions and advertisements for Especially the importance of honesty and

- 68 - the sponsors. eSports organizations have media websites by eSports teams is because found that this distances them from their au- they are a lot more digital than traditional dience and a lot of the fans even stop follow- sports clubs. The fans of eSports are all ing the social media account of the team. If online and this means that the promotions the team only posts ad after ad, it alienates also have to happen online. them from their audience which will also hurt The example Interviewee A provided about the sponsor. This is why sponsors and the differences of sponsor promotions in eS- sponsees need to be flexible on the matter if ports and traditional sports was the follow- some of the deliverables could be moved to ing. In football, big teams do not need to ad- another month. vertise their sponsors online as much because it is enough that the logo of the sponsor is on team apparel. Fans of a certain football team eSponsorships versus Sports Sponsorships usually come from the same city or live in the One of the questions in the interviews was same area. These fans are the target audience whether eSports sponsorships are any differ- for the sponsors. This means that if the fans ent from traditional sports sponsorships. The buy team apparel and walk around the city in question was included in the interview beit, the target audience of the sponsor is being cause the literature of traditional sports spon- reached. This is largely because the team’s sorships was reviewed in the literature re- fans actually come from the same geograph- view part of the thesis. ical place. There is not as much need for other advertising or promotion because the The fans of an e- team’s tricots or scarfs are worn around the city and this way the sponsors are displayed Sports team are to people who are potentially interested in the mostly from very dif- football team and the sponsor. In eSports the situation is very different than ferent geographical in the example. The fans of an eSports team are mostly from very different geographical regions of the world. regions of the world. The fans are connected through internet forums and social media The fans are con- outlets. This means that these are also the places where eSports teams need to promote nected through in- sponsors for them to actually reach the target ternet forums and audience. While eSports organizations sell team apparel, these will be worn in various social media outlets. places and not only in a specific city. Company B has been involved in eSponsor- ships and sports sponsorships. The most ap- Discussion and Analysis parent difference Interviewee B noticed between them, is that the process in traditional In this section of the thesis, the findings from sports is a lot more refined. There are not as the qualitative interviews are analyzed and many uncertainties going in to the negotia- discussed. The two main themes that arose tions and both parties already know what during the interviews are discussed: value they can offer from the start. created by eSponsorships and features of successful eSponsorships. According to Interviewee A eSports sponsorship deals are a lot more like advertisements than sponsorships in other sports. ESports or- Value Creation in eSports Sponsorships ganizations are promoting sponsors a lot more directly than for example established During the sponsorship acquirement process football clubs. Interviewee A explains that the biggest question for both parties in- one reason for direct promotions on social volved, the sponsor and the sponsee, is what

- 69 - they are looking to get out of it. During the Another aspect that plays a big role in the interviews, it became apparent that not all sponsorship acquirement process is the rela- companies have the same idea about what the tionship dynamics between the sponsor and objectives of a sponsorship deal are. Inter- the sponsee. As there are no standards in the viewee A described that some sponsors are industry, as to what a sponsor gets for a cer- not looking at a long-term picture when en- tain amount of money, the power dynamics tering a sponsorship. However, long-term are a key factor when discussing a sponsor- sponsorship deals result in a better and ship deal. Big eSports organizations have a stronger relationship (Interviewee A and In- lot more leverage to say what they are willing terviewee B). to do for how much money compared to small eSports organizations. A small eSports Brand awareness and loyalty are often not the organization will not have a lot of say when objectives of smaller companies when they it comes to the terms of the sponsorship deal. are entering the eSports industry with the in- In such case the sponsor can often make the tention of sponsoring a team. During the in- term of the contract very freely and more ad- terviews with Company A and Company B it vantageous for them than with big and estab- became apparent that some sponsors do not lished eSports teams. have a clear picture of how sponsorships differ from advertisements. This is often a pit- fall during the sponsorship acquirement pro- Maintaining Healthy Partnerships cess. Small companies are expecting more in eSports direct exposure, which would generate more short-term profits. The example mentioned When a partnership has been established be- by Interviewee A was about sponsors want- tween an eSports team and a sponsor, follows ing the team’s players to do shout-outs for the the actual part of sponsoring and maintaining company during post-match-interviews. a relationship. Because of the difficulty of However, eSports are becoming more as tra- measuring sponsorship effectiveness, Inter- ditional sports in the way that eSports organ- viewee A suggested that openness on both izations do not want to burden their players side of the relationship is important. This is with any additional things to do except prac- because minor disruptions can otherwise spi- tice. As the eSports industry is becoming ral out of control and create an unhealthy re- more professionally handled, the players are lationship. A delay on a deliverable can in the treated more like athletes. According to In- worst-case scenario make the other party feel terviewee A, in the past eSports players were as if your company is not as invested into the asked to for example write articles or create relationship as it should be. other content for the community. Sponsors Both parties need to be able to openly com- valued these articles created by professional municate why a deliverable cannot be met by players a lot, because they were very high quality and interesting for the community. the time it was supposed to be. If one party This would then generate more social media does not trust that the other party is trying impressions for the sponsors too. Further- their best to meet the deadlines, they may more, by having professional players created question their dedication to the partnership. content on the eSports organizations social In a healthy business relationship, a sponsee media outlets also meant that they would not can for example explain that they do not want be filled with ads only. Nevertheless, as eS- to post one of the social media contents in ports organizations are growing and the en- December because otherwise their social me- tire industry is gaining more credibility, the dia feed would only consist of ads due to the organizations do not want their players to be lack of tournaments. This creates the interest- thinking about anything else but their prac- ing problem of how flexible companies need tice. This is a deal breaker for some sponsors, and should be. According to Interviewee A, as they would profit a lot from the exposure flexibility is the most important factor to created directly by professional players. (In- maintaining a working relationship. The question that arises from this is, how flexible terviewee A) should a company be on deliverables.

- 70 - In different cultures, contracts are seen very eSports sponsorships are working out. With differently. Especially big multinational en- this uncertainty, it may be that the company terprises value that are based in contract strict is not getting the full potential out of their countries, value it a lot that no part of a con- sponsorships. tract is breached. Even if the eSports team is offering to put out extra content in other months, the culture in some companies does Conclusion not allow for any changes. This kind of in- flexibility has caused the failure of sponsor- In the last section of this thesis, the main questions of this thesis are answered. Fur- ship partnerships. The cultures of eSports, thermore, the gaps, which are left about the which has only in the recent years become more professional, and MNEs collide on the area of eSports sponsorships, will be ad- matter of contract strictness. While it can be dressed, to gauge what further research needs seen as a positive factor, that eSports compa- to be done about the subject. A lot of aca- nies are flexible and open to new ideas, some demic research can be done to better under- MNEs do not appreciate this culture. They stand eSports sponsorships and their business want things going according to plan to have model, because the eSports as a whole is a as little surprises during the year as possible. very new phenomenon and no large-scale MNEs are relying on the fact that eSports quantitative or qualitative researches have teams are fulfilling their duties to have as lit- been conducted. tle uncertainty as possible. Sponsors have trou- Main Findings The acquisition process of sponsorships in ble measuring the eSports varies from sponsor to sponsor depending on the company’s objectives. The success of their size of the sponsor and the eSports team are deciding factors about who has more power sponsorship and when negotiating. Small companies are often have to rely on very looking very direct exposure, some sort of advertising. However, established eSports few techniques teams are often not willing to make their players directly advertise some products or about how to meas- brands. Sponsors also have trouble to realize how much it actually costs to sponsor an es- ure the value cre- tablished eSports organization. ated by the partner- Sponsors have trouble measuring the success of their sponsorship and have to rely on very ship. few techniques about how to measure the value created by the partnership. Interestingly Company B described their sponsorship effectiveness measures as al- There is no definite way to find out the de- most non-existent. The only follow up the gree to which the sponsorship has affected sponsor did was to make sure that the viewers and fans, because the objectives of sponsees fulfilled all the deliverables in time. sponsorships are often long-term brand loy- This can mean one of two things: First (1) alty and awareness. One way to calculate the Company B does not have the resources to short-term impact of a sponsorship deal is to measure the effectiveness so they do not try, see how many times affiliate links were used or second (2) Company B is so sure that the when the eSports organization promoted the results are good enough for them that they do sponsors website or products. not want to spend any resources in measuring the effects. Either scenario leads to an The main finding about how to maintain a amount of uncertainty about how well their working relationship between the sponsor and sponsee is to have open discussions if

- 71 - any trouble arises. Flexibility on deliverables online can come up. Big venues, which in the is very important seeing that there are some past were only used for big concerts or sport- “dry months” (August and December) during ing events, now have a new potential event to which there are holiday seasons or simply not host. New jobs, from eSports tournament or- a lot of eSports events. ganizers to eSports casters, are created.

Implications for International Business Further Research eSports as an industry is growing very The objectives of this research were to re- quickly and many companies are starting to search what the processes when acquiring, invest. More and more multinational enter- maintaining and measuring eSports sponsor- prises are sponsoring events, teams and even ships. Using qualitative interviews, a more purchasing their own teams. Especially com- in-depth look in to what sponsors and eSports panies, which operate in the technology in- teams think when entering a partnership was dustry, can get a lot of exposure by sponsor- gained. However, the research was done on a ing eSports teams. This way they also reach small scale, which can mean that the results their target audience, which is young adults do not apply to all companies. If the results from 14-32 years old. If technology compa- were to be generalized, research would have nies were to sponsor football or ice hockey to be done on a scale much larger. The teams, they would likely reach the wrong au- amount of companies interviewed would dience, which is not interested in their prod- have to be bigger. Furthermore, sponsors ucts or services. should be represented from vastly different backgrounds and sizes. The sponsorship ap- The scale to which sponsorships are done in proaches on in the Asian eSports scene might eSports has only been this big for the past be very different due to cultural differences couple of years. This could imply that spon- from the ones in Europe and North America. sors and eSports teams are not utilizing spon- Further academic research about other busi- sorship deals to their full potential. New ness aspects of eSports should also be con- companies entering the market can change up ducted, because there has not been a lot of how to benefit more from sponsorships in an academic research about eSports, except for industry growing so quickly. New ways of how value is created in eSports. exploiting the fact almost everything is done

Samuel Korpimies is a Bachelor of Science in Economic and Business Administration from Aalto University (2018). He has been an avid supporter of eSports since 2014 and decided to combine his passion for eSports with his business studies when writing his Bachelor’s thesis. Samuel will continue his studies in Information Service Management at Aalto University (Helsinki, Finland) while following his favorite team’s, ENCE eSports, rise to the top.

References

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- 73 - Nationalism in a Virtual World: A League of Legends Case Study By Simone Ho

For the past several years, a new sport has UEFA Cup and the World Cup. During the been all the rave. While some might argue World Cup, the supporters become very sup- against it being called a sport, the players are portive of their country’s team. The competi- submitted to a gruesome training program tion revolves around which country is the and have as much discipline as the top ath- best in soccer. Seeing as eSports is accepted letes of the world. I am talking about eSports. more and more as a sport, this thesis will research how nationalism is constructed, and to eSports is an abbreviation for electronic what extend nationalism is present in eS- sports and is defined as competitive tourna- ports. ments of video games, especially among professional gamers. Many people believe that eSports is a collective name for all the elec- eSports is something people do for fun, not tronic sports, so the term is quite broad. To as a profession. The ‘athletes’ are lazy and make it less broad, League of Legends (LoL) just sit behind a computer, or so the argument was chosen as a case study. The reason for goes. So, how is it a sport? The people who choosing LoL is because it is an online pc are part of the eSports world as professional game that is played by millions of people, gamers have a very strict training program. and it is currently the most popular game in Team Liquid, a North American League of the world. The LoL World Championship Legend team, told Business Insider in 2015 2016 live streaming had 42 million unique that they practice a minimum of 50 hours a viewers and the LoL World Championship week, and most of them also practice in their 2017 live streaming had 364 million unique free time. Professional gamers compete in viewers. Also, LoL has an extensive Wikipe- several competitions a year, be it national or dia-like platform, Leaguepedia, which is international competitions. Like sports in the very well monitored and very accurate. Be- traditional sense, the teams have sponsors, cause this is such a new topic, there are not there is a title and a money prize to be won, many academic sources available. Therefore, and most importantly there are thousands and I heavily rely on content that was written by thousands of people who watch eSports supporters, and by people who have been a events and are very passionate about their fa- part of the LoL world since the start. vorite team. LoL is classified as a ‘Multiple Online Battle As an example of how eSports compares to Arena’ game. It is owned by Riot, an Ameri- traditional sports, take the case of soccer: can company, and Tencent, a Chinese com- soccer has set rules regarding their players, pany. It was first released in 2009, and by competitions, sponsors, coaches and their 2011 it was already an established well- overall league. It has a lot of competitions an- known game with its own World Champion- nually, attracting thousands and thousands of ship. In 2017 Riot hosted the 7th LoL World viewers and supporters. Their players are Championship. recognized as top athletes, they earn huge This thesis will discuss how nationalism is sums of money and are sponsored by well- constructed in LoL, and to what extend na- known brands. Soccer fans are frequently tionalism is present in eSports. Nationalism seen as very nationalistic or patriotic, sup- in LoL will be divided in two categories, Chi- porting their teams through wins or loses and nese nationalism and Western nationalism. consistently watching their matches and tournaments. The tournaments that garner the most supporters and viewers in soccer are the

- 74 - My research methods will be a discourse Nationalism analysis, an interview and a questionnaire. I Different scholars would argue that national- will briefly discuss them. ism emerged in different periods of time and While writing my thesis, the LoL World in different ways. Some would argue that na- Championship 2017 took place in China. tionalism emerged in the 18th – 19th century This was the biggest event of the year for in Western Europe and America, when the LoL, so I analyzed what was discussed on fo- principle of national sovereignty first devel- rums. oped. Gellner argues that the need for a unified language and literacy was high, because The questionnaire was distributed through of the rapid change in modern society, indus- Western platforms; Reddit, LinkedIn, and trialization and the decline of traditional so- Facebook, but also through a Chinese plat- cial structures. Nationalism was pushed for- form; WeChat. A questionnaire is a straight- ward to justify the claim of unity. Hobshawm forward way to reach a large number of peo- would argue that it was created between ple, however some problems were encoun- 1870-1914 by people whom had their self-in- tered while doing the research which will be terest in mind. The government would create discussed later. national symbols and traditions to tie other For the purpose of this thesis, an interview nation-states and political elites to them and with Kenrick Davis was conducted. Davis is their country. What most of them agree on is a Shanghai based reporter for Sixth Tones. that nationalism needs to be supported, inten- He wrote several articles about eSports and sified and periodically reasserted. A nation- the LoL World Championship 2017. state is characterized by a representative institution, fixed borders, public jurisdiction, I expect that nationalism will be more present and popular identification with the state in the Chinese audiences than in the Western through education. audiences. There are several reasons why I expect this. When looking at sports, such as Before continuing, the definition of a nation soccer, China often trails behind. China will be discussed. After defining the concept joined FIFA in 1931, since then the Chinese of a nation, I will define nationalism and fo- team has only qualified once, in 2002, to cus mainly on Chinese (online) nationalism. compete in the FIFA World Cup. However, in eSports nobody has an advantage. In regards to the players starting point, the playing What is a nation? field is leveled, and this is a place where they Nations are hard to define in objective cul- can dominate. tural, political, and geographical features. Furthermore, in LoL the Chinese teams are For example, Switzerland is a nation, but classified as “China”, the teams represent does not have one central language. After the one country. The European and American First World War the economic power was teams are classified as Europe or North distributed unevenly throughout the world; it America, which are continents, not one coun- was either monopolized by the colonialists or try. These two continents will be referred as businessmen. As a consequence of coloniza- ‘regions’ going forth. This, I believe, makes tion and the shifting of borders, bilingualism it harder for people to be nationalistic or rec- meant access to the models of nationalism, ognize the team as representing them or their nation-ness and nation-state. country. Another reason is the long history of Anthony D. Smith defined the concept nation nationalism, how it has developed, and how as: nationalism is expressed in each country or on in each region. There is a significant dif- A named human community residing in a ference between Chinese and Western na- perceived homeland, and having common tionalism, which will be discussed in the myths and a shared history, a distinct public chapter about nationalism. culture, and common laws and customs for all members.

- 75 - There are three other ways to define a nation: at which gaming server a team plays. These gaming servers serve as an imagined commu- 1. A nation is an inclusive political com- nity created by Riot. Since in Europe there is munity and every nation has its right for a European gaming server and not separate a political state. country servers, the imagined community is 2. A nation is a moral community, it is a defined as Europe and not as France, The group of people who are prepared to sac- Netherlands, Spain, etc. The same goes for rifice and to endure hardship for a com- North America; the teams are classified as mon goal and for each other. the North American teams, not as the USA team or Canadian team. There are exceptions Gellner supports this point. He provides two of course, such as the China server or the definitions; people are only of the same na- South Korea server. Kenrick Davis also sees tion when they share the same culture, cul- this as a reason why Western teams may be ture is here defined as a unified language and less nationalistic than Chinese teams: the same social standards of behavior. The other is when someone recognizes somebody In the West, eSports teams are not really seen else as of the same nation. For example, if it as representing their nation. This partly has is recognized that the person has the same to do with the way the regions are divided – rights and duties because they belong to the with “North America” and “EU” (Europe) – same nation. in categories people do not feel very nationalistic about. There are several ways to define a nation, however in regards to this thesis the most in- Before elaborating more on this, a definition teresting and relevant way to define a com- of nationalism must be given. munity is Benedict Anderson’s definition;

3. A nation as an imagined community. Nationalism Generally speaking, people imagine nations According to Anderson there are three differ- as a concept within borders, it is a reason why ent types of nationalism: creole, linguistic rulers tried to expand their territory; to ex- (or vernacular) and official nationalism. pand their nation. According to Anderson, a However, what is nationalism? nation is a community where people have a shared feeling of belonging and comradery. Nationalism is defined by Encyclopedia Bri- A nation is not built on historical tradition but tannica as; imagined by people who went to the same Ideology based on the premise that the indi- kind of school, viewed or listened to the same vidual’s loyalty and devotion to the nation- media or share the same mental map of the state surpass other individual or group internation. ests. The nation is imagined because the members This is not to be confused with patriotism. of even the smallest nation will never know Which is defined by Merriam-Webster as: most of their fellow-members [...] yet in the minds of each lives the image of their com- Love for or devotion to one's country. munion. Nationalism unites people through their It is imagined as a community, because, re- shared cultural background, which includes gardless of the actual inequality and exploi- language and heritage. While patriotism tation that may prevail in each, the nation is unites people through their shared beliefs and always conceived as a deep, horizontal com- values. radeship. Nationalism makes one think only of one’s The theory presented in this case study is that country’s virtues and not its deficiencies. Na- Riot, to some extent, does not see nations as tionalism can also make one contemptuous of a nation within borders. Their nations are di- the virtues of other nations. vided outside country borders as well. In regard to their competitions, they strictly look

- 76 - Patriotism, on the other hand, pertains to these instances, the shared language, Chi- value responsibilities rather than just valu- nese, is unifying the players and they live in ing loyalty towards one’s own country. their own community. Despite these definitions, Billig’s argued that the term ‘nationalism’ reflects the beliefs of Chinese Nationalism ‘others’, however, patriotism reflects the beliefs of ‘us’. He further mentions that nation- Chinese nationalism is very specific due to alism is also a way of being within the world historical reasons. Chinese nationalism is of nations. based on their past humiliations, which since the Opium War of 1840 has shown a feeling According to Anthony D. Smith there are of insecurity. Before the contact between currently several definitions of nationalism: China and the West in 1840, China was more 1. A process of formation, or growth, of na- an empire than a nation state. Peter Hays tions; Gries also argues that the narrative of the Chinese identity revolves around their humil- 2. A sentiment or consciousness of belong- iations of the past. ing to the nation; China held a dominate position in the world 3. A language and symbolism of the nation; before their fall in 1840, their defeat was 4. A social and political movement on be- heavily felt due to their prior position and half of the nation; they considered this a huge humiliation. This event fueled their resistance and hate of out-

5. A doctrine and/or ideology of the nation, side ideas and foreigners, and reinforced both general and particular. their nationalistic feelings. Here China refers For the Chinese players the third definition is to the Qing Dynasty, because for the people more important than the second. There are of the Qing Dynasty the term ‘China’ was not cases in which Chinese players would attack the way that they identified themselves. somebody in a game if they could not iden- ‘China’ is a term that the West used to give tify that person as Chinese. the nation a name. However, for the purpose of clarity, going forth it will be referred to as From among a group of red-clad game ava- China. This contact changed China into a tars, a voice calls out in Mandarin: “There’s modern state and a nation. a foreigner; the guy in the black shirt is a foreigner! Kill him!” There are several different forms of Chinese nationalism, which are still present in the Sixth Tone covered such a case in the game People’s Republic, that will be discussed; the H1Z1: King of the Kill, a popular online sur- official nationalism, contemporary national- vival video game. They interviewed Gu ism, the modernizing nationalism of the re- Wenlong, a Chinese gamer who lead an army formist elite, and the pro-West nationalism. of Chinese players, nicknamed the Red Guards, to attack the (foreign) enemies. Dur- The official nationalism is based on the ing his interview he stated: communist ideology and preoccupies itself with maintaining the monopoly of politics of In real life, I do not think that we Chinese are the Communist party; in China it is synony- particularly unified because of cultural dif- mous with ‘patriotism.’ The official nation- ferences among regions, but when it comes to alism is also considered ‘revanchist national- the game, we are all speaking Chinese. Your ism’, and has racist and xenophobic tenden- followers can understand you; they can help cies, due to their past humiliations. you. Contemporary nationalism was formed by One of the Chinese participants of the ques- the political and intellectual elites of China. tionnaire mentioned that she supported Chi- The elites have a very important role when it nese teams due to the shared language. In comes to conceptualizing, manipulating, and propagating this kind of nationalism. They tend to lean more towards authoritarianism,

- 77 - while moving away from democracy. This Chinese Online Nationalism type of nationalism does not only have strong In China the internet plays an important role feelings against anything western, but also in changing the nature of political debates against everything foreign, including Chi- and activity. Using the internet has become a nese people who were not of Han descent. new style of Chinese politics to critique the government policy or their performance. It is The difference be- also used to propose new policy initiatives. According to Xu Wu in his dissertation about tween Chinese na- Chinese Cyber Nationalism, the premise for tionalism and other the existence or legitimacy of the CCP is Chi- nese nationalism. He remarks that the two countries’ national- historical consequences, China’s state-led nationalism and grass-roots spontaneous na- ism lies in its origin, tionalism, are due to China’s new wave of behavior pattern, nationalism. Like Cabestan, Wu discusses the ‘losing and policy prefer- face’ nationalism. China’s Taiwan policy is a symbol of China’s humiliations and its future ence glory. The fact that foreign powers are med- dling in the unification of Taiwan and China, This is also somewhat visible in video games. is adding salt to the wounds of Chinese na- According to a study about the changing face tionalists. of gaming in China, Chinese gamers dismiss foreign games, and prefer to play Chinese The difference between Chinese nationalism games to support the Chinese market to some and other countries’ nationalism lies in its extent. origin, behavior pattern, and policy preference. According to Shambaugh, Chinese na- Modernizing nationalism of the reformist tionalism is assertive in form, but reactive in elite does not focus as much on being anti- nature, and is described as defensive nation- Western as the other nationalisms, they do alism. however want to do things differently than the West. It is often used to create unity in As mentioned above, the form of nationalism society, and to defend the international inter- that is present in eSports is mainly language est of the nation. One example is Kang based. However, nationalism is also encour- Youwei, he favored to study the techniques aged in video games. In 2013, the Chinese and ideas of the West, however, he was also Global Times paper released a game based a firm supporter of a renovated Confucian- on the China-Japan dispute about the islands ism. known as Diaoyu-islands, or Senkaku in Ja- pan, called “Recover the Diaoyu Islands.” Pro-West nationalism uses the Confucian The aim of the game was to recapture the is- methods of educating people slowly and ad- land with People’s Liberation Army vessels. vocating for democracy. It tries to build on Which created the feeling of ‘us’ against several aspects of Chinese tradition, how- ‘them’, reinforcing the nationalistic feeling. ever, it is heavily inspired by the West. A few examples of pro-West nationalists are: Sun There are several different ways to define a Yat-Sen, Lu Xun and Yan Fu. nation or nationalism. There have also been countless discussions on how and why na- Nationalism is a part of the discourse of the tions and nationalism came to existence, and Chinese Communist Party, these days it is how they develop. In the next chapter, eS- trying to find the foundations of a legitimate ports, LoL and how nationalism works in the national territory, an authoritarian national imagined communities created by Riot will identity and govern by virtue or by benevo- be discussed. lence in the Chinese Confucian and Imperial tradition.

- 78 - Methodology Chinese nationalism, I will analyze the discourse on the “subreddit” about the semifi- The research methodology and theoretical nals, the matches where the last two Chinese framework of this thesis are based on social teams were eliminated from the competition anthropology and nationalism. Currently I by two South Korean teams. am in China and coincidentally the League of Legends World Championship 2017 are held The Korean teams have been a public favor- in China. One of the research methods that ite for years, due to their aggressive play and will be used is a discourse analysis. The main overall good team-work. They are known to platforms of the discourse analysis will be excel in eSports; therefore, they garner a lot the “subreddits”. It will specifically focus on of attention and support over the world. Be- the interaction between different people. Ide- cause of their popularity and excellence in ally the analysis would be the discourse be- eSports, it is unsurprising that they elimi- tween people from different countries, how- nated the Chinese teams easily. I believe, the ever, it is difficult to know the origin of the discourse will favor the Korean teams, and commenters. It would be unrealistic to per- may be somewhat negative towards the Chi- form a discourse analysis of all the discus- nese teams, because they are not the ‘best’ sions about the LoL World Championship team. The opposite might also be true; they 2017, hence the decision to perform a dis- might applaud the Chinese teams for coming course analysis on posts concerning the semi- as far as they did. finals of the LoL World Championship 2017. The purpose of this discourse analysis is to examine how people view the Chinese teams and to research whether people are inclined Discourse Analysis to view the Chinese teams in a positive or Discourse analysis has, over the years, negative light. gained different meanings to different schol- The platforms that were chosen to conduct ars in different fields. According to Schnei- this analysis on are Reddit, specifically the der, the main focus of discourse theory is the League of Legends “subreddit”, and the fo- human expression, in the form of language. rum on the official League of Legends web- It highlights how such expressions are linked site. to human knowledge. According to Van Dijk, an ideological discourse analysis is to The comments posted on the “subreddit” systematically link structure of discourse League of Legends on Reddit were analyzed. with structures of ideologies. Ideologies are In particular, the threads covering the defined as shared representations of social matches of the two Chinese teams versus the groups. The members of these social groups two Korean teams. The thread covering the reproduce and express these ideologies in match of Royal Never Give up (RNG) versus their social practices and the ideologies are, SK Telecom 1 (SK T1) has 4260 comments through discourse, obtained, modified and and the thread covering the match of Team confirmed. In the traditional sense the focus WE versus Samsung Galaxy (SSG) has 1709 of a discourse analysis would be on language, comments, due to time restrain, it would not especially for scholars working with a critical be possible to read through all of them. Red- discourse analysis. However, a discourse dit has a feature where you can read the top analysis is more than that. I would also in- 200 comments. They select the comments clude sounds, signs (gestures, facial expres- that have the most up votes. Generally speak- sions etc.) and intonation to the list, based on ing, these 200 comments reflect the common body language and intonation you can make discourse of the people viewing, reading and a number of observations. commenting on the thread. Out of the 400 posts, 84 posts/comments were analyzed. I think a majority of the Chinese supporters of the LoL World Championship 2017 will A selection of these posts was also made for favor the Chinese team, as the feeling of a this discourse analysis, often the posts would Chinese community is bigger in China than be a repetition or a variation of other posts. elsewhere. Because this research focuses on Such as: ‘Oh, two Korean teams in the final

- 79 - again!’ Posts that made jokes about the teams Based on the questionnaire, the Korean or players were also discarded. Comments teams are among the favorite in LoL. Most such as: ‘Faker trying to get level 7 mastery participants commented on the fact that they on Galio this World's.’ are not relevant for win most of the time and that they also con- this thesis, and therefore discarded. sider the Korean teams to have the best LoL teams. When asked why they support or do

not support a team from their country, most Questionnaire of them answered that they didn’t have any, which is true. The questionnaire did not spec- The aim of the questionnaire was to figure ify that it was based on the servers or regions. out what the viewpoint of players and view- Most participants remarked that their country ers in regard to nationalism in eSports is. The did not have their own team, thus there was a questions were formulated in a way that the plethora of teams from different regions participants were not directly asked what mentioned as their favorite. Most partici- their opinion on nationalism in eSports was. pants also did not care if someone from a dif- The questions focused on how they would ferent nationality played for a team of a dif- feel if X happened, or what they would think ferent region. Some said that it was a good if Y happened. The findings will be compiled way to move up, some commented that it in a graph to make it a coherent and transpar- should not matter because eSports is an inter- ent whole. national sport. However, when asked what While this thesis mainly focuses on Chinese they thought about a team having players nationalism, it is important to be able to com- from different countries most of them did not pare the Chinese views to other countries or consider a team from one country or region. nationalities. A research paper should be able One participant remarked that the EU teams to give an overview of the subject being re- “pull this off” more than the Asian countries. searched and compared to the rest of the Notable was that when specifically asked world as best as possible. To accomplish this, what they thought about teams that have an English and a Chinese version of this more players with a different nationality than questionnaire were made and distributed on the team’s regional affiliation, most of them both Western/international platforms and replied that they did not feel that the team Chinese platforms. was representing that region anymore. This would never happen, because the rules to The purpose of this questionnaire was to get some extent prevented this from ever hap- an in-depth view of how viewers of eSports pening. It is remarkable that most partici- or players of online PC games feel about their pants do not mind players with a certain na- region’s team, how they support their teams tionality playing for a team with a different and to what extent their support is. regional affiliation, however when the team There were 88 people that completed the consist of more players with another nation- questionnaire on the Google form. After fil- ality, they lose their place as representing tering all the answers, removing all the forms their region and are somewhat considered of people that didn’t play online games, knew ‘rogue and mixed’ teams. what eSports was, and did not watch eSports, 42 answer forms remained. The Chinese questionnaire had 11 answer forms. Compilation of Questionnaire Question 1-4 General Platforms To determine the demographic, people’s age and gender was asked. It is possible that the The purpose of these various platforms was way people view nationalism is determined to reach a large base of people and for a vari- by age. Moreover, women and men often ety of nationalities to complete the question- have a different standpoint. naire. The platform used were: Facebook, Reddit, LinkedIn and WeChat. The questions regarding nationality and place of residence were used to determine the

- 80 - difference in how nationalism works with win most of the time and that they also con- Chinese people and people that are not Chi- sider the Korean teams to have the best LoL nese. As explained in the previous chapter teams. When asked why they support or do about nationalism, all countries display na- not support a team from their country, most tionalism differently and in different degrees. of them answered that they didn’t have any, which is true. The questionnaire did not spec-

ify that it was based on the servers or regions. Question about Online PC games and LoL Most participants remarked that their country did not have their own team, thus there was a To understand certain nationalistic views or plethora of teams from different regions how nationalism implements itself in eSports mentioned as their favorite. Most partici- or LoL, different hypotheses were posed to pants also did not care if someone from a dif- the participants. Such as: ‘How would you ferent nationality played for a team of a dif- feel if your favorite team would lose from a ferent region. Some said that it was a good team of your country/region’ or ‘Do you still way to move up, some commented that it consider teams from a country/region with should not matter because eSports is an inter- more “foreigners” in their team than natives national sport. However, when asked what still a team from one country/region.’ De- they thought about a team having players pending on their answers I could possibly de- from different countries most of them did not duce two things, are you more loyal to your consider a team from one country or region. country/region or are you more loyal to your One participant remarked that the EU teams favorite team/ your preferred team, and how “pull this off” more than the Asian countries. do they perceive teams and how do they iden- Notable was that when specifically asked tify the nationality that a team belongs to. what they thought about teams that have The question: ‘How do you feel about players more players with a different nationality than from your country/region switching to a team the team’s regional affiliation, most of them from a different country/region?’ was also replied that they did not feel that the team asked. This question relates to loyalty, but was representing that region anymore. This also nationality. It could be interpreted as; would never happen, because the rules to ‘Do you think players should be loyal to their some extent prevented this from ever hap- country/region and keep playing for that pening. It is remarkable that most partici- team/region?’ pants do not mind players with a certain na- For both the eSports and LoL section, it was tionality playing for a team with a different noticeable that when asked who they consid- regional affiliation, however when the team ered to represent their country/region the best consist of more players with another nation- or have the best player, the majority of the ality, they lose their place as representing participants answered on both questions their region and are somewhat considered South Korean. I already suspected the out- ‘rogue and mixed’ teams. come for these questions, because when analyzing the player rosters of the different teams it became evident that most teams have Scope had or have South Korean players. The South I quickly found out that reaching out to Chi- Korean have also, to put it in gamer termers, nese players or viewers was going to be hard. dominated not only the LoL world, but vari- Through Facebook, Reddit and LinkedIn I ous other eSports games/tournament. For ex- quickly had over 70 people who had filled in ample, Dota2 has been reigned by South Ko- the English survey. The data collected was rean teams for years. Also, StarCraft, a very really useful in regards to researching West- popular and one of the first eSports games, ern nationalism, however the goal is to com- has been dominated by the South Koreans. pare it to Chinese nationalism. Through Based on the questionnaire, the Korean WeChat, I was able to contact several people. teams are among the favorite in LoL. Most A few people were willing to fill it in, and a participants commented on the fact that they few of them reposted it to their “moments”.

- 81 - However, when I wanted to collect all the one imagined community to another. How- data of the Chinese survey, I noticed that for ever, when the number of players from dif- some reason my survey had been closed for ferent regions exceed the number of players more than a week. The website did not notify from the team’s regional affiliation it starts to me that they closed my survey or told me become a ‘problem’. Furthermore, because why they closed it. Opening the survey up Riot has created smaller already existing again to public, was easy and since then it has communities, for example the Korean or the not closed down again. I can only speculate Chinese communities, and bigger, not so that there was a technical glitch. It is unlikely common, communities, such as the EU and that the website shut down my survey on pur- the NA communities, there is a difference in pose, because the survey is about eSports. how the teams are perceived. For the NA and Due to the unfortunate closure of the ques- the EU teams it is common to have players tionnaire, I only had 14 people who had filled with different nationalities, since they are in my questionnaire. Which made it impossi- representing a continent and not a country. ble to compare the results. For teams such as the Chinese or the Korean teams, it is less heard of to have many players

with different nationalities. This will be dis- Interview cussed further when discussing eSports and League of Legends. Sixth Tone is one of the sources that is used for this thesis. Sixth Tone is an online platform where researchers, writers and editors eSports from China and abroad post their pieces. I noticed that most of the articles on Sixth The word, eSports, was added last year in Tone about eSports and the LoL World May to the dictionary after years of struggles Championship 2017 were written by one per- and recrimination. eSports can be compared son, Kenrick Davis. After sending him an to sport tournaments and many of the aspects email explaining to him what I was research- and styles of the coverage mimic this. The ing for my thesis and asking if he had time to key difference is that eSports viewers are answer a few questions, he was more than watching gamers compete against each other happy to help and allowed me to interview using avatars in a virtual space, instead of him. I asked him about his view on eSports watching a match in real life. Like all big and how he thinks it will develop over time. sporting events these tournaments are also Then I delved a bit deeper and asked him his hosted by big stadium venues where people opinion about nationalism in eSports and can buy tickets to enter and support their League of Legends and if he had noticed a team. difference between Chinese nationalism and Hamari and Sjöblom write: Western nationalism. My objective for this interview was to have an expert opinion We define eSports (electronic sports) as a about my thesis subject and to see if there form of sports where the primary aspects of was a different opinion between an expert, the sport are facilitated by electronic sys- the players and viewers, and me. tems; the input of players and teams as well as the output of the eSports system are medi- After conducting the interview, it became ated by human-computer interfaces. clear that Davis and I had noticed similar pattern in LoL. For example, the imagined com- As with every tournament, eSports is also di- munities that was developed by Riot, but also vided in different leagues and ladders. The the presence of nationalism or lack of nation- players often belong to teams or organiza- alism due to these imagined communities. tions with a variety of companies sponsoring them. This all ties back to the imagined communities that Riot has created for LoL. In LoL, these communities are to some extent very flexible, a player is allowed to move from

- 82 - History of eSports Economic Aspect The first big game competitions were in eSports has become a major market. Accord- 1980, when Atari held a Space Invaders tour- ing to NewZoo the eSports market is a huge nament. It drew more than ten thousand par- area of investment for many companies, es- ticipants. Furthermore, during the 80’s and pecially game developers, and hardware the 90’s several eSports events were broad- manufacturers such as Razer. In 2016 the casted by different networks. Major League global eSports economy developed to be val- Gaming (MLG) was launched in 2002 and is ued at 493 million USD. The biggest contrib- currently considered to be the largest and utors were sponsorships and advertisements. most successful competition in eSports. Just to give an impression how much money MLG was also the first competition that was is in eSports; the prize money of a Dota tour- televised in 2006 with Halo 2. Televised eS- nament in 2017 was 20 million USD. ports events were very popular during this period, however soon streaming took over eSports in China has and is currently the preferred method of watching these events for many people. been developing Over the last few years, eSports has devel- since the early oped into a vast industry to rival the physical sport industry. Huge championships regu- 2000s but it has ex- larly attract millions of viewers. Multiple Online Battle Arena (MOBA) games are the ploded in popularity type of game genre that attract the most interest. With LoL and Defense of the Ancients in recent years 2 (DotA2) being the most popular ones. When looking at the economic aspect of the These two games are adored by fans for their eSports business the eSports revenue is ex- streamlined format and game mechanics that pected to grow to US$1.5 billion by 2020, lends to an easy-to-pick-up, hard-to-master and the fan base will reach nearly 600 mil- game. The major developers in this industry lion. Currently an eSports fan generates are Riot (LoL), Blizzard and Valve (DotA2). US$3.65, and by 2020 a fan will generate Since 2003, eSports has been officially rec- US$5.20 of revenue. ognized as a form of sport competition in China. The economic and creative benefits to China provide a wealth of opportunity and as Live Streaming a result have succeeded in disbanding the eSports competitions are a way to generate prevailing stigma held for many years around income for gamers, the prize money and eSports. According to Kenrick Davis: sponsorship money provides professional eSports in China has been developing since gamers with a huge portion of their yearly in- the early 2000s but it has exploded in popu- come. The bigger and more popular a com- larity in recent years. Part of the explosion is petition is, such as the World Championship, due to the support that the government has the more money a professional gamer can given it since about 2015. Many provinces get. However, to be able to enter a competi- cities are now saying they hope to develop tion, such as the World Championship, you eSports economies and gain growth from the must be exceptionally good, and they only sector. occur once a year. For most gamers, competitions and sponsors are not enough to sur- This activity has become a way to express vive. Therefore, a lot of gamer turn to (live) ideas about social belonging, identity and streaming. Gamers can record themselves class by the Chinese youth. In addition to playing a video game, they get money by this, eSports is a million-dollar market. sponsorships, wearing certain brands while playing, or by playing just one game. On some platform’s viewers can even donate money to the gamers so that they continue

- 83 - being live streamers. Jeffrey Shih, a popular players to use games for free without having video game streamer, said that the best to purchase a license. This is also the reason streamers can earn upwards US$100,000 why games have so many Chinese players. based on their live streams alone According The second reason is that it is a big business. to a research conducted by NewZoo in 2016, This year, during the qualifying competition over 470 million gamers watch online gam- of Overwatch in Shanghai, the winners who ing content on a regular basis, this number qualified for the World Championship won will pass 500 million viewers by the end of US$9000. This makes gaming a very lucra- 2016. Two of the most popular platforms to tive opportunity for people. do this are YouTube and Twitch. China also has big homebased game devel- In conclusion, not only competitions allow opers, for example Tencent. Tencent is a gamers to get a hefty sum of money but huge internet corporation in China. One of streaming themselves gaming can also pro- their popular owned gaming company is vide them with some serious cash. Live Riot, the game developer and publisher of streaming is a big market, with the sponsor- LoL. Pfeiffer points out that if you are a big ships, donations and advertisements gamers company in China it gives you access to one can live comfortably with just live streaming fifth of the world, which is a huge market. while they play their favorite game. Riot is a LA based independent game company. It was established in 2006 with the aim to develop innovative online next-genera- Case Study: League of Legends tions titles for PC and consoles. Since their What is League of Legends? launch in 2006 they have published a total of two games and three mini games. League of Legends (LoL) was released in 2009 by Riot Games, it was very well re- As illustrated by figure 1.2, sponsorship is ceived and it became one of the most played the biggest money generator in eSports. Riot online pc games ever. Since their launch, it has had little sponsorship; however, Acer be- has more than 67 million players. LoL is a came their sponsor in 2016. Acer is their first game which qualifies under the “MOBA” stream sponsor at their annual League of genre. This is a genre where players have to Legends World Championship. LoL gener- rely on their teammates to defeat their oppo- ated 1.6 billion USD last year for Riot. While nent. it seems that eSports relies on sponsorship, LoL makes the most revenue from in-game purchases. eSports in China eSports has more than 70 million viewers in LoL Tournaments China, who watch eSports multiple times a month. In comparison, the USA ‘only’ has 20 The LoL tournaments are the biggest and million viewers who watch eSports multiple most popular gaming tournaments in the times a month. world. It has millions of players all over the world. According to Digitaltrends.com, LoL Currently China dominates the eSports in- has a player-base larger than one percent of dustry, while in the past the USA and Korea the global population. were the biggest winners in eSports competitions. There are around 117 million eSports Riot started organizing World Champion- players in China, ranging from recreational ships in 2011. The first World Championship to professional. According to Chris Pfeiffer, of LoL was held in 2011 in Sweden. The very a Beijing based game developer there are two first team that won this championship is big reasons why the China is dominating the Fnatic. The first World Championship was a eSports industry. The first is accessibility. In three-day tournament and it drew over 1.7 China a lot of the games are free to play, unique viewers. When the LoL World Cham- while in the West you would have to pay first pionships were organized for the first time, before you can play. This allows Chinese

- 84 - the servers were limited to American and Eu- a Chinese team in the finals did not influence ropean servers. Players from all over the the people present in the Bird’s Nest. world joined the already existing teams. As mentioned in my previous chapter, Riot Starting from season two Riot added more created the servers, therefore some teams are servers, and by season three all currently ac- classified by region and not by country, cre- tive servers had been established. ating an imagined community. Even though As mentioned before, the way a crowd re- there is an imagined community, it does not sponds to a team says a lot about their feel- guarantee that a team only has players from ings. The LoL World Championship of 2017 that community. I have noticed that Korean were held in China, which means that the ma- teams are the only one with people with the jority of the crowd was Chinese. Kenrick Da- same nationality since the creation of a team. vis interviewed Duan Yushuang, an eSports While the other region teams mainly have hostess and the LoL World Championship players from their imagined community, they 2017 hostess. When asked what her impres- all have or have had at least one Korean sions were of the LoL World Championship player. This will be elaborated during the dis- 2017, she answered that because the compe- cussion of the player rosters. tition was in China there was some home ad- I expect that the nationalistic feeling is more vantages for the Chinese teams, and that eve- present with teams that mainly consist of ryone cheered the Chinese teams on. The players of the same country, instead of play- crowds also treated the other teams with reers from regions. spect, even when they beat the Chinese teams. When Davis was asked how he viewed the LoL World Championship 2017 League of Legends Player Roster in regard to the Chinese players and spectators he said: For this part, I will look at the most popular Actually, there’s no change, this nationalism LoL teams and analyze their player roster. I was there all along, this hope for victory and will look at their past and current player ros- this dream of having a strong nation. It’s just ter. The term ‘popular’ is a very subjective clear to see when the competition is being term in this thesis, because it all depends on held domestically. who you ask is the most popular team. For the objectivity of my thesis, I will pick the According to Davis, the nationalist aspect two most ‘popular’ teams from a region from was the same. The silence of the crowd a ranking list. The rankings are based on how would indicate that the crowd was rooting for well they perform in competitions. The rank- the Chinese team, several commenters men- ing list is a top 50 ranking that gets update tioned that the lack of Chinese teams in the frequently due to the World Championship final would impact the sales of the tickets in 2017. My analysis will be based on the top the finals. However, the tickets for the finals 10 teams on the 7th of October. in the Bird’s Nest stadium in Beijing had been sold out within a few minutes a few It is important to note here, that when I talk weeks prior. This was due to ‘scalpers’, who about region, I am referring to the servers bought the tickets and planned to resell them that Riot has or the imagined communities for a much higher price later. When the Chi- that Riot has created. nese teams got eliminated, the ‘scalpers’ My objective with this part is to showcase the were not able to resell the tickets for a higher lack of homogenous in a team. With a few price and sold them for retail price again. exceptions, it is very rare to see a team that The stadium was packed with supporters, has had, from start to finish, a team with only who considered the finals a re-match. The fi- players with that regional affiliation or country’s nationality. Also, I want to display how nals of the LoL World Championship 2016 intricate and how fast a team can change was also between SSG and SK T1, SK T1 took the champion title that year. The lack of players. This whole part is based on Leaguepedia.com, the players nationality on the website is based on where they were born

- 85 - and not, like specified in the rules, where Team WE they reside. Team WE is the first eSports club based in According to the rulebook it does not matter China and formed their first LoL team in what nationality a player has when joining a 2011. Team WE was best known for their team, as long as they live in the region/coun- Warcraft 3 team and also have teams for try that they are representing. The EU rule- Starcraft 2 and DotA. There are currently 10 book is being used here, however the rules active players in their roster and two tempo- that are mentions are the same for all leagues. rary subs. Rule 1.2.1 ID Name 957 Ke Chang Yu () All players shall certify their residency upon LaoZhou Zhou Chao () participation in the EU LCS, the EU CS and Condi the World Championship event by submitting Xiang Ren Jie ( ) an eligibility form and providing proof of Xiye Su Han Wei () residency. ZBB Ke Zhi () Mystic Jin Sung Jun (진성준) If a player is allowed to reside in multiple re- Raison Jeong Soo Bin (정수빈) gions; the following rule applies: Ben Nam Dong Hyun (남동현) Rule 1.2.6 Conan Ke Yi () Zero Yoon Kyung Sub (윤경섭) A player may only be a resident of a single Temporary Subs region at any point in time. Upon joining a Sicca Li Hao-Yu () team’s active or substitute roster, a player AhrI Liu Xu-Dong () will be considered a non-resident until and unless they declare themselves a resident and Figure 1. Roster of Team WE. meet the standards set forth in this rule. A In their active roster there are currently six player who has lawful permanent resident players with a Chinese nationality and four status in multiple regions cannot be a resi- players with a Korean nationality. Their tem- dent of two regions simultaneously per this porary substitute roster has two players with rule. Once a player declares residency in one a Chinese nationality. Their very first team region in which they are eligible, in order to consisted out of players who all have a Chi- switch residency to the other region, they nese nationality and one player who has a must have participated in at least 50% of reg- Hong Kong nationality. Until July 2014, ular season matches of their team within that their team consisted out of players with a region in its most recent split. Chinese nationality, and YJTM who has a For the inclusivity of my thesis I will also in- HK nationality. Sin, a player with Korean na- clude the two highest-ranking EU teams to tionality, joined that year. Team WE has had my analysis. For my analysis I chose the two a total of 34 players; eight Korean players, Korean teams SK Telecom T1 and Samsung one player with a Hong Kong nationality and Galaxy, two North American teams Team 25 players with a Chinese nationality. SoloMid and Cloud 9, the two Chinese teams Royal Never Give Up Team WE and Royal Never Give Up, and the two EU teams G2 eSports LoL and Fnatic Royal Never Give Up is a China based team LoL. that was created in 2015. ID Name LetMe Yan Jun Ze () Chinese Teams Koro1 Tong Yang () Both Chinese teams compete normally under mlxg Liu Shi Yu () the LoL Pro League (LPL), which is a Y1HAN Hu Zhi Wei () League where only teams based in China Xiaohu Li Yuan Hao () compete in. They also have their own server Uzi Jian Zi Hao () based in China (Shanghai). Wuxx Wang Cheng ()

- 86 - y4 Wang Nong Mo() Bjergsen Søren Bjerg Ming Shi Sen Ming () Doublelift Yiliang Peng Figure 2. Roster of Royal Never Give Up Biofrost Vincent Wang MrRalleZ Rasmus Skinneholm They are a team that have a player roster with only players with a Chinese nationality. In Shynon Vincente Vu May 2015 Royal Never Give Up started with Swifte Johnny Ngo a player roster consisted of only players with Figure 3. Roster of Team Solomid a Chinese nationality. In December 2015 Team Solomid was created in January 2011, they added three players with a Korean na- their first team was made up of two North tionality, after three players with a Chinese American players, two Canadian players and nationality left. Looper, inSec and Mata are one South Korean player. The South Korean the only Korean players that have played for player was also a TSM coach. In the same Royal Never Give up to this day. In 2016 year the south Korean player left, and TSM they all transferred to different teams. Royal had an all North American nationality team. Never Give Up has had a total of three play- Team SoloMid had 33 players, active and ers with a Korean nationality, one player with former players, with a total of 17 players with a Taiwanese nationality and 17 players with another nationality besides North American. a Chinese nationality. Their current coaches are Reginald (USA), Also, notable, is that the team has only had Parth (India) and Revehaza (Mexico). one Chinese coach, opposed to the three Ko- Cloud 9 rean coaches that they had in total. Their head coach until now has been Firefox, a Tai- Cloud 9 (C9) is an American based team that wanese national. was created in 2012. The team used to be under the sponsoring of Quantic Gaming, however they went bankrupt and had to release North American Teams their LoL players. Their team continued to play under the name Team NomNom, but Both Team SoloMid and Cloud 9 compete in changed their name to Cloud 9 in January the North America League of Legends 2013. Championship Series (NA LCS). All countries in the North American continent are ID Name qualified to compete, however the server is Impact Jung Eon-yeong (정언영) based in the United States of America (Chi- Contractz Juan Garcia cago). Jensen Nicolaj Jensen Sneaky Zachary Scuderi Team SoloMid Smoothie Andy Ta Team SoloMid (TSM) is an American based Ray Jeon Ji-won (전지원) team that was created to participate in the Westrice Jonathan Nguyen Riot Season 1 Championship. TSM was loulex Jean-Victor Burgevin eliminated from the World Championship Bunny Michael Kurylo 2017 during the group stage. However, TSM FuFuu is the only team that has participated in every Figure 4. Roster of Cloud 9 LoL World Championship and every North American LoL Championship Final. Their current team has 4 American players, two South Korean players, one Canadian Their current player roster consists of 4 player, one French player and one Danish North American players, three Danish play- player. Their very first team consisted of 4 ers and one Chinese player. Their team has American players, these players still played no subs. under the name NomNom. In 2015 Rush, a ID Name Korean player, joins the team as the first none North American player. Since they Hauntzer Kevin Yarnell started competing as Cloud9, they have had Svenskeren Dennis Johnsen

- 87 - 39 players in total, with 5 players without the over 75 international events across 20 differ- North American nationality. ent games, for example Dota2, Battlefield 4 and, of course, LoL. Their HQ is still in Lon-

don, UK, however they have offices in Bel- European Teams grade, Serbia and in Cologne, Germany. G2 eSports LoL and Fnatic both compete in ID Name the Europe League of Legends Champion- sOAZ Paul Boyer ship Series (EU LCS). All European coun- Broxah Mads Brock-Pedersen tries are allowed to compete in this Series, Caps Rasmus Winther and the servers are based in Germany (Frank- Rekkles Martin Larsson furt) and in the Netherlands (Amsterdam). Jesiz Jesse Le G2 eSports LoL Special Joran Scheffer Figure 6. Roster of Fnatic G2 eSports is an European organization founded by ‘Ocelote’. They used to be named Fnatic was established in 2011, after they Gamers 2. During the World Championship bought the player roster of MyRevenge. 2017 they were unable to qualify for the Their startup player roster consisted of only Quarterfinals. players with an EU nationality. Fnatic competed in Riot’s Season One Championship in ID Name 2011 and were the first team ever to win the Expect 대한기 Dae-han Ki ( ) World Championship. They have qualified Trick Kim Kang Yoon (김강윤) for 50 tournaments so far, with 15 first place PerkZ Luka Perkovic victories, and are considered one of the best Zven Jesper Svenningsen EU teams competing in the LoL tourna- Mithy Alfonso Aguirre Rodriguez ments. Their current player roster consists Send0o Rosendo Fuentes out of 7 people. Fnatic, in total, have had 45 Hoang Michael Hoang players, and only 6 players who are not EU Figure 5. Roster of G2 eSports LoL nationals. G2 eSports current player roster has 2 players that were not born in the EU, Expect and Korean Teams Trick. Their other members are PerkZ, who is Croatian, Zven and Hoang, who are Danish As mentioned above, it is very rare to see a and Mithy and Send0o, who is Spanish. In homogenous team from start to finish. Ko- 2015, Jebus, Afghan national, joined the rean teams are part of those exceptions. The team as the first none EU born player. two teams that I chose are teams that never had or have any other nationality in their Fnatic, in total, have team besides South Korean. SK Telecom T1 and Samsung Galaxy both had 45 players, and compete under the League of Legend Cham- only 6 players who pionship Korea (LCK). All South Korean based teams can compete in this league, their are not EU nation- server is based in South Korea (Seoul). als. SK Telecom T1 SK Telecom T1(SK T1) is a South Korea In total their team have had 36 people and 5 based team. SK Telecom (SK T) was origi- people were not born in the EU. nally created as a StarCraft: Brood War team Fnatic in 2002, but they later ventured into LoL. It was created in December 2012 after SK T Fnatic is an eSports organization that was bought Eat Sleep Game’s player roster. In founded in 2004 in the UK. Yearly they play Feb. 2013 SK T created a new player roster, thus there was SK Telecom T1 S (T1 S) and

- 88 - SK Telecom T1 K (T1 K). In Nov. 2014 teams were not allowed to have two separate rosters, therefore T1 S and T1 K formed one team, called SK T1. ID Name CuVee Lee Seong-jin (이성진)

Ambition Kang Chan-yong (강찬용) ID Name Crown Lee Min-ho (이민호) Huni 허승훈 Heo Seung-hoon ( ) Ruler Park Jae-hyuk (박재혁) Peanut 한왕호 Han Wang-ho ( ) CoreJJ Jo Yong-in (조용인) Faker 이상혁 Lee Sang-hyeok ( ) Haru Park Min-seung (강민승) Bang 배준식 Bae Jun-sik ( ) Stitch Lee Seung-ju (이승주) Wolf 이재완 Lee Jae-wan ( ) Wraith Kwon Ji-min (권지민) Untara Park Ui-Jin (박의진) Figure 8. Roster of Samsung Galaxy Blank Kang Sun-gu (강선구) Sky Kim Ha-neul (김하늘) Their current player roster has 8 players, like SK T1 they have never had any other nation- Figure 7. Roster of SK Telecom T1 ality in their team. SSG have had a total of 14 Their current player roster has 9 players, in players, this is from December 2014 when total they have had 21 players, all South Ko- they officially became SSG. They currently rean players. This is only counting SK T1, hold the title ‘World Champions’ after win- not T1 S and T1 K. ning the World Championship 2017 against SK T1. If we consider T1 S and T1 K as one team, they have taken 16 number one spots from The first thing that should strike as odd when the 37 tournaments that they have qualified reading this, is that every single team has had for, and they placed second on the World at least one South Korean player. As men- Championship 2017. Together with Samsung tioned before, the South Korean players are Galaxy, they are considered one of the best considered one of the best players world- teams in South Korea and worldwide. wide. This would also explain why the South Korean teams don’t have any other national- Samsung Galaxy ity playing in their team. It could possibly be Samsung Galaxy (SSG) is a South Korea a good follow up research to see what makes based team. The team is owned by Samsung the South Koreans such good players that who acquired the player roster of MVP every team hires at least one, however my Ozone and MVP Blue in 2013. They re- Korean is not good enough to do a follow up named both teams, MVP Ozone became research on the Korean teams. Samsung White and MVP Blue got renamed From the eight teams that I have discussed, to Samsung Blue. Both teams performed there are 4 teams where all their players cur- very well, and the Samsung organization was rently have the same regional affiliation that considered one of the strongest organizations their team represents. The teams are: Royal ever. Like SK T1, Samsung was not allowed Never Give up (all Chinese), Fnatic (all Eu- to have two player rosters starting November ropean), SK Telecom T1 (all South Korean) 2013, so Samsung released both teams and and Samsung Galaxy (all South Korean). created one new team called SSG.

- 89 - Total players from crea- Total of players with % players with a differ- tion team until now. another nationality than ent nationality the regional affiliation of the team. Team WE 34 9 26.5 Royal Never Give up 21 14 19.0% TSM 33 17 51.0% Cloud9 39 5 12.8% G2 eSports 36 5 13.9% Fnatic 45 6 13.3% SK Telecom 1 21 0 0.0% Samsung Galaxy 14 0 0.0% Figure 8. Table of all the analyzed teams When looking at the player rosters and keep- Rule 1.2.5 ing nationalism in mind, it would be easy to Provisional non-resident: conclude that the most nationalistic supporters would be the South Korean supporters. A provisional non-resident is a current Non- Simply because they are the only team who resident who has begun accruing time to- always have fully represented their country, wards becoming a resident. A provisional while even the teams representing a region non-resident can become a resident if the have other players. Which already provides a player has legally resided and been primar- hurdle to feel nationalistic towards these re- ily present in the region for no less than 48 gional teams, it could be that supporters months out of the last 72 months immediately would feel nationalistic towards the players prior to such player’s participation in the in those team that are from their country. The first game of the application tournament. Chinese teams are representing one country; however, they have not always had a full New Non-Resident: Chinese team. A new non-resident is a player who was not Therefore, to understand how it is possible on active roster of a team in the professional or semi-professional league nor relocated to for players to represent a country or continent that region for the goal of training in those that is not their nationality in League of Leg- leagues between May 11th, 2015 and August ends, we will take a closer look at their rule- st book. I will specifically look at their rules re- 1 , 2016. After that date, a player will be garding forming a team, and playing for a considered a New non-resident and unable to team. obtain residency only by staying within the region for 8 out of the last 12 splits. A new non-resident player must obtain lawful permanent resident status in the region the Rules Regarding the Forming of a player participates in. League of Legends Team It is important to know how Riot classify The rulebook provides a few additional rules their players and how it is possible that a to fully understand why Riot allows different player from a certain region can play for a players with different nationalities in the team with another regional affiliation. Not same team. The rulebook includes rules as to only gives this insight in how they create where a player should live to be eligible to these imagined communities that we have compete in a certain team. There are two been discussing, but it also shows how vola- qualifications that a player can be deemed a tile these imagined communities are and how resident. A provisional non-resident and a easy they are to ‘infiltrate’ as an ‘outsider.’ new non-resident. An astounding 51% of the players on Team SoloMid did not have the North American nationality. Even though a majority of the

players did not possess the North American nationality, TSM is still classified as a North

- 90 - American team. So, how does TSM still NA – EU teams qualify as a North American team? When researching nationalism, it became ap- Besides the rules about residency there are parent that because Riot made two continents also rules regarding the composition of the two communities, it was hard for people to team. have nationalistic feelings towards that region’s team. For some people their national- Rule 1.2.3 istic tendencies would lie with their country At least three out of five Players on the start- of birth, when there is no team representing ing line-up of a team are required to be Res- your country, it seems easy to completely idents of the EU competitive region. switch regional affiliation. That is clearly shown when you look at the most popular Rule 1.2.4 teams in LoL, the Korean teams. What hap- All teams are required to maintain at least pened when Riot created these large imag- four EU residents across their Active & sub- ined communities, that represent continents stitute roster. and not countries, is that people of that region felt less regional affiliation towards those Considering these rules, it would be reasona- teams and made a complete switch to teams ble to state that the created imagined commu- that they perceive as the best teams. nity is very fragile and very loosely constructed. The next chapter will tie this thesis As mentioned before these imagined com- together by discussing how these imagined munities are flexible, not only for the players communities influence the nationalistic feel- but also for the supporters. Riot made it pos- ings of people viewing and/or playing LoL. sible for players to switch to teams with a different regional affiliation, which made it possible for teams to have players with other na- Closing Remarks tionalities. Due to this, every North Ameri- can and European team that was analyzed in The last few years eSports has become a very this thesis has had players with different na- profitable and evolving market. And there tionalities. The only requirement that Riot are no signs of it slowing down soon. This has, is that the player must live in the region thesis aimed to research how nationalism is that the team represents for an extended pe- constructed in eSports, particularly in riod of time. Due to this, it is also difficult for League of Legends. To do this, several defi- supporters to view a team as a team that rep- nitions of nation and nationalism were pro- resents just one region. It is also common that vided. Different scholars state different peri- supporters, support one player and therefore ods that nationalism originated from, and support the team that player is in, regardless have different views on how it developed. of the regional affiliation the team has. All of When specifically looking at LoL, it became this accumulates to the fact that for support- clear that Anderson’s definition of a nation, ers of these regional teams it is very hard to provided an almost perfect fit for what was perceive these teams as representations of researched. Riot made several gaming serv- their own region. ers, and when making them they created their own imagined communities. In the ‘Riot world’ there is no France, the Netherlands, KR – CH teams USA, or Spain; their world is based on their It is a different story for the Korean and Chi- servers. Riot made North America one com- nese teams. Riot created their own servers, munity and Europe one community, both thus the teams represent a country, not a massive continents. While on the other hand, whole continent. This made it easier for the China and Korea are their own community. supporters to have nationalistic feelings and support their countries team. eSports is a huge market in Korea, where the players are treated like celebrities. Korean

- 91 - teams are also perceived as the best in the The LoL World Championship 2017 were world in several eSports. When analyzing the held in China at the same time that I was in Korean teams, both teams never had players China. Therefore, I planned to visit several from a different country or region in their games and conduct an audiovisual analysis, team. Because I don’t speak Korean, I was as well as interviewing people at the games. not able to conduct a questionnaire under Ko- Due to the sheer popularity of the game, buy- rean people. However, I can imagine that the ing tickets was impossible and conducting an people in Korea support the Korean team im- audiovisual analysis would not be sufficient mensely. It would seem odd if that was not anymore. An option was to review the re- the case, seeing as they have the most popu- cordings; however, these were very one- lar teams. sided. The videos focused on the game and on the players and not so much on the To some extent the Chinese teams experience crowds. There were several shots of the the same support from their compatriots as crowd that could have been analyzed. Never- the Korean teams, especially during the LoL theless, it would not have provided a very World Championship 2017 which was held good overview of the general discourse of the in China. eSports is growing rapidly in crowd. Therefore, the decision was made to China, and during the LoL World Champion- conduct a discourse analysis on forums dis- ship 2017 all the stadiums were sold out cussing the LoL World Championship 2017. within minutes. For Chinese supporters, An audiovisual analysis would have been there are several reasons why they support better in this aspect, because the LoL World Chinese teams. One reason that stood out, Championship 2017 was in China. When was that some supporters feel that because conducting a research that focuses on they speak the same language, they are from China’s nationalism, it is always better to the same community and should support conduct it among Chinese people. Because them. This was not only the case for LoL. In this analysis was done on an international fo- H1Z1 there is a whole army of Chinese peo- rum, and there is no way of finding out what ple attacking foreigners, these Chinese play- the nationality is of the people posting, a very ers were also unified by their shared lan- limited analysis is the result. For future ref- guage. Nationalism in China is to some ex- erences, it would be better to conduct the tent based on their past humiliations, this analysis while focusing on the target audi- fuels their feelings of ‘us’ against the ‘rest’. ence. Hence, nationalism does not only extend to supporting Chinese teams or banding together to attack foreigners in a game, but to One reason that the Chinese video game market as well. Sev- eral Chinese gamers prefer to play Chinese stood out, was that games, because they can support the Chinese some supporters feel market that way. Chinese nationalism, even if it is on a subconscious level, is present in that because they eSports; it displays itself in the banding together in games to attack foreigners, support- speak the same lan- ing teams because of the shared language and not buying foreign games to support the Chi- guage, they are from nese market. the same community and should support Limitations

While this thesis is a good start to research them. how nationalism is constructed in eSports, I had to conduct a questionnaire instead of in- there are several things that could be im- terviews. The main problem that was en- proved. While conducting this research, there countered was the closing down of the Chi- were several issues that arose.

- 92 - nese questionnaire. This caused a limited re- future I believe that will not be an issue any- sult among Chinese people. While my Eng- more. eSports is slowly growing to a world- lish questionnaire provided some results, I wide phenomenon that will likely be re- was not able to present the view of Chinese searched by scholars to examine how every gamers. There was no clear reason why it aspect of it works. was shut down, there was no notification and eSports is a relatively new phenomenon, when discovered that it was closed it was nonetheless, it is a very interesting subject to easy to open it again. Because of the simple research. This thesis specifically focuses on solution of clicking ‘open’, I believe it was a LoL and Chinese nationalism, however, glitch in the system or a random mistake that there is a plethora of games that can be re- caused my questionnaire to be shut down. In searched. Riot created their own imagined the future, it would be worthwhile to check communities, in the future they might allow the questionnaire several times a week to see teams from one country to represent their whether it is still open, or to make the ques- country, instead of under the name of Europe tionnaire on several different platforms to or North America. eSports is a fast growing distribute the risks in case one shuts down. and changing industry. It is evident that fur- Another difficulty that arose, was the lack of ther study is needed to obtain better under- academic sources. While there are enough standing in how these communities are con- academic sources about nation, nationalism structed and how they evolve over time, es- and methodology, there are not enough pecially how nationalism is displayed and the sources that specifically dealt with national- differences among those communities. ism in eSports or in LoL. Nevertheless, in the

Simone Ho graduated last year from her MA ‘Asian studies’ and MA ‘Teaching Chinese as a Sec- ond Language’. She decided to write about nationalism in eSports after enrolling in the course ‘Politics of Digital China’ by her supervisor Dr. F.A. Schneider. The decision to choose League of Legends as a case study was an easy decision, due to her League of Legends playing brothers.

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- 96 - Professionalization of eSports Broadcasts The Mediatization of DreamHack Counter-Strike Tournaments

By Geert Verhoeff

written before full-time employed at Dreamhack

eSports, and the competitive gaming scene, is to do my second internship at Kaos Contin- a booming business that only emerged in the gency. My first job was editing short last decade as an industry with broadcasts, YouTube clips. Crazy days filled with energy tournaments and offline events. In the past drinks, awful shawarma and overpriced beers seven years the organizations that produce at a nearby hotel. Twitch did not exist, HD the broadcasts are professionalizing to ac- streaming on a large scale was impossible commodate the needs of different stakehold- and the only thing I got paid were the travel ers within the eSports culture. On different expenses. Nonetheless it was fun. Just a few levels we can see patterns of change when youngsters trying to make the best broadcast looked at the mediatization of eSports pro- without any knowledge nor huge budgets, duced content. These are not only mimicking and get things working with mainly do-it- existing media and organizations, but also yourself solutions. Every year a bit of tech- the development of several aspects that are nology was added to make the livestream unique to eSports itself. One of the organiza- more engaging for the audience. More cam- tions of these events is DreamHack that has eras, better cameras, experimenting with so- been organizing Counter-Strike tournaments cial media, statistics, green screen team shots that are broadcasted. I have been working or similar as the NFL does, expanding the setup was present at most of these events as a proof the area the gamers are seated and much ducer or Technical Operations Manager that more. gave me a unique insight in the workings and the changes that can be found when looked at The nerd is becom- the phenomenon. This thesis is an autoethnographic account of eSports culture at Dream- ing the alpha in a Hack Counter-Strike tournaments and the patterns of change that can be found within community driven production. by technology, knowledge and Personal Introduction Games are an important part of my life as a outthinking one casual gamer, producer and researcher, but my connection with eSports began in 2009 another. when I attended DreamHack Winter as an in- Nowadays I work freelance for a variety of tern, while studying Music Management at different projects that are not exclusively the HKU. Solely by coincidence I was asked game related, but my interest of the eSports

- 97 - culture still intrigues me. The moment I real- the kids,” is the general response that any- ized eSports had become real business was at body will get. Ok. What if we compare e- a Twitch after party during DreamHack Sum- Sports with professional chess? I play chess mer 2012 when I ordered a beer on their tap, in the pub, but nobody will pay me to play it but we were already too late for the party. No against somebody else. I probably have to more free booze for us kids we thought… pay the bill after losing, again, from the pub Withdrawing some cash at the nearest ATM owner. In general people can agree with me figuring out the EUR to SEK exchange rate that it can be compared with a chess and back to the party. Ordering and wanting grandmaster. Somebody trained hard to get to pay for the cheapest whiskeys on the shelf, to a certain level of skills. Still there are some Justin “TheGunrun” Ignacio shouted in his that will not budge for this analogy. Then it joyful manner as only he can: “These guys is time to throw in the prize money profes- are drinking on us the whole night!” That was sional players win and the fees they get paid. the year we did a production of League of Nine out of ten times, especially if the person Legends with a crew of four people. Produc- has kids, the reaction will be: “My kid will be tion teams were not a bunch of kids anymore the next eSports player. He is playing for that are fan of the game, but became young hours a day.” This of course with the right professionals. Nowadays eSports takes her, a amount of sarcasm in their response. A par- woman touch is mostly absent and should be ent can dream of a gifted kid. At this point more present, place in pop culture. It is out- most of the conversations end in both taking growing the niche or phenomenon that it a sip and the other one saying: “Good for once was. While most people saw gaming as you.” Not only the one-on-one conversations something nerds do until the crack of dawn outline this general perception of eSports. with severe pimples as a side effect, is now The mainstream in general is to be oblivious something widely accepted to do. Not only of the scale, but I have to admit this is chang- accepted; the nerd is becoming the alpha in a ing rapidly. community driven by technology, knowledge and outthinking one another. The nerd is not the stereotype we once pictured in Introduction eighties movies. Sports and electronic games were mentioned While eSports can be viewed as mainstream together in the first edition of MIT University and is a real business in which different newspaper Decuscope (Edwards & Graetz, stakeholders are involved, the general public 1962) describing students competing against has yet to be conquered. I still have to explain each other at Spacewar. A two-player game eSports at birthday parties and friends I meet on the Programmed Data Processor-1 in- at the pub. Most of them cannot understand it spired by Doc Smith’s sci-fi Lensman nov- and start laughing when I call it an intense els. The game can be seen as the starting sport. Arguing their perception usually goes point of electronic gaming in general, alt- as follows: people should not get paid for hough it is not the first electronic game ever something that is made for entertainment created. It sparked students to fiddle with the purposes. I get it. It is weird to notice your code and create variations of the game that nephew playing for hours and forgetting to led to the first ever recorded eSports event. do homework. How the hell is that going to The Intergalactic Spacewar Olympics was be something that can be profitable for him? held on 19 October 1972 on Stanford Univer- After this first argument I start to make the sity and reported by Rolling Stone Sports re- comparison with amateur football stating that porter Stewart Brand and photographed by in many ways this is similar. Almost no one Annie Leibovitz (Brand, 1972). First prize: a gets paid for playing football on Saturday year’s subscription of the Rolling Stone. An morning at their local club. The parents of early example of a mainstream medium re- these kids even have to pay the club to let porting on eSports and an early hint towards them kick a ball. “Yeah that is different. It is commercialization and professionalization of more like a physical exercise and good for eSports. In the years thereafter the trend of competitive gaming rose as a subculture with

- 98 - arcade games (Edwards, 2013). Advance- shooter tournaments are used to answer the ment in technology made it possible to dis- following question: play engaging and competitive games. Or- What patterns of change in mediatization of ganizations, like for example Twin Galaxies, CS:GO tournaments as media events at were established to record the high scores of DreamHack from 2010-2016 can be found? gamers. More personal computers became capable to connect to the internet making the Mediatization being the double-sided pro- demoscene, multiplayer games and eventu- cess of high modernity in which the media ally streaming gameplay possible. One of the emerges as an independent institution, but earliest mentions of eSports dates back to the also as an integrated part of other institutions late nineties and can be found in a 1999 press (Hjavard, 2008, p. 105). To answer the re- release on the launch of the Online Gamers search question there will be looked at some, Association (OGA) where traditional sports but not all, aspects of the broadcasts pro- were compared with eSports (Wagner, 2006, duced at Counter Strike tournaments orga- p. 437). Naturally the term was already in use nized by DreamHack in relation to media by the online community surrounding differ- events, and mediatization. Both concepts will ent competitive games. At this point eSports be discussed further in the Theoretical is a multi-million dollar business that attracts Framework section of this thesis. To get the millions of viewers and is expected to grow idea on the patterns that changed over time significantly in the coming years. within the broadcasts two questions will help to outline the thesis further: Multiple stakeholders are part of eSports events including players, sponsors, develop- 1. What changes are made to eSport as me- ers, organizers, spectators and fans which are dia events from a production point of in need of each other to organize successful view? events. Content is created in the form of texts, images, videos and broadcasts. While 2. How did the professionalization of e- there are a few scholarly works (Taylor, Sports broadcast make the media events 2012; Taylor & Witkowksi, 2010) about eS- change? ports productions and eSports events, many Six years of DreamHack broadcasts are ana- of them do not take an in-depth look at the lyzed and further explained with hands-on actual content created or are not, as far as I experience in order to find the patterns of could find, drawn from personal experience change within the production. Examples are working multiple years at these or similar used to outline these patterns. productions. The existing work mostly draws conclusion from being a participant at one The structure of the thesis is to start by look- event or in some cases a couple of events. ing at the theoretical framework that consists Rarely the changes broadcasts went through of defining eSports culture, eSports broad- in multiple years are taken into account. casts, mediatization, media logic and media Changes over a longer period can help under- events. Secondly the methodology used con- stand the professionalization and mediatiza- sists of an autoethnographic approach with tion of this relatively new phenomenon and elements of a textual analysis. At last the helps understanding the eSports culture from analysis itself and the conclusion. a production point of view. More on the academic relevance will be explained later on. Academic Relevance The focus of this thesis is on the in-house created broadcasts with multiple DreamHack, The first time the term eSports was men- one of the largest gaming event organizations tioned dates back to the late nineties of the in the world, LANs and eSports events are last century where professional electronic used as case study. In particular the Counter competitive gaming was compared to elec- Strike 1.6 (CS1.6) and Counter Strike: tronic sports (Wagner, 2006, p. 437). It is a Global Offensive (CS:GO) first person relatively new phenomenon that only spans a few decades (Wagner, 2006, p. 437) and was fairly often neglected until around 2009 by

- 99 - the field of academic game studies. Around Framework that time more researchers started taking pro- eSports Culture & ESports Broadcasts fessional competitive gaming into account as a subject to investigate with the rise of Like every other term the definition of e- streaming services and the emergence of Sports is still not set in stone and changes multiplayer online games that introduced from time to time. The first rendition of e- competitive to millions of new players Sports as linking competitive gaming and (Georgen, Duncan, & Cook, 2014). One no- sport together can be found in the first edition table source for research are the eSports of the Decuscope (Edwards & Graetz, 1962) Yearbooks that are published almost annu- referring to students playing Spacewar. The ally containing multiple papers on the sub- term eSports itself was first used in a press ject. Most of the researches done compare release in 1999 when the Online Gamers As- traditional sport consumption (Lee & sociation (OGA) was founded. Mat Betting- Schoenstedt, 2011) with the new technology ton compared eSports to traditional sports that is used to livestream the gameplay, the predicting that it would not take long to be web communities that were created by it broadcasted on television and it already aired (Edge, 2013; Carter & Gibbs, 2013), and dif- in that year on a television station in South- ferent notions of fair play (Carter & Gibbs, Korea. While the term has been around for 2013). There are only a handful of research longer, this is the first time that it can be papers that look at the actual eSports content found in written form (Wagner, 2006, p. that is produced at LAN (Taylor, 2012; Tay- 437). The OGA was founded to represent lor & Witkowksi, 2010). While there are sev- professional gamers, to promote this new eral reports on the growing scale of eSports sport, encourage better sportsmanship in the most of them confine themselves to numbers community and to stamp out cheating. They and kind of spectatorship. The production define eSports loosely as professional gam- side is or neglected or not researched on large ing, but do not state what this means or what scale events. This lack of research on major the surrounding conditions for players are in events and the changes over a long period of order to call themselves professional gamers. time is noted when reviewing different pub- According to media theorist Wagner (2006) lications on LAN-parties. e-Sports can be defined as an area of sport activities in which people develop, train and Most qualitative research within eSport compare mental or physical abilities using in- broadcasting is done by scholars who are formation and communication technologies mere observers of the phenomenon without (Wagner, 2006, p. 438-439). While van emerging themselves in the production pro- Ditmarsch (2013, p. 4) makes a good point cess. In contrast to multiple publications on adding “through video games” at the end of particular games that see playing the game as this definition in his thesis, it does not take an important part of understanding the me- into account the professionalization of the chanics and choices that were made during community and leans extremely on the no- developing (Aarseth, 2003). The lack of sub- tion of traditional sports. This definition, mersion is understandable as most scholars apart from the word eSports, can be extended do not have the opportunity to work for a to a broader field that touches outside of how lengthy period of time in this line of work. the general discourse is nowadays that fo- With my almost seven years of experience cuses more on the professional side of eS- working in different functions as a crew- ports (Tamblyn, 2016). Do not forget that member gives me the unique opportunity to Wagner defined eSports in 2006 when, for use these observations in researching how example, livestream platforms were almost eSports, and the production of DreamHack nonexistent. The western world had only the broadcasts, changed over time. The observa- opportunity to watch a thirty-minute segment tions will help to grasp the changes over time on MTV what may not really be described as and the implications this has on eSports eSports. When reviewing the annual prize broadcasts. pool earnings of players in 2006 they hardly qualify as making a living for the most of

- 100 - them and is with some exceptions dominated the event working at another broadcast, but by Asian players. Asia has a rich eSports cul- you could feel the hate among the visitors ture, but the reason and background of that against Fnatic before they made their deci- could be the subject of another research. sion. It was the main topic of the day when entering the hotel bar or making small talk At this point in time eSports is not solely with visitors. While this is merely an exam- competitive gaming, but derives its status of ple of a community having some kind of in- the culture surrounding professional gaming volvement in eSports decisions, numerous with their own celebrities, events and tourna- others can be found that ranges from gender ments. People that identify themselves with issues (Savov, 2014), inclusion of spectator eSports do not have to participate actively in modes in a game (Hendo, 2015) or the qual- the game itself, but can also be spectators, ity of a broadcast (Meek, 2016). Seo and hosts, journalists and others involved. Jung (2014) see the importance of the com- (Schmidt, 2015). Therefore, it may be closer munity and accompanying factors in the ob- related of being a subculture in our society as servations made when researching eSports. other sports, for example football, that have their own significant cultural aspects (King, “…, the case of eSports presented in this 2016). While there is some debate what con- study illustrates the relevance and usefulness stitutes a subculture eSports can be qualified of social practices in exploring new avenues as such when looking at some aspects (Heb- for understanding computer games within dige, 1995, p. 121). A subculture is a group contemporary consumer culture. In particu- of people within our culture that conform lar, we draw attention to the social aspects of themselves to their own rules and norms that eSports as a coordinated assemblage of mul- differ from the general perceived rules and tiple practices, where consumers carry and norms. Looking to eSports as an industry and carry out different roles and activities beyond at the same time taking into account the soci- their interactions with the game interface ological approach of eSports as a subculture alone.” (Seo & Jung 2016, p. 652) would be more suitable researching the phe- eSports is more than the previous definition nomenon as they are intertwined heavily with given by Wagner when taking into account what Wagner defines as just the act of engag- the importance of, for example, Seo & Jung’s ing in eSports. To highlight the point of the observations and I propose to extend the community aspect, in the case of eSports be- commonly used definition when looking at ing a subculture, being an important part of eSports as a research object. This is neces- the actual competitive aspect of eSports one sary to highlight other aspects that have a sig- lively example springs to mind. During the nificant impact on how eSports is perceived quarter final of Counter Strike Global Offen- and how it has consequences on the defini- sive DreamHack Winter 2014 tournament tion of Wagner. Especially when looking at one of the well-known teams Fnatic at that the mediatization of the major broadcasts. A time used pixelwalking to win the third map. more complete definition must include the The opposing team LDLC allegedly used an- cultural aspect and the professionalization other exploit of the game to win some associated in the current discourse of eSports rounds. When the tournament organizers de- culture to understand the extent of the phe- cided that a partial rematch was the most ap- nomena. propriate way to proceed the community was outraged against Fnatic. They took their eSports is the phenomenon of paid profes- complaints to different social media plat- sional competitive gaming formed by online forms what resulted in Fnatic forfeiting their and offline events that are viewed by specta- spot in the tournament. While the final deci- tors and enable the gamers to profit from the sion was left to the team there is no doubt that surrounding incentives. the not amused community played a role in them forfeiting as some outlets claimed that In this way the definition covers all of the as- the sponsors made them do it (Ehrnberg, pects in eSports by taking into account the 2014) or maybe the team caved under the community and the involvement of develop- pressure they received (Yiji, 2014). I was at ers, sponsors and organizers. It also gives

- 101 - room to use the definition without making culture with the invention of Internet Proto- the obvious and sometimes unnecessary col Television (Scholz, 2012) that gave play- comparison to traditional sports, while it ers, tournaments and participants the ability does not exclude its relationship. What it to broadcast gameplay to a larger audience. It does not cover is the differentiation between was already possible to watch in-game con- different communities that associate with one tent with commentating in the beginning of genre or even one particular game. Within 2001 by, for example, connecting to a Coun- eSports the game or genre defines the social ter Strike server and an audio stream (Scholz, practices of the accompanied community. 2012). Chatting with other spectators was Focusing on Counter Strike, for example, sometimes possible via Internet Relay Chat, Wright, Boria and Breidenbach (2003) argue newsgroups and bulletin boards. Interaction that the participants of the community can be was possible, but was complicated for the seen as a subculture on itself that can enter fast majority of the audience. The major limonoid or liminal like genre that promotes change came around 2007 with open plat- a temporary “limbo” of statelessness, flow forms that allow anybody to video broadcast and movement, a refashioning of time and their gameplay. Most known for their gaming community. One could argue that this applies channels was Justin.TV. Later they would to every community that holds its status in an separate gameplay broadcasts from other eSports realm, but for this thesis it suffices to broadcasts with its now well-known platform apply it solely to Counter-Strike. Here com- Twitch.TV. The most notable aspect of this munities are part of the eSports subculture or, change was the ease viewers would interact as I will refer to it after this point, eSports with the individual streamers during the culture because the communities overlap in broadcasts. This boosted the viewership sig- their values and norms when compared to nificantly and the broadcaster not having to each other. be a major organization (Kaytoue, Silva, Cerf, Meira, & Raissi, 2012, p. 1184). Not Part of eSports culture is spectatorship: the only the platforms made it easier for the act of observing an event without participat- viewers and the streamers, the available tech- ing in the event (van Ditmarsch, 2013, p. 5). nology became increasingly cheaper which There are different ways to engage as a spec- made it possible to improve the quality of a tator with eSports, but nowadays part of the production for individual broadcasters and spectators actively interacts with the event organizations. When I started, for example, using social media and some events encour- we used simple Standard Definition (SD) age participating in some activities. Some cameras connected to an expensive video eSport events try engaging viewers to make switcher that only allowed four inputs. predictions, participate in live games be- Streaming in HD was nearly impossible between matches and include social media into cause of the investment that was needed and their broadcast. Martin Ludvigsen and Rune the bandwidth it would use. Several compa- Veerasawmy (2010) describe the new way of nies saw an opportunity in the live stream in- participatory spectatorship as: dustry developing tools, software and hard- “Participating as spectator or fan includes ware to streamline and professionalize the many activities ranging from every day fol- capabilities of a broadcast with less need of lowing and discussing the sports to social ac- big investments. Viewers and broadcasters tivities of engagement in sporting events. In are now more limited by the bandwidth high spite of this, most often technological sys- quality streams demand as some platforms tems at sporting events seek to augment the are offering the capability to stream in Ultra vent in a way that replicates the passive con- High Definition. The main topic on live sumption of broadcast television.” streaming at this point, from a technical (Ludvigsen & Veerasawmy, 2010, p. 97) standpoint, involves the platforms limiting the capabilities of streamers by setting caps One of the abilities is to watch the competi- on the allowed amount of data send to the tive games live on different platforms. A servers. The new capabilities of live stream- practice that could find its place within the ing was embraced by multiple major players in the eSports tournament industry. ESL,

- 102 - MLG and DreamHack, for example, picked (Korthagen, 2015, p. 43). The introducers of up the technology to extend the experience of the term ‘media logic’ mainly focus on media their events and gain more fans in the pro- formats that bare the characteristics how ma- cess. Later in this thesis I will discuss the par- terial is organized, the style in which it is pre- ticular way DreamHack evolved their events sented, the focus or emphasis on particular with expanding to the livestream industry. characteristics of behavior, and the grammar of media communication (Korthagen, 2015,

p. 58). The logic can be described as institu- Mediatization & Media Logic tional practices or a set of rules regulating actors behavior (Korthagen, 2015, p. 44). Iden- To understand media from a conceptual point tifying the formats makes it possible to unof view one must look at the different impli- derstand what lies behind complicated pro- cations it has and how it came to be. Media- cesses of media production and the changes tization, as it was developed by Friedrich it brings to mediatization (Lundby, 2009, p. Krotz, Winfried Schulz, Stig Hjarvard and 8). One way to understand the mediatization others, is an attempt to concentrate our focus from an institutional point of view is to un- on a particular transformative logic or mech- derstand media logic. anism that is understood to do something dis- tinctive to particular processes, objects and Mazzoleni, according to Lundby, states that fields. It looks at the transformative ways media logic consists of several different media, in whatever form it presents itself, logics where a combination of them form the change the social and cultural life from a sin- media logic (Lundby, 2009, p. 220). Com- gle media presentation. The transformative mercial logic is formed by the media institu- implications work both ways. According to tions as the way they make money and the Hjavard the implications of mediatization be- society that is being commercialized. Tech- ing double-sided can be explained as fol- nological logic are the capabilities of the ap- lowed. plied technologies that make the process of production possible. Cultural logic is the im- “Mediatization is to be considered a double- plications media has on cultural practices sided process of high modernity in which the (Lundby, 2009, p. 223). All logics are formed media on the one hand emerge as an inde- by the previously described double-sided pendent institution with a logic of its own process on how media create their activities. that other social institutions have to accom- Korthagen (2015) basically uses the same di- modate to. On the other hand, media simulta- mensions of logic, but categorize them neously become an integrated part of other slightly different by looking at the institu- institutions like politics, work, family, and tional practice of media logic. She breaks the religion as more and more of these institu- logic down in professionalism, commercial- tional activities are performed through both ism and media technology (Korthagen, 2015, interactive and mass media. The logic of the pp. 43-44). While there is a clear similarity media refers to the institutional and techno- between the dimensions of media technology logical modus operandi of the media, includ- versus technology logic and commercialism ing the ways in which media distribute mate- versus commercial logic, there is a difference rial and symbolic resources and make use of between journalism versus cultural logic. formal and informal rules.” (Hjavard, 2008, Her definition of journalism leans more on p. 105) the idea of the ethics, by which producers of To clarify this notion: Mediatization not only media must account themselves for. Cultural takes place within the media institutions, but logic looks at all implications on society and is affected and affects different actors and the effects media has on its culture and soci- agents (Lundby, 2009, p. 215). For example: ety has on the media and not only consists of politics adopts the logic of media institutions accountability of its producers. The three dif- to make use of the benefits they offer for their ferent logics or dimensions may also clash own cause, but the media institutions also with each other as there are clear tensions be- conform to the implications of newsworthi- tween, for example, cultural logic and com- ness offered by politics and society

- 103 - mercial logic. Producing media will inher- includes such varying events, for example, ently come with the need of cash money or football championships, the Pope’s visit to a other currency, not forgetting the media ran country, terror attacks or reward shows.” by volunteers that need an incentive to pro- (Kramer, 2008, p. 910) duce it, for its existence there is the need to Kramer’s indication of football champion- question the integrity or cultural needs of the ships as sample of breaking the routine of society in order to succeed as an institution. conventional media programming, the same Within this thesis the different logics are could be said about eSports events, but in the used as one aspect to categorize the analysis instance for the content on Twitch this can of the content. This will be explained in even be extended. The fast majority of broad- depth in the part on methodology. casts on this platform consist of content created by its platforms users that stream their own gameplay or creative process. Tourna- Media Events ments are not unusual, but gives the commu- The inherent first question that has to be nity something else to tune into. Besides that asked before investigating mediatization of a the focus in this thesis is on the content cre- media source is to establish an implicit de- ated at offline events. Only those will be an- scription of that medium. One way to deter- alyzed. DreamHack also facilitates online mine the status of DreamHack as a medium events that are not centralized at one location is to describe its content and impact as a me- or they are just merely broadcasted from their dia event. Media events are a genre on tele- studio in Stockholm. Considering Dream- vision that demand and receive targeted at- Hack as a media event gives the advantage of tention (Katz & Liebes, 1990, p. 49). By def- analyzing the bigger streams of the company inition those events are not routine and differ that break with the usual programming that from the established genres we see in daily the organization provides and which Twitch television (Dayan & Katz, 1992, p. 5). Media users are familiar with. In this way the ana- events are characterized by the elements of lyzed broadcasts can be classified as media interruption, monopoly, being broadcast live events and patterns could be defined more and performed on a remote location. Accord- clearly as the broadcasts have greater inter- ing to Katz & Dayan the broadcast must elec- vals between them. The changes will be more trify a very large audience and stand out as a visual that way to analyze. unique event that interrupts every other regular expected program. Katz & Dayan meant electrifying a nation or the world, this could Methodology be extended to major events in the eSports Autoethnography is writing about a re- culture as IPTV which was non-existent dur- searcher's personal relationship to culture ing the time they defined media events. They that can be seen as a genre of research whom solely focused on events that are unique, but displays multiple layers of consciousness the concept of media events could be ex- (Ellis, 2004, p. 37). The method combines tended to pre-planned events as long as to a different characteristics of autobiography certain extend they remain limited (Kramer, and ethnography where the writer uses selec- 2008, p. 910). A more updated definition that tive epiphanies that stem from being part of covers the subject is stated in The Economy a culture or particular aspects of that culture of Media Events by Benjamin Kramer: (Ellis, Adams, & Bochner, 2011, p. 276). Au- “Media events are extraordinary incidents or toethnography has seen a growth in the past performances covered or staged by the me- fifteen years within different sociological re- dia, breaking routines on the part of the me- search and is seen as a relevant research dia organization, the public (at least the me- method (Anderson, 2006, p. 373). Autoeth- dia seek to create an event that the public re- nography has, according to Anderson, five gards as something exceptional) or both, as key features to be implemented correctly. opposed to the routine production and con- The researcher must be a complete member sumption of media content. This definition

- 104 - of the subject he or she is researching (An- observations described are part autoethno- derson, 2006, p. 379), has to have analytic re- graphic, but most of the facts are confirmed flexivity (Anderson, 2006, p. 382), narrative by the crew of DreamHack while discussing visibility of the researcher’s self (Anderson, the matter during DreamHack Winter 2016. 2006, p. 383), must have dialogue with mem- Using the different logics as main subjects it bers of the field (Anderson, 2006, p. 385) and is possible to understand the different forces must include some kind of theoretical analy- at play during the events. The logics some- sis (Anderson, 2006, p.386). Within this the- times overlap as they are intertwined in many sis autoethnography is used to examine the ways. mediatization of the DreamHack Counter

Strike tournaments. In my personal introduction I tried to reflect my involvement in the Counter Strike: Global Offensive field of eSports broadcast and culture what is described in the analytical part of this thesis. Counter Strike is part of the corpus researched as it is part of the eSports culture To look at the subject in a more structured within the broadcasts that are used for the sense, aspects of textual analysis are used to analysis. A short understanding of how the lay a better foundation of understanding the game was developed and changed over time media. While it is a different method at first without going in depth on the actual game sight it is also has characteristics of, in this will help to understand part of the patterns case, examining media and its context on a that are found within the corpus. personal interpret basis. Textual analysis is a way for researchers to gather information The popularity of the game, created in 1999 by two avid Half-Life players as a mod about how other human beings make sense of (Ondrejka, 2004, p. 86), was not comparable the world (McKee, 2003). Researchers make an educated guess, by using contextual evi- to nowadays, but it was a pillar in the eSports dence, of some of the most likely interpreta- community for the previous decade. The tions that might be made of a particular text. rights for the first mod were acquired in 2000 by Valve, the developer of Half-Life, after it The underlying theory of this method, in the spread virally and was embraced by the Half- way I will use it, is mediatization that points Life community that helped shape the game to societal changes in contemporary high so- (Te, 2014). cieties and the role of media and mediated communication of these transformations Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) (Lundby, 2009). In a sense the text says was officially released in 2012 and revamped something about the culture it was made for the competitive scene of the game with mul- or by. In this thesis the text focused on tour- tiple eSports tournaments around the world due to the involvement of Valve in eSports nament broadcasts of Counter Strike (includ- and adding custom weapon finishes in 2013. ing Counter Strike 1.6 and Global Offensive) at DreamHack from 2010 to 2016. To ana- Nowadays it is one of the most viewed first- lyze and interpret my autoethnographic anal- person shooters on the internet. ysis a categorization is made in order to look at the changes of different aspects of the videos and the implications it has when looked DreamHack & Counter Strike at the mediatization. These categories are LAN (local area network) parties are not un- formed by the previously mentioned logics common in the history of computers and that form the media logic and help to under- nowadays vary in sizes from just a few stand the mediatization of the DreamHack friends spending the weekend together to Counter Strike Tournaments. thousands of people coming together in a The logics are merely a categorization to cre- physical space with their own gaming hard- ate more structure. Within the logics subjects ware. LAN parties were a way to share files as technical production, commercial stake- and to game against each other without hav- holders, social media engagement and the in- ing to worry about latency that would nor- fluence of the crowd will be reviewed. The mally be limited by the early home internet

- 105 - connections. Fast paced shooters as Unreal person tactical shooter Counter Strike, but Tournament and Quake were some of the noteworthy is that other eSports tournaments earlier games that are seen as the beginning are or were part of the DreamHack experi- of competitive gaming at LAN parties. Many ence as, for example, the LCS tournament in games at that time used to offer a LAN mode 2012 that contributed to the huge popularity that allowed it to be played on a local net- of the game and eSports for MOBA in gen- work. Nowadays the most played games in eral when looked at the concurrent viewers competitive play need an internet connection and total views. In the second year of the to keep record of the progression of a partic- DreamHack Counter Strike tournament they ular player. The speed of internet and the asked different small production companies games that need a continuous online connec- to provide a livestream on Justin.tv. The pre- tion changed the shape of LAN parties enor- decessor of Twitch. mously to the point that the motivations to at- tend a LAN are, to my experience, more about the social aspect. I was not present at Analysis Counter Strike DreamHack the earlier days of DreamHack but one could Broadcasts imagine, and by talking with several Dream- Hack veterans, that they went to a similar As research video material from DreamHack change. CS1.6 and CSGO from 2010 until 2016 are used. DreamHack, with their Summer and Winter edition as the major events, started out in a small town in Sweden with a handful of Technological Logic friends, but has since grown into an event that attracts thousands of attendees (Taylor & The technological logic is in my case the Witkowski, 2010, p. 195). 2010 marks, for most straightforward of the three logics. I some and me, the unofficial start of profes- was involved in some of the productions and sional gaming and broadcasting at this event worked with the technology for a longer pe- with the first studies and articles referring to riod of time during other productions. All ob- the players as pro-gamers (Taylor & servations stated in this section were con- Witkowski, 2010, p. 197). It was one of the firmed by different crew members that earlier editions of DreamHack that dedicated worked on the productions over the years. livestreams and some matches in the Main patterns that emerge is the profession- DreamArena Extreme that could accommo- alization of the technology used and the ca- date around a thousand spectators. Not the pabilities that were expanded over the years. first broadcast to be produced at DreamHack, The effect on the eSports culture has been but the first time it was embraced by the or- immense by just looking at the research ma- ganization and the start of professionaliza- terial I will present in this chapter. tion of this aspect on the LAN. One of these Broadcast technology in eSports, and with games was Counter Strike 1.6 what was re- the Counter Strike tournaments at Dream- garded as the best version for eSports at that Hack in particular, have made a great leap in time. Nowadays multiple events across the the past six years. The first time DreamHack world are being held and in 2015 over streamed a Counter-Strike tournament in 190,000 people participated in one of them. 2010 the setup could be described as ama- While DreamHack did not started out as an teurish compared to established broadcast eSports event, but rather as the traditional companies at that time. One of the main rea- LAN for casual gaming and file sharing, it sons for this were the costs that came with the now accommodates some of the largest tour- need of renting the necessary equipment. The naments with a significant number of online technology made it possible to use one cam- spectators. DreamHack was one of the first in era, one ingame feed and overlays were done Europe to incorporate eSports in their LAN with an early version of Wirecast that was events that started out with small tourna- recommended by Justin.tv on their website. ments for Starcraft II and Counter Strike in A program that encodes the video for stream- 2010. This thesis will only focus on the first ing and made it possible to switch between

- 106 - overlays, but was limited to the provided setup. Cameras could be connected with a overlays, that came with the software. All the SDI cable that allowed distances of around streams using this software would use similar 50 to 100 meters, depending on the resolu- textual overlays as no one figured out how to tion, the previously used HDMI cables could hack the software and implement their own only cover 10 meters without losing signal. designs. The stream was already in 720p The other big change at that time was the use High Definition, but could only be done in 30 of a custom overlay system that was directly frames per second. The 2010 final was totally fed into the composite for streaming. The different as a professional broadcasting com- software, which was changed to Xsplit, was pany facilitated the production in the only used for streaming the entire feed to DreamArena Extreme which was in another Twitch.tv without having to add overlays on part of the venue. the same computer. This allowed the stream to be more stable from a production point of The broadcast at DreamHack Summer 2011 view. DreamHack built on the Blackmagic changed a bit compared to the technology hardware by expanding the hardware to al- used at DreamHack Winter 2010 as the video low more cameras, better audio and more us- switcher was not in use anymore. Capture ability that mimic regular broadcast produc- cards and a webcam were used to get every tion nowadays. The final major change for all feed into Wirecast and cut them, together to- productions came somewhere in 2014 when tally relying on the software. In total there the whole overlay system was redesigned was one extra camera which was basically around CasparCG. Free software that can just a webcam as the computer used could send out another kind of feed to get overlays only support one extra USB input. One of the into the Blackmagic ATEM. biggest issues during this event was syncing the sound and video as the encoder would drift them apart due to the use of an external The biggest change audio mixer that did not embedded every vid- eofeed with the audio. We will not dive from a technological deeper into the technical aspect of this partic- standpoint […] ular problem, but later on these problems were solved by adding a delay on the audio came in 2012 when within Wirecast. One of the things the viewer noticed on this event was the primitive im- […] started to use plementation of tweets that were shown during the broadcast by screencapping a hashtag the Blackmagic search which was opened in a browser. Dur- ing 2011 Twitch was introduced and the win- Design ATEM ter edition made use of it, but that did not Television Studios change much as the capabilities were comparable with the functions Justin.tv had at that Besides the technological changes within the same time. The biggest change from a tech- actual production there have been some no- nological standpoint for the production crew ticeable changes in the way interaction of the DreamHack Counter Strike tourna- changed the broadcast itself. Showing the ments came in 2012 when all the bigger pro- tweet onscreen in 2011 was already briefly ductions at the event started to use the mentioned, but there is more to it with re- Blackmagic Design ATEM Television Stu- gards to Counter Strike tournaments and the dios that allowed video switching on hard- affordance the platforms expanded over the ware for a cheaper price than regular broad- years. The only way to watch the event live cast equipment. Regular switchers started at was on the platform of Twitch. Twitch 20.000 dollar in contrast the ATEM was un- changed over the years by adding more fea- der 2.000 dollars. The switcher was con- tures to the product with the main focus on trolled by a separate computer with dedicated paying members while watching the stream. software. The use of the ATEM made things Chatting was possible from the start, but in possible that were not possible with the old 2013 Twitch added the Turbo user function

- 107 - that allowed paying members of the site to The means are a mix of mimicking tradi- get access to more emoticons for the chat and tional broadcasts and embracing new tech- advertisements were reduced. While the nologies to accommodate the needs of the perks for Turbo users are accessible on all the different actors involved while keeping the channels Twitch later changed this model by costs affordable with the perceived revenue. having people to subscribe to individual We also see a direct impact on the eSports channels or to a bundle of channels and split culture as the technological changes affords the revenues. The broadcasters can give their the audience to participate on different levels own subscribers extra features. In the case of of the broadcast. DreamHack you can subscribe to all their channels for one set price, this includes a separate chatroom, less advertisement, a cus- Commercial Logic tomized badge that shows in chat and some exclusive emoticons. Subscribers can show Taking commercial logic as the next subject off their affinity with the brand DreamHack in this research some observations can be in this way. DreamHack does notice that made on how money is an important factor these users are recurrent viewers as they get on the eSports culture and how this changed a notification when any of the streams start. the look of a broadcast. Over the years organ- Being a partner, it also allows the organiza- izers invented different ways to make a profit tion to take down so called restreams easier that will help them to develop better broad- which indulge in copyright infringement by casts. Again, a pattern of professionalization using the official stream and broadcast this can be found when looked at, for example, how sponsors are influencing the content of on their own channel. This is not yet auto- a broadcast and thereby the eSports culture. mated at this point of time compared to for instance YouTube. DreamHack used to be just a LAN without The changes in Counter Strike itself had an the eSports component, but this rapidly important influence on the popularization of changed and at this moment the broadcasts the DreamHack Tournaments. Counter can be seen as the main business of the com- Strike 1.6 was a community driven game that pany. In the early days the streams were done was developed as a mod of Half-Life, but by independent and upcoming livestream when Counter Strike Global Offensive was companies which had to look for their own launched the developer Valve changed this. funding. Funding changed when DreamHack It was still possible for gamers to make their took over the production process and spon- own maps or some other modifications. The sors were sought which could reflect the con- competitive side of the game was embraced tent and the image of the events. Some of the past and present sponsors are Monster, implementing a competitive mode and a Zowie, etc. They all want to gain from the ranking system that showed players how good an individual is at the game. This com- image of eSports in general and sponsor in petitive mode made it more attractive for multiple ways different eSports organiza- players to watch tournaments and trying to tions. The way sponsors are incorporated can increase their skills to get a higher overall be compared to the way traditional sports ranking. The major update in 2012 was fol- have done it for centuries. Most of the time a lowed with the Arms Deal Update in 2013 broadcast has one or sometimes a few main that would give an enormous boost to the sponsors and a number of participating spon- popularity of the game and eSports in general sors which contribute less. In return for their (Holden, Rodenber, Kaburakis, 2017). sponsorships the companies may get airtime for commercials or special segments expo- Some patterns can be discovered when look- sure on the event itself. For the main sponsor ing at the used technology. Like most emerg- there is the possibility to get the tournament ing technology, in this case live streaming, it named after the company. Most sponsor is a combination of factors that allows a me- deals are tailor made to fit the need of the or- dium to grow in a technological sense that is ganizer and the company. It influences the heavily intertwined with commercial logic. broadcast significantly as the sponsor brands

- 108 - could be seen as a representation of eSports. maximum playtime of 180 minutes. When Sponsors are focused on a certain level pro- there is the need to play a third map it could fessionality in relation to the recognition of be as much as 270 minutes to determine the their brand. Next to the sponsor most of the winner. Another aspect that will not occur in time the developer of the game will contrib- most traditional sports broadcasts are the ute to the prize money as they see the tourna- technical difficulties that are inherently re- ment as advertisement of their game. A few lated to eSports. Most broadcasts within e- examples from personal experience under- Sports have technical issues which are line this level of professionalization that had mostly related to server or player computer an effect on the nature of the stream. One issues often delaying the broadcast. The way such example is the music played during e-Sports has to rely on making a profit are the breaks between matches. At early tourna- partnerships online video platforms offer to ments the music was selected by the producer their users. The regular way it would work is of the stream by just using common sense. that the platform pays for the amount of The only goal was to entertain the viewers of clicks on advertisements or the view count. the stream and that could be done with funny The DreamHack eSports broadcasts are inev- or catchy songs without consideration of pos- itably linked to the brand Twitch that could sible copyright infringement. Professionali- be compared to how regular television com- zation changed this and during Counter panies buy programs for their channel. Strike tournaments at DreamHack we only The need for more streamlined revenue earn- used music of the label Monstercat whom ings as described above are caused by several used gaming streams as their promotional reasons. Noticeably the costs of the produc- channel because they did not charge the user. tion has gone up when looking at the technol- Another example is how sponsors are por- ogy that also needs additional staff to work trayed and named in a stream. During the on the production. At DreamHack Winter breaks their advertisements are shown and 2016 a total of eighteen people were working their names mentioned multiple times by the directly on the Counter Strike stream while presenters this in contrast to the earlier days this started with only two people in 2010. of the tournament. Popularity of the game also required bigger What differentiates eSports broadcasts in a stages every event starting from having no monetary sense from traditional sport broad- stage at all to a stage with seating for over a casts is the way it earns money online. Tradi- thousand people. More important the profes- tional television sells time slots to advertis- sionalization of the players required the tour- ers, besides the earlier mentioned sponsor naments to make more money. Counter deals which they often also implement. The Strike teams would only exist out of five costs for these time slots are dependent on the players and maybe a manager back in the estimated number of viewers it will attract early days that would recoup their costs out during the broadcast. There are two main rea- of the prize money they won, nowadays they sons this will, for this moment, not work are part of larger companies that have their within eSports. One is the difficulty to deter- own demands and wishes. Teams noticed the mine the time it will take for teams to finish popularity of the broadcasts and started to a match. When looking at football, for exam- ask for more prize money and expenses paid. ple, we know that the match will take 90 In general, the players and the teams have no minutes with some possible overtime which monetary risk when participating at offline is calculated in with the programming by the tournaments such as DreamHack. Last year television station. In the case of eSports, the Alexander Kokhanovsky representing the time a game is finished is less accurate to pre- top ten organizations wrote a letter to the ma- dict as most formats work with a “best of” jor tournaments with their demands regard- system. For instance, Counter Strike tourna- ing several games. The teams demand when ments are commonly played in a best out of participating in offline Counter Strike tour- three or best out of five what means that, in naments that all expenses are paid for, the the case of a best out of three, the winner prize pool should be at least 75.000 US dol- could be determined within two maps with a lars and, probably the most controversial for

- 109 - offline tournaments, a team will only play a pleased with the outcome of the organizers maximum of two matches a day with a limit decisions. This is just one of the many exam- of three days in a row. This resulted in the ples that can be found within esports culture number of matches and the total broadcast as celebrity status becomes more important time, compared to earlier years, going down. for the viewers. Not only the players, but also Tournaments and DreamHack are now the people around a tournament production forced to professionalize the content to get are affected by the involvement of the public. more viewers and revenue from the sponsors A notable example is what happened at the and advertising. DreamHack Winter 2015 Counter Strike tournament. The incident happened outside Taking the commercial approach, we see the broadcast itself and took place within changes happening all over the place with a closed doors backstage. The accounts of the lot of professionalization. Not only the sheer events leading up to the incident differ and amount of money involved increases, but can be dismissed as gossip, but it all ended also the way it is handled with more care. with Richard Lewis, one of the talent work- Regulations and contracts are not only shaping on the stream, allegedly physically ating the business, but limit organizers in set- tacking one of the players backstage that re- ting up an event. For example, the cost of it sulted in a permanent ban for Lewis working will take to let a team participate in a tourna- at future DreamHack events (Thursten, ment. 2015). This was one of the most talked about topics at the event as it was unheard of, but it also spans a large discussion on different so- Culture Logic cial media forcing the organization to make a The technological logic and commercial statement of the incident. There is no relation logic are mainly about running a business with the Swedish code of conduct that was that is engaging for their viewers while mak- released this year how organizers and players ing sure there is a profit to be made. What should behave at eSports events, but it shows must not be forgotten is that the viewers have a clear need for guidelines on what is ac- a big influence on the Counter Strike tourna- ceptable on a LAN. Besides the incidents on ment. One example, that I mentioned in my the event itself the tournament is also par- personal introduction, that clearly shows the tially affected by the previous mentioned direct involvement of the community. Dur- Arms Deal Update. The popularity of the ing the quarter final of Counter-Strike Global game increased significantly by allowing Offensive DreamHack Winter 2014 tourna- players to bet their ingame items on profes- ment one of the famous teams Fnatic at that sional matches. Betting in eSports is not un- time used pixelwalking to win the third map. common anymore, but it changed how the or- The opposing team LDLC allegedly used an- ganizers set rules for participating teams in other exploit of the game to win some order to make sure the matches are played rounds, but when the tournament organizers fair. decided that a partial rematch was the most These rules can be described as the ethics appropriate way to proceed the community rules Korthagen mentioned as the profession- was outraged against Fnatic. They took their alism aspect of mediatization. Ethics rules set complaints to different social media plat- by DreamHack and other eSports organiza- forms what resulted in Fnatic forfeiting their tions differ every year as new ways of cir- spot in the tournament. While the final deci- cumventing them present themselves on dif- sion was left to the team there is no doubt that ferent levels. It can be the previously men- the not amused community played a role in tioned pixelwalking, match fixing, social be- them forfeiting, different outlets however haviour, etc. Most notable is the impact the claimed the sponsors made them do it (Ehrn- culture can, and is having more when time berg, 2014) or the team caved under the pres- passed, have on tournaments and eventually sure they got (Yiji, 2014). What we see on the production itself that should be ex- clearly here is the pressure the crowd can plored more to get a sense of the scope this have on a tournament when they are not presents itself.

- 110 - Conclusion & Discussion In the future eSports In this thesis I tried to describe the process, mediatization and the patterns, in my experi- will develop further ence, that can be found within eSports broadcasting by looking at previous productions at by providing content DreamHack offline events. The professionalization of the broadcasts has developed rap- to their fans. Differ- idly from a more amateur type of process to ent technologies, a fully streamlined organization that takes different aspects from traditional broadcasts, faster internet speed but also creates their own merits. For example, the way eSports organizations have to and the constantly make money to assure a level of professionalism and the way teams, unions, developers evolving community and sponsors present themselves in relation to the production company. Also, the rules will probably show the organizations have to implement that are some interesting in- unique to eSports and are seldom found within the traditional sports as they are inher- novations on multi- ent to digital play. On the other hand, they grab to more traditional methods to profes- ple fields. sionalize the organization and produced content as we have seen with offline spectators, Using the different media logics as a catego- sponsor deals, license fees and the used tech- rization I tried to show the major aspects nology. The above are mere examples that I within the mediatization of the DreamHack experienced of the course of seven years, but Counter-Strike tournaments as I have experi- could be several subjects of their own when enced them. In a described the matter I laid researched in depth. down the major epiphanies in my autoethnographic approach that, in my opinion, can be In the future eSports will develop further by seen as patterns of change within the profes- providing content to their fans. Different sionalization of the productions between technologies, faster internet speed and the 2009 and 2016. The impact it has on the e- constantly evolving community will proba- Sports culture and the productions cannot be bly show some interesting innovations on claimed by one category, but is something multiple fields. The professionalization also that goes hand-in-hand with each other. Keep has its downside. In the case of Counter- in mind that these observations are mere my Strike it used to be a thriving community- own and are constrained within the limits of based game embraced by the professional confidentiality and the way autoethnographic players. With the monetary incentives it research is conducted. There are many com- could lead to a less reachable concept for munities and tournament organizers that hold most people and that it will be dominated by other norms and values within their eSports a handful of companies. Time will tell if this culture that should be looked at when re- will have a negative effect on the community. searching the subculture as a whole. Some- one else could experience another event or even the same events in a different way, which could be an interesting thing to compare.

Geert Verhoeff first worked with eSports in 2009 and has being working on livestream productions ever since. Nowadays he works full-time as a Technical Operations Manager for eSports broadcasts at DreamHack. He studied Music Management at the HKU University of Arts and wrote this thesis to finish his Masters in New Media and Digital Culture at the University of Utrecht.

- 111 - References

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- 113 - From Zero to Hero, René Treurs eSports Journey

By René Treur

If you want any proof that you can do any- Life DM and Counter-strike. But most of my thing, come talk to me. I was never much of efforts went into school and football. a talker and extremely shy when I was young. When I was 21 years old however, I broke By now, I've done over 300 live productions my ankle. A lot of the year-long recovery that as either stage host or commentator, some of followed was spent playing CS online. When these with almost half a million viewers I completed the first 2 trainings with my foot- online, lots with live audiences of hundreds ball team, the ankle was badly sprained of people, sometimes thousands, and twice again, and some of the ligaments torn. Once even standing on the field of a sold-out sta- again, I was stuck playing CS at home for dium with a capacity of 54.000 people. Basi- months. cally, what I'm trying to say is. Anyone can become anything... Anyone can become Your dreams can and will come true, but not if you wait for the opportunities to come your anything... way. You're going to have to work towards them. Be proactive. My life slogan has al- When I was asked to join a team, I had no ways been; hard work beats talent, if talent clue what they meant. A world opened up to doesn't work hard. I guess it works, because me, and soon enough I was competing in some of the things I've achieved I never even online matches, and soon enough even online dreamt of doing, simply because they seemed leagues. When a friend linked me to the CPL so unrealistically out of reach. world championship live coverage, I saw NoA (International mix between America For instance, I have announced big bands, and Scandinavian players) take on Eyeballer hosted a season long TV show and even com- and SK from Sweden. I was instantly taken mentated and hosted catwalk shows by now. in by the way eSports was covered in Amer- Also, I was one of the ten Dutch torch carri- ica and at international tournaments, and as I ers for the London 2012 Olympics. And to progressed playing tournaments in the Neth- this day, together with Moon and Boxer (Bei- erlands, I saw the Dutch tournaments were jing 2008) and Marius Radu (2012) the only clearly lacking such broadcasts. four torch carriers from the world of eSports. When I had placed top 3 at some small local Most certainly not the last, of that I am sure! events, and won a small LAN in the south of How did I get there? Keep on reading. Holland, I decided to call it quits. I never really competed in gaming as a 3 years of competing, training four nights a youngster. My first games were Sonic the week, but barely anything to show for it (be- Hedgehog and Mortal Kombat on the Sega cause even the very best teams in Holland - Master System. Later I bought a PC when I which we weren't- just raked in a couple hun- was older, together with my older brother. dred euros per player each year back then). First game I played was Duke Nukem, and I loved it so much! Later on, my favorite I wanted to play sports and get fit again, go games were Half-Life, GTA and Unreal out more with friends, and chase Tournament, and of course when 56k mo- girls/women. dems appeared the occasional game of Half-

- 114 - But I never fully stopped gaming, and I never PSV and Netherlands Italy, in a sold-out Am- stopped following the eSports news sites, es- sterdam ArenA, and also with Edivisie, the pecially focusing on CS. first official FIFA league in co-operation with professional top flight football clubs Both to see what my old teammates, friends, worldwide. and opponents were up to, but also the international top teams. I still liked to see the very Both of those seasons were broadcasted live best compete. on Dutch TV. After this, hosting the Ziggo F1 season followed, as well as commentating At some point I was annoyed at the lack of season 2, and the first season of Mijndomein coverage at Dutch events, and started writing Masters with CS:GO, again live on TV. articles for Gamelux myself. From January 2019, the official Belgian TV Then I met my former sponsors Kaos at an league for FIFA will be added to that list, and event (Camiel Slingerland and Bas Bru- I have a feeling we will see a third season for inekool). They knew I was always the one Ziggo F1 and a second for CS:GO on Fox who did interviews back when I played for Sports. them, as I was team captain, but more importantly, fluent in English and never shied In between, there are several huge events - away from cameras. and of course smaller events too- which are broadcasted through the internet, such as the After talking for a bit they suggested we try past 7 editions of ESL Benelux, mostly as out broadcasting (KaosTV), with me as com- stage host, the past 4 years of GameForce mentator and interviewer/host (casting in Masters, EGO's FIFA events in Brussels, and English, to grab some international viewers PES League European finals December 2018 as well). in Liverpool. Soon enough, I had not only commentated By now, I have an average of TWO eSports live at Dutch events, but also a couple of edi- events a week, and it is only becoming more tions of DreamHack Summer. and more, as big companies start to realize Even when I was still considering this to be a the potential in eSports. hobby more than a job. In fact, as a result of my eSports commentary But I could not make time for the next event I have become a regular at the AFAS sta- they asked me, as my full-time employment dium, where Dutch top club AZ (#3 behind still took priority. Ajax and PSV last year) play their football matches. From 2017 I have been the stand-in And then DreamHack Summer 2012 came commentator for when Rob Mooij or Koen around, and they asked me again. By now, I Roozendaal (the regular duo) are not availa- was so popular in the eSports scene one of ble. I may now call myself an actual football my viewers had nominated me to be a torch commentator! bearer for the London Olympics. So if you have thought about trying your luck Unfortunately, the weekend I was supposed in a career towards eSports, there is no better to carry the torch coincided with DreamHack time than today! Summer 2012 (15-17th of June I needed to be in Sunderland/Newcastle). Nowadays, I just fully enjoy these events, without breaking a sweat or getting nervous. After having to skip two events, DreamHack I do still put pressure on myself to perform went with someone else, but the Dutch events well, because doing well in a big event will I casted at kept growing in number, and from result in several others. It's the chain reaction, somewhere around 2013 I also started doing or snowball effect if you like. The most im- events in Belgium. portant thing is to feel free of fear and pres- Somewhere during the end of 2016 and first sure, because an audience easily picks up on halve of 2017 my eSports career really ex- whether you're having fun, or whether you ploded, both with the Ziggo Ebattles for Ajax are scared shirtless. And they will respond correspondingly. If you and your colleagues

- 115 - are having fun, the audience will have fun seems gaming and eSports have finally too. I guess everyone who goes out to reach stepped into the limelight of the mainstream. fame and make a lot of money, may very well It’s easier than ever to make a career out of reach it. But whoever goes out there to bring eSports, whether you’re a player, broadcast joy and entertainment to others is going to talent, or entrepreneur. So, if eSports is your truly succeed, and will reach fame and for- passion but you doubt you have a real shot at tune as a side dish. doing it fulltime, stop stalling and start your engine. There never was a better time to start. If you do too, it’s People like to play it safe or have a plan B, which is okay. But realize that all the effort simply a matter of you put into thinking about your backup plan, could be spent becoming the best in whatever time before we stand your dream scenario is. on that big stage to- And why would I advise my own potential competitors you might ask? Simple, the bet- gether! ter my competition, the better I am forced to be. I will always try and find ways to im- After years of fighting to show my col- prove. If you do too, it's simply a matter of leagues, family, and friends that gaming isn’t time before we stand on that big stage to- just for geeks in their basements and attics, it gether!

Rene Treur, former alias liQuidmoTion, is a Dutch eSports commentator and host active at offline events all over the world. His career started out as a counter-strike player, but Rene is most known for his live coverage at CS:GO, RB6 Siege, PES, FIFA and Formula1 events and shows. His quality eSports casting caught the eye so much that for the past few years Rene has been commentating football matches for Dutch TV and radio as well. Career highlight: being nominated and selected as Dutch Olympic torch carrier for the London 2012 Olympics. Happy to speak about business opportunities, you can reach him at [email protected]

- 116 - Family Matters: Explaining Why Parental Involvement in eSports Is Changing and Why It’s Important

By Joseph Franco

While it might take a village to raise a child, of this paradigm shift is Blizzard Entertain- parents and prominent caretakers during a ment’s colorful first-person shooter titled, child's developmental years are incredibly Overwatch, and its flagship eSports league, important to their success – even when it the Overwatch League. comes to professional gaming. With the ex- “My Dad wanted to be a professional gamer plosion of gaming at the turn of the millen- when he was growing up so he is very sup- nia, competition has carved out a small, al- portive of my choice of pursuing a career in beit dedicated, niched within the gaming Overwatch.” Lee “WhoRU” Seung-Jun, a community at large. The bond between child 16-year-old professional gamer with multi- and parent can now be expressed through ple first place finishes to his name, said in an video games, just as it is with traditional interview with Esports Heaven. Lee is the sports and a myriad of other activities. How- next generation of professional gamer wait- ever, this relationship has not always had ing in the wings. Playing for Fusion Univer- smooth sailing. sity, the academy team to the Philadelphia Famed League of Legends player Chae “Pig- Fusion, he’s already been scouted since his let” Gwang-jin clashed with his family often, earlier victories in South Korea and is await- before and towards the starting point of his ing his 18th birthday constantly training in professional gaming career. Going so far as the amateur division dubbed, Overwatch to even lie to his parents that he quit gaming Contenders. and would sneak out and practice at PC Cafes. Parents are incredi- Lee “MarineKing” Jung Hoon, a former professional Starcraft 2 player, battled con- bly wary of the hard stantly with his parents. In a CNN feature and fast world of e- surrounding video game culture in South Ko- rea, Lee’s mother was shocked to find that Sports […] but, the her son wanted to spend hundreds of hours pursuing professional gaming as a career. narrative surround- “We were really, really concerned about him,” Lee’s mother said. “We asked him to ing professional stop again and again.” However, Lee refused and would continue to chase eSports. It be- players and their re- came so bad that Lee’s mother reportedly had lationships with cut the electricity to most of their apartment. Parents are incredibly wary of the hard and their parents is be- fast world of eSports, and understandably so, ginning to improve. but, the narrative surrounding professional players and their relationships with their par- Jonas “Shaz” Suovaara, a Finnish profes- ents is beginning to improve. And at the helm sional Overwatch player with the Los Ange- les Gladiators shared a story about his family

- 117 - and their relationship with gaming. He and team, British Hurricane, shed some light on his father bonded over video games when he how his family is taking his budding eSports was a child. career. “We played a lot of the same games but not “My parents were generally satisfied with me really together, he wasn't really into PVP choosing this path as soon as they saw me games and the other games were usually sin- start to earn money from it, but when I started gle player. Having the same hobby did bring travelling to compete abroad my Mum espe- us closer I guess,” Souvaara said. “My Mom cially was shocked, she still tells everyone was never that supportive of gaming I think about it now,” Bosworth said. “My family before Overwatch, but before my Dad did watched every single one of my games on like jokingly? He mentioned that maybe I stage and were messaging me before and af- should go pro. My Dad was very supportive ter the games, so I’d say overall they’ve when I started playing Overwatch at an ama- taken to it fairly well!” teur level trying to go pro and now he also While Anthony “Fire” King took a more plays Overwatch and watches our matches.” measured approach revealing his eSports ca- And Suovaara is not the only Finnish player reer to his parents, they as guardians set him affected by his family's involvement in gam- up for success early on in life. ing. Standing beside him is Benjamin “I definitely loved playing sports as a child, “BigGoose” Isohanni, another member of the my most fond moment was when before a Los Angeles Gladiators, he not had only his game of flag football my Mom offered me parents on board with gaming -- but his older five dollars for each flag I got on defense,” brothers as well. King said. “This motivated me to the point “I think my brothers were the reason why I where I ended the game with nine flags and a got into gaming so much. It was part of our handshake from the opposing coach before daily lives for a really long time and we the game had even ended.” would occasionally play together when we An incredibly bright student, King dropped had the chance,” Isohanni said. “We usually out of his school’s STEM (science, technol- had to switch like 30 minutes to 60 minutes ogy, engineering, and mathematics) program turns rotating between the three of us on one before graduation to take a stab at become a computer. I think playing with my brothers professional gamer. and against my brothers’ kind of drove me want to be better than them in games like De- “I worked at places like USPS as a holiday fend of the Ancients and Heroes of Newerth mail handler and later at Michaels as a re- in particular.” plenishment associate back when I was playing for Hammers eSports in late November “I don't think I ever told my parents that I 2016 and a Ronin mixup squad respectively,” wanted to pursue eSports career,” Isohanni King said. “So, I had kept my gaming ven- said. “It's just something I really thought tures hidden from my mom until I signed would be really cool to be able to compete at with EnVision. Initially, the overall reaction the highest level while making a living out of to me pursuing a career in eSports was cau- it. My parents were happy of course and sur- tious, until recently competing at [Over- prised and maybe a little worried since they watch] Contenders Season 1 and APAC.” don't know much about video games or e- Sports in general. I believe my brothers were Now, King plays for the Dallas Fuel’s acad- the usual cool, happy with it and that might emy team, Team Envy, and is on the cusp of have got them into following some of my making it to the big leagues. matches on the Overwatch League.” However, for every anecdote to show that pa- Parental involvement and acceptance in rental involvement is improving, there are video games has seemingly increased on a still some instances where parents and their global scale within the last few years. Cam- respective children battle over the reluctance eron “Fusions” Bosworth, an amateur player to accept professional gaming as a potential signed with the London Spitfire’s academy career path. For instance, Kim Joon-Hyuk, a

- 118 - member of the Overwatch League franchise, parents’ behalf and the enhanced achieve- the Seoul Dynasty, spoke in an interview that ment on the children's’ behalf. And I will ad- his mother was incredibly reluctant in accept- mit, this research does begin to plateau to- ing his gaming pursuits. wards the upper teenage years, but is it too much to assume that regardless of age, hav- “My mom cut off my mouse and keyboard ing your parents engagement and involve- cables about three times when I was in high ment helps to bolster the things we were school,” Hyuk said in an interview with HTC taught at a young age? Esports. “She even shut down the house electricity to stop me. I lost interest during my While these are loose ties between parental days in [my] university dorm, but when I involvement in academics and eSports, the ranked first in the world during Season 1. My narrative surrounding the latter is changing. brother spoke to my mother to convince her With the benefits and the sustainable mini- to let me try becoming a pro gamer. Since mum salary that the Overwatch League of- then, my mother has fully supported me.” fers and other eSports titles like FortNite and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds beginning That reluctant acceptance is paramount in to take flight. Coupled that with the increas- mitigating the stress put onto a budding ing acceptance of video games and – by player, but how much does having a strong proxy – eSports, competitive gaming is sit- presence from one's parents help someone ting at the forefront of a culture change. A succeed? great example of this shift comes in just six Research published by the Review of Educa- short years where eSports is being considered tional Research (Pomerantz, Moorman, Lit- for the 2024 Paris Summer Olympic Games. wack, 2007) shows that parental involvement This also excludes the fact that competitive in academics, beginning at a young age, games like League of Legends will become a heightens their achievement regardless of so- medal event at a similar stage in the 2022 cioeconomic and other outward forces. Two Asian Games held in Hangzhou, China. distinct models have been proposed; the skill Reinforcing ideal and lessons we are taught development model and the motivational de- at a young age are paramount and having the velopment model. Parents provide pivotal trust from your parents or guardians allows skill related and cognitive resources to young aspiring players to invest all of their re- children, skills such as planning, monitoring sources into improvement. With the growth information, and governing the learning proof eSports during the last eight years, more cess. Almost more importantly, parents in- and more young adults are viewing competi- volvement teaches children motivational re- tive video games and a small fraction of them sources, like fostering a positive perception will pursue them as a career and it’s critically of schooling and a sense of control over their important that the parents of said young performance while at school. adults are stood at their side. The safety and These skills sets not only apply to academics, security that large investors and game devel- but they are pivotal in many of the high-pres- opers are adding to their games also assists in sure problem solving environments that e- creating a sustainable environment that par- Sports houses. A myriad of research now ents can trust. This flourishing coalition be- links parent’s involvement in their children's tween the parent and the child is leading the schooling directly to their achievement charge to push eSports farther into the main- (Pomerantz, Moorman, Litwack, 2007). This stream. This widens the reach of eSports as a reveals a direct association between in- healthy outlet for competition and will help creased academic-based involvement on the to remove any stigmas attached to it.

Joseph “Volamel” Franco has followed eSports since the MLGs of 2006. He started out primarily following Starcraft 2, Halo 3, and Super Smash Bros. Melee. He has transitioned from viewer to journalist and writes freelance primarily about Overwatch and League of Legends. If you would like to know more or follow his thoughts on eSports, you can follow him at @Volamel.

- 119 - References

BBC. (2018). E-sports to Become A Medal Event League. Retrieved from https://es- in 2022 Asian Games., British Broadcasting ports.htc.com/articles/taking-flight- Corporation, Retrieved from biggoose. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology- Franco, J. (2018). Zunba's History Before the 39629099. Dynasty: After A Season of Uncertainty, Franco, J. (2018). Behind the Shield: Los Angeles The Soul of Seoul Shares His Origin Story. Gladiator’s Shaz: Shaz’s Beginnings in Retrieved from esports.htc.com/arti- Gaming, Esports, And Self Improvement. cles/dynasty-zunba. Retrieved from https://esports.htc.com/arti- Paris 2024 Olympics: Esports ‘In Talks’ to Be In- cles/shaz-crazy-road. cluded as Demonstration Sport. 2018, Re- Franco, J. (2018). Disrupting the Natural Order: A trieved from Moment with Fusion University’s WhoRU. https://www.bbc.com/sport/olym- Esports Heaven. Retrieved from pics/43893891. https://www.esportsheaven.com/fea- Pomerantz, E. M., et al. (2007). The How, Whom, tures/disrupting-the-natural-order-a-mo- and Why of Parents’ Involvement in Chil- ment-with-fusion-universitys-whoru. dren's Academic Lives: More Is Not Always Franco, J. (2018). Immersion: An Interview with Better. Review of Educational Research, Anthony ‘Fire’ King. Retrieved from, 77(3), 373–410. https://www.esportsheaven.com/fea- Sutter, J. D. (2011). Gaming Reality. Retrieved tures/immersion-an-interview-with-an- from edition.cnn.com/interac- thony-fire-king/ tive/2012/08/tech/gaming.series/ko- Franco, J. (2018). Taking Flight: Biggoose Soars rea.html?hpt=hp_c1#cnn_gmsrsstoryntro. Over the Competition: The Gladiators Sup- port Recalls His Journey to The Overwatch

- 120 - From Casual to Professional: How Brazilians Achieved eSports Success in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

By Rick M. Menasce

The goal for this thesis is to explore how ground on the importance that internet cafes Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) (also known as LAN houses) had in the wild eSports teams from Brazil accomplished the growth of the game, and how they ignited a challenging task of becoming world champi- generation interested in competing against ons, creating elite players despite coming each other. from a country that lacks support compared Finally, this work dives deep into how play- to United States and Europe (see Table 1). In ers define being professional Counter-Strike order to do so, this study is going to be based players, their motivations, and the challenges on two research questions: that come before and after deciding to turn 1) What is involved in becoming a profes- their leisure activity into work and the conse- sional CS:GO player? quences of that transition. The purpose for the first research question is to give readers The first question should address the chal- the big picture about this emerging world. lenges and meanings of becoming a professional CS:GO player. It is important to notice 2) How are Brazilian eSports CS:GO play- the word “involved,” a vague word chosen on ers excelling in an industry that lacks ex- purpose to denote different aspects of becom- trinsic incentives? ing a professional player. Those aspects were Complementary to the first research ques- explored as the researcher delved deep into tion, the second question tries to explore in the data, resulting in different meanings, more depth the problems Brazilian teams and which include the awareness of CS:GO players face in order to pursue their goals. It player as a profession, the definitions of pro- utilizes archival research on the Brazilian fessionalism in eSports, player motivations, scene from the time people started playing and the challenges of constant hard work and the game until today, tackling information on practice. specific situations such as tournaments, or- To better understand those aspects, this study ganizations, laws against Counter-Strike and looks at the history and popularity of Coun- the infrastructure for players to practice. The ter-Strike, going back to Half-Life, the game table below shows some of the disparities in from which Counter-Strike was modded, re- incentives based by Brazilian Counter-Strike leased in 1999. Also, this thesis touches eSports players.

- 121 - Extrinsic Incentives Brazil North America and Europe Number of Tournaments per Year 20-50 60-100 Average Prize Pool per Tournament 500$ - 2,000$ $20,000 - $100,000 Tournament Payment Conditions Usually delay payment or end up not Payment always on time, full amount. paying what was promised. Contract Between Organizations and Organizations do not benefit the player, Real contracts that value the player as a Players with abusive clauses, or no contract at professional. all. Average Player Salaries (excluding Top Teams: $400 - $600/mo Top Teams: $10,000 - $25,000/mo sponsorships, prizes, donations) Training Infrastructure Small places with a lack of training and Big places with enough space for players living spaces. to feel comfortable playing and living. Table 1. Extrinsic Incentives table comparison between Brazil and North America/Europe CS:GO scene The choice of the Brazilian scene for this game as an eSport in Brazil and everything study is part of the author’s identity as well that might contribute to making the profes- as the curiosity behind great personalities sional scene in the country more mature. that are proud to represent their country by This study is based mainly on online data col- becoming the best players in the world, and lection and archival research, and under- at the same time, not having enough extrinsic stands it as a limitation. The goal of this ap- incentives. The intrinsic value is what drives proach is to trace back the path from casual players forward, and has a big role in Brazil- to professional and to be able to understand ians’ success. On the other hand, the lack of how it is affected by the lack of extrinsic in- extrinsic values such as monetary support, centives. Nonetheless, both research ques- infrastructure, professionalization and infra- tions should complement each other in un- structure serves as an active disincentive to derstanding the big picture that is the profes- push players away. sional scene of CS:GO in Brazil. This work is unique in gathering infor- Methodology mation from the The Researchers Role The role of the researcher in qualitative re- Counter-Strike Bra- search yields identification of personal values, assumptions and biases that are key to zilian scene, sharing understanding the outcomes of the study (Creswell, 2014). The investigator’s contri- its hidden culture butions are a big part of qualitative research, not only to outsiders which has a more positive and useful result than a detrimental one (Creswell, 2014). The within the country, topic of this research is very special to me as a researcher for many reasons. The first rea- but with the whole son is my experience in the beginning of the year 2000, where I had contact for the first Counter-Strike com- time with Counter-Strike, at the same time this phenomenon started. Most of what I am munity worldwide studying here I experienced myself, and un- Finally, this thesis talks about the release of derstanding that is a large part of who I am. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the reno- Secondly, by being Brazilian myself and liv- vated game made for competition, and how it ing outside the country, I perceived this as an is reinvigorating the game. Not only that, opportunity to show other people the culture from sport stars’ investments, to the powerful of Counter-Strike surrounding Brazil. The influence of social media and streaming plat- fact that most information is found in Portu- forms, chapter six explores the future of the guese, my native language, made it easier for

- 122 - me to work with data, but at the same time, a given their attention to a certain subject re- challenge for me to transfer all that infor- gardless of the audience (Creswell, 2014), as mation to English, so a broader audience can they had no obligations to share that infor- have access to a big part of Brazil’s Counter- mation. The research will benefit especially Strike culture. from numerous articles in distinct news websites, social media, blogs and audiovisual The third reason is due to a personal interest materials such as YouTube videos. in eSports, competition and Counter-Strike. As I mentioned before, the game was a big Other advantages of doing an online data col- part of my life, mostly because I am a very lection is that all information provided is competitive person, and it is still a dream for publicly accessible and available with no re- me to be part of the competitive scene, so strictions for research. It is an unobtrusive studying this subject in depth is a step to- method to gather information. On the other wards understanding how others have hand, it requires the researcher to seek out the achieved what I always dreamed of myself. information; some materials might be incom- Hopefully, this study gives me more tools plete or lack accuracy (Creswell, 2014). To that I can work with in achieving profession- avoid this last point, searching for other alism in Counter-Strike. And if not, just by sources that share the same information is being close to what interests me is a pleasure imperative. A number of studies have tackled in itself. information on the advantages of computer- mediated communication data collection as a Furthermore, a fourth reason should be valid qualitative methodology (see Hine, added, as it is important from a research point 2000; Mann & Stewart, 2000; Bell, 2001). of view. A number of studies have been done on the new phenomenon of eSports, but few Because of the numerous sources, a focus to studies actually take into consideration a spe- specific channels worked as a funnel to major cific culture. It is mostly viewed as a global information. The first step in searching for phenomenon that started predominantly in information was done by following a select South Korea, with a few other exceptions number of specific Brazilian players in their (Taylor, 2012), not considering that each in- social networks and search engines. Those dividual culture has different contributions. are the members of Schroet Kommando For this reason, this work is unique in gath- (which means Shrapnel Command, known as ering information from the Counter-Strike SK Gaming), more specific Gabriel “FalleN” Brazilian scene, sharing its hidden culture Toledo, Marcelo “coldzera” David, Fer- not only to outsiders within the country, but nando “fer” Alvarenga, Epitácio “Taco” de with the whole Counter-Strike community Melo, Lincoln “fnx” Lau and João “felps” worldwide. Vasconcellos. These players are considered among the most influential from Brazil, as

they are part of the top 3 best teams in the Data Collection world, with 4 players ranked between the 20 best players (2016) according to HLTV.org, All the qualitative research done in this study and so information is abundant. is through the collection of data from blogs, social media and eSports reporting sources. In addition to following the careers through According to Mann and Stewart (2000), one online resources of individual players, a sec- of the advantages of using computer-medi- ond and important source is the Gamers Club ated communication to conduct research is and Games Academy portal, an eSports plat- the wide geographical access it gives. By be- form that shares news about eSports, espe- ing geographically distant, the internet al- cially from Brazil. They also have a blog, lows access to information from different which contain interviews and discussion cultures and languages, consequently en- about many different subjects pertaining to couraging cross-cultural comparisons of is- the Brazilian scene. These sources provide sues (Coomber, 1997). More important, this sufficient data to gain an understanding of type of data represents participants that have the current state of eSports in Brazil and the

- 123 - career trajectories of professional Brazilian can find interest in the subject. For this rea- Counter-Strike players. son, the way this thesis was structured is using information on every chapter from the All the data collected was catalogued into a sources, selected to explain the claims from spreadsheet specifying the URL of the the research questions, with a little explana- source, a small explanation of what the sub- tion of its importance. ject is, and a coding category assigned based on the researcher’s initial understanding of The research also makes use of two case the content (see Appendix). From the initial studies, intentionally added to give a palpa- data gathering, more categories emerged that ble example of how every aspect discussed in drove the researcher to other sources. Only previous chapters was experienced by play- by exhausting the search within each cate- ers. Furthermore, the case studies give in- gory did the researcher realize he reached a sights for the future of the Counter-Strike point where he was satisfied with the amount scene, which are discussed in the last chapter. of content. The way I decided to organize the report was to help readers have a better grasp of the scene in general, including some very im- Data Analysis portant concepts such as Counter-Strike and This study uses Glaser and Strauss (1967) eSports. For that reason, all data collected Grounded Theory as the research analysis was organized not only in categories, but also method. It is a method that allows researchers in a certain order to create an overall story arc to move from data to theory, rather than ana- that will guide the reader throughout the en- lyzing based on a preexisting theory, there- tire paper. The first two chapters work as fore creating opportunities for new theories background information with extra content to emerge. It takes into consideration the ap- that is better understood by being part of the plication of codes very early in the process, same chapter. which is then iteratively adjusted over the Information in every chapter is connected to course of the project to generate a theory its previous chapters, as it gives valuable (Boellstorff, Nardi, Pearce, & Taylor, 2012). content that can facilitate the reading of fur- As a way to analyze data, each source was ther chapters. I decided to use this technique catalogued with a small description of its as the way to analyze and make sense of all content and a category that fits that descrip- the data collected, which will be then dis- tion. This first categorization is supposed to cussed at the end of this paper in the conclu- be broad, and codes or even other categories sions section, where I elaborated on the should emerge from the content itself. A few emergent theory that could answer both re- examples of categories and codes I have cre- search questions. ated includes professional player [practice; dedication; life choices; image; obstacles], popularization [Counter-Strike; eSports; The Counter-Strike Fever platforms; small tournaments], professional What is Counter-Strike scene [big tournaments; broadcasting; reper- cussion; obstacles], to name a few. These Counter-Strike is a first-person shooter mul- codes and categories seek to identify and de- tiplayer game that started as a modification scribe patterns and themes from the writer’s (mod) of the original game Half-Life devel- perspective, to finally be explained by the re- oped by Valve. The mod was created by searcher (Agar, 1980). Minh “Gooseman” Le and Jess Cliffe in 1999 and was acquired by Valve in 2000 when The categories were created as a deductive they started to work on different installments process. Because the intention of this work is of the game, until its major update known as to give a general overview of the Brazilian Counter-Strike 1.6, released in 2003. Many Counter-Strike scene, no further coding cy- other versions of the game were released cle was deployed. The goal is to provide the with no such success, until Valve realized reader with enough information that (s)he how popular electronic sports (eSports) had

- 124 - become to create the new Counter-Strike we make use of better computers equipped for have today, completely shaped for competi- gaming (Lufkin, 2015). Understanding the tion, known as Counter-Strike: Global Of- importance of games for its citizens, the Ko- fensive (CS:GO). rean government started to support the game industry and its initiatives (Taylor, 2012), The rules in Counter-Strike are simple: the which ended up strengthening the growth and players are divided into two teams of five. development of eSports worldwide (Huhh, They can be either Terrorists or Counter-Ter- 2008). rorists. The first one’s objective is to plant the bomb and have it explode; and the second LAN houses in Brazil started to appear in being to prevent the bomb from being 1998 and became massive in the year 2000, planted and/or exploding. Also, the game where people used to go play games such as consists of rounds; after a total of 15 rounds, StarCraft and Counter-Strike (NVIDIA Bra- players need to switch teams (from Terrorist sil, 2016a). Those spaces used to attract to Counter-Terrorist and vice-versa), then the young people from the middle classes espe- team that first achieves 16 rounds is the win- cially because there was no quality internet ner. If the game ties in 15 rounds, it goes to available at home. With the development of overtime, which consists of a best of 6 higher quality internet for cheaper prices, this rounds, 3 on each side, having the team that audience started to abandon the LAN houses, gets to 4 rounds first win. If the game ties which had to adapt to a new audience com- again, the same rule applies until a winner is posed of the lower classes who did not have decided. access to this technology. These places were responsible for creating the first Counter- The creation of Counter-Strike was timed Strike professionals that are still acting today perfectly with the rise of internet cafes, and (NVIDIA Brasil, 2016c). because of its multiplayer nature, required a certain number of players to be played; this My personal story about this subject is prob- prompted internet cafes users to invite their ably similar to most other players at the time. friends over to try out the game. That was the A good friend of mine invited me to go play beginning of how Counter-Strike would be- this game called Counter-Strike in a LAN come widely popular, influencing a genera- house in São Paulo when I was 9 years old. tion of players to come. After that point, I was going there almost every day to play, and as I was improving,

people would invite me to play on their Popularization of Counter-Strike: teams. Just as it happened to me, players Internet Cafes started to organize a number of teams, and it was natural that tournaments would start to The concept of internet cafes, or LAN pop up everywhere. houses, started as regular coffee shops to check e-mails and work related subjects. At the time, the Internet was still described as an Players Want to Compete: “electronic bulletin board.” It was only in Self-Organized Tournaments 1991 that Wayne Gregori would found SF Net, a network that connected computers in It was not by accident that players started to different coffee houses where people could organize their own teams. The game itself is post short stories and chat with each other based on team play, and by going to the same (Lufkin, 2015). From there, internet cafes LAN houses and playing with the same peo- would emerge with different purposes, from ple, naturally, teams began to appear. From simple internet use, to be a place where peo- there, players decided to organize small tour- ple gathered to play games together. naments inside the LAN houses with small prizes, usually a small amount of money or In South Korea, a very special phenomenon other prizes like mice or headsets (NVIDIA happened in 1998, an era called “PC Bangs.” Brasil, 2016a). Understanding this phenome- After the release of the game StarCraft, peo- non, tournaments started to pop up between ple started to migrate to internet cafes to

- 125 - LAN houses, organically developing Coun- score would be only available at one specific ter-Strike as an eSport. machine, and to be able to actually compete to be the best in the world, players would It is worth pointing out that at the time, Coun- have to take a picture of the score notation ter-Strike had no spectator capabilities be- and post it somewhere else, where other peo- sides people behind players watching them ple could also share their scores. Some com- playing. Sometimes, LAN houses would get panies, such as Twin Galaxies, were one of completely full of people going there just to the first ones to seek, organize and distribute watch, which demonstrated how interested information about the best gamers (Taylor, people were in the game. If it was not for 2012). those passionate players, who would receive nothing in return to organize and play in tour- This way of comparing scores survived for naments, Counter-Strike would never be years, even with the rise of home systems. considered an eSport (NVIDIA Brasil, The difference is that players now can play 2016a). side-by-side, which gave space for in person tournaments with players playing each other I remember being invited to play for a LAN at the same time in the same place. With the house team in São Paulo. The problem was development of PC gaming and first person that I was living in a different city, and was shooters (FPS) games like Doom and Quake, just visiting my father. I accepted and said large communities of players started to that I could only play while I was there, and emerge, and they were responsible for the therefore I was not going to be part of the of- growth of a larger scene (Wagner, 2006). It ficial team. We played some games against would later create opportunities for major other LAN houses (and I remember my fa- tournament organizations to rise, being the ther being worried that I had to walk to a dif- Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) and ferent location and he thought it was danger- World Cyber Games (WCG) the best exam- ous). The feeling of being part of that was re- ples of how big those events can be. ally good, as people were acknowledging my skills as a player and wanted me there to play Today, with the advent of social networking, for them. high-speed Internet, streaming platforms such as Twitch and YouTube Gaming, and,

especially, spectator mode, eSports have the The Rise of eSports opportunity to become mainstream. More people have access to everything that is go- Short History on eSports ing on, which attracts even more spectators It is not the intention of this study to dive and fans. Not only that, game companies are deep into how eSports grew to be what it is shaping their games for competition, and a today, but to understand how it began and massive number of new games are emerging why is important to try and extract the very labelled as eSport focused. unique spark that initiated everything: the As in sports, eSports have different types of love for the game. games, known as genres, which are divided eSports is a term that emerged in the past few into many major categories. Four of them are years and is getting stronger as time goes by. responsible for more than 80% of all genres But competition in electronic games is as old (Olsen, 2015), starting with fighting games as the first computers. In 1972, “a number of such as Mortal Kombat, followed by real computer scientists (some of the best in the time strategy (RTS) games, the ones that business) gathered around the infamous gave ground to what eSports are today, with PDP-10 computer for a playful, and appar- Starcraft being its benchmark. Then, as cited ently raucous, evening of Spacewar” (Taylor, earlier, comes FPS games and finally the 2012). multiplayer online battle arenas (MOBAs), which are today’s most known competitive After that, the arcade opened space for play- games out there, with titles like League of ers to compete against each other through Legends and DOTA 2 having tournaments high scores. The problem though is that the

- 126 - with prize pools that exceed millions of dol- making it reach the visibility it needed by lars (PBSoffbook, 2013). constantly improving the game. As previously shown in this paper, two teams composed of five players compete against Defining Electronic Sports each other in rounds of 1:45 minute, having With the advent of the term eSports, people the team that wins a given number of rounds were divided about whether it was consid- to be the winner. The presence of a set of ered as a regular sport. It is not rare to see an rules and regulations is what shaped the per- eSports article on a sports website followed fect scenario for the game to emerge. As a by hate comments on how this should not be result, “teams are faced with an extremely treated as a sport. According to sport scientist well defined virtual environment in which Claus Tiedeman (quoted in Wagner, 2006), the only way of winning a match is to find the definition of sports is the following: and execute strategies that outperform the strategies of the opposing team” (Wagner, “’Sport’ is a cultural field of activity in which 2006). human beings voluntarily go into a relation to other people with the conscious intention This chapter explained the definitions of eS- to develop their abilities and accomplish- ports and how Counter-Strike grew up to be ments - particularly in the area of skilled mo- part of it. These concepts are important in un- tion - and to compare themselves with these derstanding how the scene have developed other people according to rules put self or over the years and for readers to have a better adopted without damaging them or them- grasp of the industry. In the next chapter, this selves deliberately.” thesis is going to dive deeper into the eSports Brazilian Counter-Strike professional scene By being broad, his definition can be applied as a way to compare it with other places such to eSports, noting that, in this particular case, as North America and Europe. It will demon- eSports have a different set of skilled mo- strate in more detail not only the lack of ex- tions that is focused particularly into small trinsic incentive, but also how the incentives movements based on hand-eye coordination ended up becoming disincentives for Brazil- and motor dexterity. Another aspect worth ian players. noting is that in his definition, Tiedeman does not talk about competition, which is intrinsic to eSports. Moreover, there is the fact The Brazilian Counter-Strike Scene that it is played in virtual environments. For the sake of this study, a simpler definition is Tournaments that eSports is a competitive way of playing Worldwide, the leading Counter-Strike computer [or any digital medium] games leagues include Electronic Sports League within a professional setting (Wagner, 2006). (ESL), DreamHack, Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) and ELEAGUE. These tournaments are extremely well organized, with hundreds Counter-Strike as an eSport of teams trying to qualify to fight for the One of the aspects that makes Counter-Strike grand prize. They all hold their qualifiers a good candidate to be an eSports game is played in both Europe and North America, how it was received by the players and espe- with a few others including Brazil in the list. cially by Half-Life developer Valve. The set- As one of the few exceptions, the ESL Pro ting in Counter-Strike allows consistent play- League Season 4 Finals were played in Bra- ers to improve their skills over time. After zil, which attracted a very good number of reaching a certain threshold, players would viewers to eSports for the country. The event start to organize themselves into teams, and was a success because it had a good audi- the challenge would not only be about their ence, support from the fans, and coverage solo skills, but overcoming another team’s from giant TV providers. strategies and tactics. By being aware of the opportunity, Valve acquired Counter-Strike,

- 127 - Another great tournament that was held in players. Some companies do not have a con- Brazil were the qualifiers for the Starladder, tract and everything is combined only by a tournament where the top 16 teams in the word of mouth. world get together to fight for a total of This lack of professionalism causes lineups $300,000 in prizes, which happened in São to change frequently, and in Counter-Strike Paulo. Some of the aspiring teams in Brazil especially, this is detrimental to team perfor- had the opportunity to play with a structure mance. Nonetheless, companies with signed that only the best teams in the world have the contracts abuse players by having it only chance to experience. Not only that, but also benefit themselves by charging a huge all teams qualified to play got all their ex- amount of money for clause termination and penses paid by the event. Additionally, the by paying them only the minimum wage organizers updated all the computers to allow (Teixeira & Tibúrcio, 2017). maximum performance by the players (Pe- rez, 2017). Also important to state, most teams do not get to receive money for travel expenses, and The Starladder shows how international or- this is something that happens frequently. ganizations are serious when creating these Strong teams can win qualifiers to tourna- events, something that most Brazilian tour- ments outside the country, but they do not naments lack, and that is due to the fact that have the money to pay for all the expenses (as Table 1 demonstrates): 1) the number of (tickets, accommodations, food) and for that meaningful events is still low compared to reason, they simply lose a lifetime oppor- other places. Brazil has no more than 2 or 3 tunity. Few teams have been lucky enough to tournaments a year with a prize good enough, raise the money themselves, which is the case or visibility enough that to make it worth of Made in Brazil (MIBR) and KaBuM playing it; 2) many players have condemned (more details later in this thesis). tournament organizations for delaying the payments or not paying them at all. Also, To fill in this gap, ex-players are creating some tournaments have scheduled the prize their own organizations with the player in to be sent a year after the event (Teixeira & mind. Because sponsorships are hard when Tibúrcio, 2017). starting a company, these organizations are working their players’ image online, and use New tournaments are emerging, such as the this as a business plan. Players are able to add ones by Gamers Club (more on Gamers Club an income from streaming platforms where in chapter 6), that are more frequent and pays people can subscribe or donate directly to the what is promised on time. They still lack player, and also by creating their own brand good compensation, but it is something that and selling personalized products. A percent- will hopefully increase as the scene gets age of the sales goes to the players. This way more attention and investments. Many barri- both the organization and the players are ers still exist; organizations and organizers compensated (Perez, 2017). need to work together to demonstrate that eS- port is worth the investment. Nonetheless, In the beginning of 2017 the Associação Bra- they should have the player as the center of sileira de Clubes de eSports (ABCDE, which their business, as they are the responsible for stands for Brazilian Association for eSports creating a good show that will attract every- Teams) was created with the hope that it thing else that is involved. could help the scene to evolve. Players have been divided over it because of some troubles

with the ABCDE policy of participation, Counter-Strike as a Profession which states that for the ABCDE organization to be part of a tournament, it is necessary Outside Brazil, in particular Europe and to have a prize pool of R$ 10,000.00 (approx- North America, players have contracts in imately $3.000,00), and distribute at least R$ which they receive salaries, equipment and 24,000.00 (approximately $8.000,00) be- conditions to play that secure them as profes- tween participants. Besides, organizations sionals. What Brazil is missing is this con- should add 15% more for tax costs and have nection between eSports companies and

- 128 - a payment date not exceeding 60 days after South America’s history. His dedication to the last tournament match (Teixeira & Tibúr- the team was such that Paulo “pvell” Velloso cio, 2017). As they recently entered the considered the team as being “Cogu” + 4. scene, many adaptations will be needed, and Not only Cogu, but Lincoln “fnx” Lau was having an association behind eSports might also part of the lineup that won the ESWC be a good start towards the professionaliza- 2006, a player who later in 2016 would win tion of the game. two major tournaments in a row (more about it in the next chapter). Both players are still To better understand the claims made previ- acting in the Counter-Strike scene today. ously on this chapter, the next session make use of a case study from the Brazilian team MIBR proved that passion could take you an- MIBR. They were responsible for inspiring a ywhere. In a country that had few invest- generation of players to come, and to show ments in Counter-Strike, it was lucky that the potential of Brazilian players to the whole “pvell” had the will and money to invest in world, despite the adversities and lack of ex- the players; otherwise, they would never trinsic incentives from within. have reached the level they had. Sadly, for the fans, after many years, in 2012 they an-

nounced its closure. In total, playing for 9 Case Study: MIBR is World Champion years (from 2003 to 2012), the team’s total earning was no more than $250,000.00 The Counter-Strike team MIBR was created (MIBR, 2016b), which is low compared to in 2003 after ARENA team wins a qualifier today’s standards (Bueno, 2012; “CS:GO”: that would give them a spot to play in the Lendária, 2016; Tugh, 2012), where SK CPL Dallas 2002. The team had no money to Gaming had a total of $934,508.33 only in travel to the United States at the time, until 2016 (SK Gaming, 2017). one of the players, Rafael “pred” Velloso asked his father Paulo “pvell” Velloso, a After 4 years without MIBR, they announced great entrepreneur, to sponsor the trip their return, but on April 21th of 2016, they (Bueno, 2012). After that, Paulo gained inter- released a note on their Facebook page est in Counter-Strike and decided to keep in- (MIBR, 2016a) saying that many sponsor- vesting in the team, which now is called ships would not formalize the terms and that MIBR, which is the abbreviation for Made in their [MIBR] goal is to treat players as they Brazil. deserve to be treated. Nonetheless, they also talked about the weak scene the country finds MIBR would represent Brazil and boost the itself with even years after they have dis- scene for years to come. They were responsi- banded. This means that is still unknown the ble for numerous tournament wins, including fact that MIBR is coming back, or will be for- the ESWC 2006, the first big world tourna- ever a memory in the Brazilian Counter- ment won by a Brazilian team. From there, Strike scene. every aspiring player would like to be part of the team, as it was not only a group of people playing Counter-Strike, it was a whole coun- No More Counter-Strike try represented by this single team. The team was responsible for the growth of eSports in In addition to the lack of extrinsic incentives Brazil, not only because they leveled up the described above, such as few tournaments standards, but also because they had an and low salaries, the Brazilian competitive online portal that would feed players with in- Counter-Strike scene has also had to content formation that no other platform had at the with some overwhelming disincentives. time. Also, they used to sponsor a number of Back in October of 2007, Brazilian officials homemade tournaments (Bueno, 2012; banned from sale the games Counter-Strike “CS:GO:” Lendária, 2016; Tugh, 2012). and EverQuest, stating that they harmed consumer health. In addition, the Brazilian Fed- Additionally, MIBR launched a star named eral court specified that both games “encour- Raphael “Cogu” Camargo, chosen by the Eu- aged ‘the subversion of public order’ and are ropean portal HLTV.org as the best player in an ‘attack against the democratic state’”

- 129 - (Modine, 2008). This decision came into ef- the dream of living out of Counter-Strike. fect in the beginning of 2008, and while for- That is what the next chapter is all about, ac- bidding the sale, the game could still be knowledging the profession, defining it and played. understanding how to become a professional Counter-Strike player. The banning of Counter-Strike in Brazil was spurred by the creation of a fan-made level depicting the city of Rio de Janeiro as a fa- Making a Living Out of Counter-Strike vela, or informal urban housing characterized by its precarious homes and ways of liv- How to Define an eSports Professional ing. In this level, created not by the company There is no organization to regulate the pro- but by players, terrorists had kidnapped officials, and the police force had to infiltrate to fession of a Counter-Strike player, and defin- try and rescue them. The distributor at the ing a professional can be tricky. Nor is there time, Electronic Arts Brazil pointed out that a formal threshold or certificate that people the level was not part of the original game surpass that tells them that they are now pro- (Modine, 2008; “Justiça proíbe games,” fessionals. However, players do have a moment in their lives when they can tell they 2008; Bishop, 2008). have finally achieved professionalism in eS- The execution of this decision contributed to ports. the decline of Counter-Strike in Brazil, which lasted from 2008 to 2012. The number According to Marcelo “Coldzera” David, he of tournaments decreased, LAN houses were knew he was serious about the game when he not a thing anymore, and it seemed that the was hired by a team that would pay for all his costs, and also give a monthly paycheck game would see its end. Happily, in 2012 (Coldzera, 2017). For Epitacio “Taco” de Valve released its new version, completely revamped for competition, the now Counter- Melo, the moment he won a tournament that Strike: Global Offensive. It will resuscitate gave the team a spot to play in the United the game, bringing old players back and a States, where they ended up practicing, all new generation of new eSports players. paid for by the organization (EI Games, 2017) was the moment he realized he was becoming a professional player. Counter-Strike Global Offensive It is safe to say that a player is considered a professional when he is hired by an organiza- It was only in 2012 that Valve decided to re- tion that pays for his work representing that lease the new version of Counter Strike, entity. Of course, this definition is really Global Offensive. In Brazil, the new game vague, for anyone could sponsor a team of took a while to be accepted, and only in 2015, random players and not play any known tour- together with the growth of the eSports naments just for the sake of fun. Therefore, scene, exploded in audience size (Ganiko, another important step into defining a profes- 2016). It would revive the old passion for eS- sional player is his appearance at events, ports old players had, attracting even more mostly official tournaments, be it on a na- players to the game. One big difference from tional or international level. the previous versions is its focus as an eSport game. The developers made the game very Now, to understand how to become one, the easy to match players based on their skills, next section will look at one of the most in- and also added a spectator mode and a fluential professional players from Brazil, streaming channel inside the game. Gabriel Toledo. His story reflects the challenges and motivations players have to face With the new Counter-Strike came the possi- in order to become professionals, in many bility of becoming a professional player, as it ways similar to the story of Rafael Velloso, was already usual to see other games going explained earlier, and many other Brazilian in the same direction. With the idea of turn- players. ing a leisure activity into a profession, players started to figure out ways to accomplish

- 130 - Case Study: Most Influential Player event in China. That was FalleN’s first major in Brazil tournament. Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo was considered the Fallen would participate in many other tour- second-best player in the world in 2016 by naments with FireGamers, until the team was the portal HLTV.org. In the same year, hired by a North American organization FalleN received the prize for Personality of called Complexity. Defending this team, they the Year by the eSports Industry Awards, the would be proclaimed champions of the IEM Oscars’ of the games. Not only that, but one Season V, and the team’s first international year later, he would become the only cyber title. During the next years, Gabriel Toledo athlete from Brazil presented with the 30 would switch teams, and with Counter-Strike most influential young gamers in the United 1.6 losing all its glamour, the scene starts to States under 30 years, issued by Forbes Mag- be depleted, tournaments are less frequent, azine. The magazine also includes his team’s and the player decided to abandon the game total earnings for 2016, which surpasses $1.5 and start playing a game called Assault Fire. million in prize money (Fallen, 2017). Only in 2013 did FalleN start to play CS:GO, FalleN’s career started very young when his while also playing Assault Fire. Five months brothers introduced him to Counter-Strike in after he started playing the new Counter- 2003. He would fall in love with the game, Strike, he joined KabuM, the team that would and would try to fit it into his daily routine, put him in the international spotlight. After which was divided between helping his playing for two years, and achieving great re- mother in her work, playing soccer and at- sults, ESL invited them to play their selec- tending school. After joining his first team, tive. But they had a problem: the lack of Soldiers of Fire, the Counter-Strike celebrity monetary support from their own organiza- would develop his taste for competition. At tion. Added to that, the players had no finan- only 14 years old and with the help of his cial conditions to travel and pay for all ex- brothers, he would start travelling around the penses. country to play in tournaments with his new In times like that is when the leaders go for- team, Crashers. ward. FalleN would create an online crowd- His official career as a professional eSports funding campaign asking for donations from player career launched in 2009, when the national and international communities. The team FireGamers invited him to be part of the total amount they needed was R$ 25,000.00. roster. At the time, FalleN was thinking Hopeful, they kept practicing and live about abandoning the game to focus in his streaming daily to try to get even more dona- studies at the university, but FireGamers was tions. After R$ 5,000.00 only in the first day, not any team. Composed of some of the best they would end up receiving a total of R$ Brazilian players from MIBR, he had to 16,000.00 with the help of the fans. Nonethe- make a choice that would change his life for- less, two pieces were fundamental to accom- ever: follow his regular life, or abandon eve- plishing their goal: first, the Swedish player rything and try to live the dream of becoming from Fnatic, Robin “flusha” Rönnquist a Counter-Strike professional player. would donate $1,400.00; second, the ESEA organization contributed another $ 2,500.00, Gabriel’s hobby was now a profession. He completing the crowdfunding goal. would wake up every day, watch demos and play hard the entire day. After practicing for The investment proved wise. KabuM had an the World Cyber Games (WCG) 2009, the excellent tournament finishing between the team got to the semi-finals on the upper first eight teams, which would give them the bracket, where they lost to Made in Brazil. so dreamed of spot in the major tournament. After winning all games in the lower brack- From there, the roster changed, and Lumi- ets, they got into the finals, beating the same nosity Gaming bought the team, where they team that had sent them to the losers’ bracket. won their first major tournament. After the The qualifier sent them to play the main amazing performance, the famous and old organization from Germany called SK Gaming

- 131 - signed a contract with the Brazilians, that me, I believe he is about to take the Brazilian commanded by FalleN, would win their sec- counter-strike to a whole new level, to a point ond major in a row, becoming the number that will make the game part of our culture, a one team in the world (Marques, 2017). pride, just like Pelé did with soccer. By studying the game, FalleN understands that it is made of a set of players, which A Bright Future Ahead of Us means different skills and styles. He is good at finding new talents and adapting the team Sports idols and Counter-Strike based on each individual player instead of eSports are not only creating celebrities of its trying to fit a player into a unique team play Brazilians players, but it is also bringing style. That happened with Coldzera, a player that FalleN found and hired, and was able to them to the attention of traditional sports ce- enhance his full potential by allowing him to lebrities. As noted previously in this paper, play the way he knows how to, which gives the Counter-Strike scene grew up to a stage confidence to a player. At the end, it was where the top players in the world are con- worth it, as Coldzera is considered the best sidered idols, with thousands of people watching them closely, following them and player in the world, and SK the best team. cheering for their success anywhere they go. Gabriel’s unique story is important because it shows many of the problems Brazilians Members of SK Gaming have posted pictures face in order to become professionals. Ex- in their social networks with Brazilian stars trinsic disincentives such as lack of monetary like Neymar, Gabriel Medina, and André Ak- support are among the basic ones. If it were kari, famous sports players from soccer, surf- ing and poker, consecutively. It is imperative not for FalleN crowdfunding his team, they to imagine how many people they have would probably not have become the stars they are today. Also, his story shows how fre- reached coming from all those celebrities: quently he switches teams, which can be con- “The image that is produced in only one day sidered as bad, due to the fact that they do not of vacations with all these names [celebri- have time to grow as a unit, and teams need ties], is nonetheless, the incommensurable growth the scene can have” (Spricigo, 2016). consistency to improve. As for the profession, Gabriel’s story demon- Counter-Strike strated how intrinsic motivations are essential to becoming a professional. He had to de- scene grew up to a cide between going to college and playing Counter-Strike. Every professional player stage where the top has to face that decision. As he switched teams, he was looking for opportunities to players in the world demonstrate his skills to a broader number of players, which can be considered as self- are considered management, something players usually idols, with thou- struggle with. Also, it is clear how much he would study and practice the game, which sands of people made him step up from other players. watching them FalleN is an example. Not only is he one of the best in-game leaders in the world, he is closely, following also one of the best players. Additionally, his efforts to improve and give voice to Brazilian them and cheering players made him one of the most influential players in the world. His intrinsic motiva- for their success an- tions, constantly trying to get better and en- couraging fellow Brazilian players, is what ywhere they go drives him to be one of the best. And as for

- 132 - Another important event to take note of is the type of individual and team training, config- eSports Industry Awards, an international ured to simulate real tournament settings. event that rewards personalities and compa- Additionally, the platform allows players to nies from all kinds of eSports. There, Mar- report bad behavior and bad conduct, which celo “Coldzera” David, a player from SK is responsible for approximately 3500 tem- Gaming received the title of the best eSport porary bans every day. Cheaters are banned player of the year, beating other very com- daily by the platform’s own anti-cheat, with petitive players across different games. a total of 2163 (as of the date of this writing) Besides all their appearances, sports celebri- players banned permanently. ties are investing in Counter-Strike teams. According to data pulled from FalleN in his Neymar showed interest in investing in new YouTube (fallenINSIDER, 2017), as of Feb- teams while Ronaldo Nazário, one of the best ruary 14th, 2017, 75 thousand matches are soccer players of all time, invested in CNB, completed every month, but this number is a semi-professional Brazilian team, together still low compared to non-completed with André Akkari. For them, eSports is a matches. Some of the causes for that are the new worldwide trend, and a fever in Brazil. bad connections of some players or the lack Ronaldo, when talking about the investment: of commitment to the game, where players “As athletes, we find on CNB ideals that are simply leave the game after committing to a extremely familiar with our own, and we will match. Along with that, a range of 6 to 10 transfer to eSports the adrenaline from the thousand players are online every day, with a soccer fields and poker tables” (Bastida, total of 5 thousand players playing simulta- 2017). neously in one of the 500 hundred servers. It is important to note that not only were they Another important feature is the player ranks, references in their own sports, but these idols ranging from 1 to 20. This makes matchmak- truly believe that eSports are worth investing ing more fair, and players or teams get to see in, which demonstrates the potential of this the other team’s average ranking before com- market. Additionally, not only influential mitting to a match, which is a good way to people believe that, but major companies and filter when looking for a certain practice brands are also beginning to invest in and level. If a player achieves the top rank (20), sponsoring major Counter-Strike teams as and can maintain it for more than 6 months, well, which is not enough yet, but can give he gets a prize for being considered a legend. visibility to other people beginning to do so. Nonetheless, Gamers Club has three sub- Not long ago, big names like Visa and Audi, scriptions plans. The first plan is free, and in- two companies that have no relation to eS- cludes specific events, statistics on each ports, started sponsoring teams like SK Gam- player and dedicated servers to practice; with ing and Astralis because they understand the second plan, known as “plus,” the player how big this market is. gets extra benefits such as ranked matches, reserved spots, discounts on products and more. The last plan, known as “premium,” Gamers Club and Games Academy besides having all the previous benefits, also Gamers Club is an online platform founded give players access to exclusive events and in 2015 by FalleN “with the intention to the opportunity to access Games Academy, a transform competitive online gaming into a branch focused in teaching exclusive content professional sport” (Gamers Club, 2017). Fo- for players to get better at the game, both in- cused on CS:GO, Gamers Club is committed dividually and team based. to developing the professional eSports com- Games Academy’s classes are divided into munity in Brazil by giving the players all the topics, including different maps strategies, tools they need to improve their game. The tips on how to practice alone, how to create platform is responsible for a number of tour- and improve a team, to how to become a naments, both free and pay-to-play, and ded- streamer and set up your hardware and soft- icated servers with settings specific for each ware. In total, more than 200 online videos

- 133 - are helping players to improve. Most of these with them. In Twitch (twitch.tv), anyone can classes are taught by FalleN, which is a great live stream their games and talk to their view- opportunity for players to learn with an ex- ers on the go. Going back to Gabriel Toledo, cellent player. whenever he goes online to play Counter- Strike, he gets at least 12 thousand unique

viewers watching him live and chatting with The Power of Self-Promotion each other. It helps promote him and also allows his fans to get close to him. Before the rise of social network usage in early 2010 (Hennig-Thurau et al., 2010), eS- ports teams and players had little to work How eSports are with to reach their audiences. Today, with the growth of social media websites like Face- growing and becom- book and Twitter, eSports is finally arriving ing mainstream, to the mainstream public. “Lacking widespread recognition, eSports which can be com- still relies on an organic social network to pared to the history generate followings” (Fletcher, 2016). By saying that, the eSports Marketing Blog are of soccer in Brazil, focusing on individual players’ influence on websites like Facebook, Twitter and Twitch. where it started as a According to them, Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo had 137,000 likes on Facebook, 47,100 fol- game that few peo- lowers on Twitter and 84,000 followers on Twitch by early 2016 (Kresse, 2016). These ple played, going on numbers have skyrocketed one year later. to become a major FalleN now has 398,486 likes on Facebook (facebook.com/FalleNcs/), 389,000 follow- sport, in which Bra- ers on Twitter (twitter.com/FalleNCS) and 386,436 followers on Twitch zilians excel (twitch.tv/gafallen). Twitch has other benefits as well. Viewers The reason behind it is the constant content can donate directly to the player, as well as update from the players themselves, which subscribe to his channel, which means that shares their routines, thoughts and daily they will pay a monthly subscription of lives. The motivation from sports fans can $5.00, where the player usually gets half. vary from stress, escape, aesthetic pleasure, Other than that, it is a place where he can give entertainment, family needs, group affilia- hints and help amateur players. For his teach- tion, self-esteem, and economic gain (Stav- ing on Games Academy, FalleN usually rec- ros, Meng, Westberg, & Farelly, 2014). Ad- ords a live streaming where people can inter- ditionally, eSports fans also find in their idols act and ask questions, and after finished, he a way to educate themselves and learn by just posts it on the website for its premium mimicking their in-game actions and strate- members to watch whenever they want. gies. The different platforms allow different forms Besides the previously cited social networks, of promotions, and working them all is part eSports players are using YouTube and In- of creating an image for the player. With the stagram to generate content about their daily television broadcast still slowly learning how lives, routines and behind the scenes, which to walk, the social media was the main chan- attracts fans that would like to pursue a career nel between professionals and enthusiasts. as a professional gamer. Not only that, social And it was not the teams that made that ef- networking is a way to communicate closely fort, besides starting to be present in social with their audiences and for them [audience], a way to get close to their idols and interact

- 134 - network a lot more, but the players them- and effort to become a professional. Profes- selves that would spread eSports around the sional players started usually very early in world, reaching more people every day. their lives, and committed several hours of their days, every day to improving their

skills, both individual and as a team. Also, Conclusion studying the game composes a large part of the training. The Brazilian Counter-Strike scene is considered one of the best in the world. A couple As noticed in some of the chapters, being of teams, SK Gaming in particular, went very skillful is not enough to become a pro- from unknown to the world scene to knock- fessional. FalleN and Cogu had to find ways ing down everyone in their way. If it were not to raise money in order to play outside of for the dedication of their players and the Brazil, where they would end up having the community, none of that would have hap- visibility they needed so other professionals pened. What is interesting to note is that both and organizations could see their potential, MIBR and the guys from SK Gaming had a thus investing in them. Part of this is partici- similar story, even after being years apart. pating in major tournaments, most of them Both teams had to find ways to raise money located in either Europe or North America. so they would be able to leave the country to This goes side-by-side with Taylor’s (2006) play on a different level, one that they could book in which she emphasizes how pro gam- make a living from. ers do not appear from thin air, but are created not only from practice, but also through

1. What is involved in becoming a pro- a broader social process. This process in- fessional CS:GO player? cludes self-management as a way to acquire The first research question tries to understand visibility among players and teams, creating Counter-Strike as a profession. Based on all a network that allows for opportunities. Fur- the data collected and analyzed previously, a thermore, because there are usually no agents theory emerged that can explain everything behind the players, they have also to develop that is involved in becoming a professional managerial skills, searching for contracts and CS:GO player. I started talking about how sponsorships, something FalleN has been do- the game was shaped to be competitive, and ing extremely well. Furthermore, the theory that people are attracted because they love pulled from the data to answer the first ques- the game, and see it as a way to live their tion is as follows: lives. I also talked about how eSports are Theory RQ1: To become a professional growing and becoming mainstream, which player, one should first understand the exist- can be compared to the history of soccer in ence of the profession itself as a real possi- Brazil, where it started as a game that few bility. Also, the desire to spend several hours people played, going on to become a major a day, every day, practicing and studying the sport, in which Brazilians excel. game is necessary to raise one’s skill level, In the past, hardly anyone thought of playing knowing that there is not a single moment Counter-Strike as a profession, but the media that practicing will cease. Finally, players is now showing us how this paradigm is shift- have to be creative and make use of the tools ing. More people are now considering it to be available today to be able to show their tal- the new generation’s sport, and making a liv- ents, to a broader audience, one that is coming out of it is now a possibility. Based on posed of professional organizations willing that, I would say that the first part of my the- to invest in new players and teams. ory is understanding that becoming a profes- Basically, all Brazilian players who are mak- sional player can be done. ing a live out of Counter-Strike are living The second step after finding out that this is outside the country, where they have a place something people can actually do, it is to start to live and practice, good salaries and all ex- practicing. It might be obvious at first, but penses paid by non-Brazilian organizations. people sometimes do not understand the This indicates the lack of support that Brazil- meaning of practice, and that it takes time

- 135 - ian companies have towards its players, usu- I would argue that part of the second theory ally due to non-existent regulations and in- is composed of the hard work Brazilians put vestments in the industry. However, this was in, in a quest to become professionals. My never a reason for Brazilian players to stop previous theory explains what is involved in playing the game and being successful as becoming a professional, and I believe that such. by knowing what it takes, the South Ameri- cans are trying harder to succeed, as they 2. How are Brazilians excelling in an know the benefits will be not only for them, industry that lacks incentives? but also for other Brazilian players, as noted In the research I explained the problems with by studying the case of FalleN. They know the Brazilian Counter-Strike scene. These that the passion they have is enough for them facts are important because a number of play- to go that extra mile. ers are struggling to become professionals. Before the rise of Brazilians, Europe was def- This is not necessarily because they do not initely the place to look to when talking about have the necessary skills, but due to the lack professional Counter-Strike, and even today, of extrinsic incentives. Below is a list con- the Europeans have very strong teams that taining the major problems faced by Brazil- can get to the top best teams every single ian players today: tournament. By knowing that, Brazilian • Weak investment in tournaments; teams have not only studied their gameplay, but also copied their style and adapted it to fit • Lack of commitment from tournament their own (Shields, 2016), which gave a fresh organizations in paying prizes on time new twist to the scene that surprised every- • Organizations that create abusive con- one. tract clauses that do not take players into Another fact that I believe can be attributed consideration; to Brazilian success in Counter-Strike is how • Organizations that does not have con- they can spot new talents and turn them into tract with players at all, which cause a stars. The most notorious case is Marcelo lot of roster changes, affecting teams’ “Coldzera,” the number 1 player in the performance; world. FalleN discovered him and made sure he could play on his team. Even after • No salaries or minimum wage salaries; Coldzera’s father prohibited him from going and playing, the in-game leader FalleN called • Organizations that do not pay for team’s him to tell the importance of what Marcelo expenses (which includes travel and in- could accomplish with this talent. Needless frastructure) to say that he was right after all. Lack of investments and sponsorships • Also, constant changes in rosters make play- from Brazilian companies, usually by ers adapt to different styles of gameplay. being uninformed of the potential of the That ends up opening opportunities that were business. never thought of prior to that moment. For According to Shields (2016), the Brazilian example, when Coldzera came to the team, teams are now better than any North Ameri- FalleN went back to play as the sniper (the can (NA) teams because they rose in the person who uses a specific type of gun) ranks without any of the advantages NA which made him the best of its kind. Brazili- teams have thrown up as the responsibility ans know how to adapt to changes in a way for the lack of top finishes in the last four that favors each player individually. None- years. And most of the improvements Brazil- theless, team strategies are created and ians are showing are areas in which North planned according to each one’s strengths, American teams have failed. Those improve- which allows them to feel comfortable when ments are the reasons Brazilians are excel- playing the game. ling, even with the lack of support. Finally, as described by Taylor (2006) as “career and institutional savvy,” understanding

- 136 - the career aspects of a professional player is study with relevant information that is not important and includes building a recogniza- necessarily found only by online data collec- ble name for themselves, creating a public tion. Also, many different branches might reputation and adapting their play style to fit emerge from this study that are definitely the evolving nature of the competitive scene. worth looking at. For example, more focused Brazilians are good at doing so because they research on Europe or North America’s have to, as they are different from players in Counter-Strike scene would account for dif- Europe or NA who have managers and or- ferences between cultures. Also, the differ- ganizations taking care of them. ence between women’s Counter-Strike and why is it that people segregate CS:GO tour- All of that is summed up in my first theory, naments by gender, can yield interesting and I think it is important to underscore that studies. These are some of the possible future a big part of why Brazilians are excelling in work that can emerge from this study, and Counter-Strike is that Brazilians understand that would help develop important infor- what is involved in the industry of Counter- mation in a field that is just starting. Strike professionalism and make extremely good use of it. They are constantly studying the game and finding better ways to improve The Future of eSports in Brazil their game. So the second theory is formulated below: Happily, with the worldwide phenomenon of eSports reaching the mainstream, many com- Theory RQ2: Beyond constant skill im- panies are paying more attention to Counter- provements, Brazilians are amazingly good Strike. Celebrities from other sports are now at overcoming obstacles to become better understanding the potential of eSports and professionals, not only as individuals, but are investing in teams, which is uncommon, also as a group. Because they know a team is as players usually invest in other businesses, composed of different players with different like real state, or in their own field (Silva, gameplay styles, they focus on enhancing in- 2016). Part of the reason for the growth of the dividual’s strengths to make players comfort- game is the reach of social media and other able at the same time they shape team’s strat- information channels and how they can ben- egies to fit each player individually. Also, as efit players and teams. Knowing the power of avid students of the game, professional teams those tools, FalleN is influencing a new gen- and players in Brazil have a keen eye to find eration of players that will advocate for the and develop new talents, which differs from game and the growth of eSport inside Brazil. North American teams that try to find perfect players to fill in roles they are not comforta- eSports are already here. The whole world is ble playing. Nonetheless, Brazilians can looking at it and accepting it as the new gen- copy the gameplay from the best teams in the eration’s sport. Hopefully Brazil will also world and adapt it to their style, which I be- embrace it, creating better conditions for the lieve is what makes most of the successful scene to grow and for players to feel comfort- sports team in Brazil successful. Along with able knowing that their country is there for this is the ability to find what is the best prac- them. Because if there is one thing that we tice among the best in the world, and add the can learn from this study it is that Brazilian Brazilian way of doing things to the mix, cre- players are unstoppable. They are passionate, ating a whole new way of playing sports that and it is up to Brazil to embrace these play- is unique and powerful. ers, or watch them be successful on the account of other nations. For further research, an ethnographic approach including participant observation, interviews and field visits can complement this

- 137 - Now on his second Master's (MFA) in which he is studying Experience Design at Northeastern University in Boston (first was in Game Science and Design at the same school), he created and presented an eSports proposal to the athletics department and helped ignite what now became six official club sports. There he works as the Esports Administrative and Operations Assistant for the athletics department where he is responsible to assist the Associate Director of Club Sports & Es- ports in shaping the future of the Northeastern’s eSports program. You can contact him at [email protected] References

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- 140 - How DotA is Getting Deeper

By Sean Carton

For most of its history, the design of Defense • Solar Crest: Introduces the debuff Ac- of the Ancients took place in, and in many curacy, which counteracts evasion and is ways was constrained by being a custom map a less extreme form of True Strike. for Warcraft 3. Valve Software’s Dota2 came out in 2011, but it was only in 2015 that Furthermore, on the heroes side: parity was finally broken with its predeces- • Morphling becomes able to transform sor, and the potential of using a new engine into an allied hero. started to be realized. All of these new mechanics are goodies that In this article, I want to examine the design users on the DotA forums had been request- thinking behind the last three years of con- ing for years. More knowledgeable forum- tent patches in Dota2, and how they have goers would routinely dismiss these sugges- drawn even further depth out of a game that tions, knowing that they were infeasible or was already over a decade old. Content outright impossible due to technical limita- patches are those which include permanent tions. new content: such as characters, items, and ability reworks. It's no accident that these mechanics arrived together in 6.84: they made a clear state- The recurring theme is that these patches ment about new possibilities for the game have focused on taking underutilized me- and got players excited about what was to chanics, frequently holdovers from Warcraft come. Seeing players discover interactions 3, and integrated them more fully with the like Tiny’s Toss target being bounced back at game in a way that increases the overall him by spell reflection was a lot of fun! depth.

Let’s get started by looking at the parity- breaking patch itself: Activity, Passivity, Creativity However, there is more going on in this patch than meets the eye. 6.84 – Actives and Passives To understand what's happening, we need to Lead developer Icefrog’s commitment to examine the two adjacent content patches: maintain DotA Allstars for so many years af- 6.82 and 6.86. Between them, nine heroes ter Dota2’s release earned a lot of goodwill that previously had two passives, received a from the community. For some in the audi- new active ability to replace one of their pas- ence, it may have been a sensitive issue to fi- sives. nally part ways and lose parity. This patch needed to deliver a smooth transition. As we all know, DotA has its roots in Warcraft 3, which was an RTS. Its heroes had 6.84 introduced a number of items, includ- four abilities (which DotA inherited), and as ing: a general rule they never had two passives. • Lotus Orb: Grants a target a shield that reflects single-target spells. • Octarine Core: Cooldown reduction and spell lifesteal, in one item! • Silver Edge: Introduces the debuff The one exception: Tauren Chieftain’s Break, which disables hero passives. ultimate was also passive.

- 141 - Early DotA versions broke that trend. Multi- isn't strong against too many heroes, ple passives became quite common, with he- since less of them have 2 passives. I'm roes like Skeleton King and N’aix even hav- happy to see some heroes like Bristle- ing three passives. Why did this happen? back and Spectre keep 2 passives, as this keeps the game diverse. As someone who's done this kind of map- ping, one reason is that it's simply easier to The result is a much healthier environment make passive abilities! Actives need more where both actives and passives are more scripting and graphics and testing. Also, balanced in the roles they have to play. This when you come up with a cool active ability patch wasn’t just a show of new technology, it’s natural to want to share it right away. it used that new technology to enrich the Having to finish several more actives first game. tends to slow things down, and as early DotA versions typically had one lead developer, simple individual motivations like this could 6.86 – Attack and Cast Range be a significant factor in decision-making. Two new toys catch our attention in this A second thought is that active abilities patch, once again on items: rarely benefited from items: Warcraft didn't have native support for mechanics like • Dragon Lance: In- cooldown reduction or spell amplification. creases attack range. This meant players couldn't easily find over- • Aether Lens: Increases powered builds that were based on their ac- cast range. tives. Passives allowed for more creative ex- In the past, it was considered pression and satisfying builds because they impractical to have an item interact with attacks, health, and other stats increase attack range. Sniper has had an "in- that were appearing on items. Players had no creased attack range" passive since the problem with passives! Warcraft days, but its implementation used a That said, there's no doubt that actives are unit upgrade; similar to "improve flying more fun to use and create better gameplay unit weapons" as might be seen in moments. In my opinion, Warcraft's policy Starcraft/Warcraft. of “no more than one passive per hero” was The catch was: unit upgrades can't be down- the right balance. In the 6.82–6.84–6.86 graded, so if this trick was tried with an item, patches, Dota2 took advantage of its new players would be able to pick up the item, technology to move back towards that bal- drop it, and still enjoy the increased range! ance. There are a couple of solutions to this, like • Firstly, Octarine Core was a step to- making the item undroppable, but none are wards enabling active abilities to interact elegant and I didn't see this attempted in any with items, ensuring the game wouldn't Warcraft map that I can think of. Dota2 was lose out on the build creativity and ex- breaking new ground here. pression that passives were offering. The two new items cost roughly 2000 gold Spell amplification and bonus cast range each, and didn't have further upgrades. I re- followed in 6.86, with the Intelligence ally liked this decision, because it created a stat granting spell amplification in 6.87. niche for medium-cost items offering a gen- • Secondly, Break (which temporarily dis- uine utility (for carries in particular) that late- ables passives) was introduced on both game items didn't. Silver Edge and as an Aghanim’s upgrade to Shadow Demon’s ultimate. Players now had a compromise to consider: This made passives interactable, at long they would lose gold when selling these last. items late-game as item slots grew scarce. An underdog who still had their Dragon Lance • Finally, replacing passives with actives instead of a Daedalus would have a tangible on several heroes has made the game attack range advantage! That struck me as more fun generally. It also ensures Break very interesting. (Sadly, this compromise

- 142 - was not to last, as Dragon Lance got an up- across its multiple missions. To accommo- grade item a few patches later.) date, Rexxar and his friends ended up having a max level of 18.

In Warcraft, levelling up a hero grants a skill 6.87 – Stock Start Delay point, which can be used to raise the level of Warcraft III had physical item shops located one of the hero’s abilities. Since Rexxar now on the battlefield that heroes could purchase levelled up to 18, the design team needed to from: that's where we get the secret and side give Rexxar more ability levels as well. His shops. It was commonplace that shops could- basic abilities were adjusted to have 4 levels n't sell certain items until a fixed time several each (up from 3), but this wasn't enough. minutes into the game: including classics like Introducing a fresh new ability wouldn't Boots of Speed. More powerful items like worked, because one purpose of the cam- Scroll of Protection took even longer to be- paign is to teach players about some of the come available. new heroes that would appear in RTS game- Part of this was to avoid items being too im- play. It was an important design goal to keep pactful early, but also Warcraft 3 shops only visual and gameplay parity between the RPG carry a limited stock of items: and purchasing beastmaster and the RTS one. one can deny it of an opponent. Delaying The solution was Attribute Bo- item availability evened the playing field so nus: a simple stat-padding pas- heroes who simply moved faster weren’t get- sive to give players something to ting a free advantage on item pickups. click on, and keep the rules Eul’s DotA and its successor Thirst for about skill points consistent. It Gamma made heavy use of this "stock start was intended for a single-player RPG, and delay" mechanic on both base shops and se- it's a fine solution. You can't lose the Found- cret shops: with some items taking up to 10 ing of Durotar campaign anyway. minutes to appear. It seems Dota2 has sur- When The Frozen Throne came out, map de- prisingly picked this old mechanic back up! velopers gained the ability to change the hero 6.87 saw two new items making use of it: level cap to something other than 10. Most • Infused Raindrop: games did so: raising the cap to better match which appears after 3 the rhythm and progression of their game- minutes. play. This tended to be paired with Attribute • Tome of Experience: Bonus to pad out the skill points for these ex- which appears after 10 tra levels. DotA Allstars was among the maps minutes, and restocks that did this. every 10 minutes. If Attribute Bonus had never existed for the I don't see any suggestion that we'll see more Founding of Durotar campaign, I think we of this mechanic. It seems to be a balance ne- would have seen a wider variety of creative cessity for Infused Raindrop, while Tome of solutions to "what to do with extra skill Experience is an anomaly of an item. Yet, we points". Maybe DotA would have taken a dif- do see the complexity of Dota2 deepen with ferent direction. Some games, such as Dota their inclusion. Outland, Ninjas on Battle.net, and Advent of the Zenith certainly did. However, most games (across all genres) saw Attribute Bo- 7.00 – Attribute Bonus nus as an easy solution, used it, and didn't think about extra skill points any further. One of the campaigns that came out with The Frozen Throne was a miniature RPG featur- The result is that until 7.00 arrived at the end ing a half-orc hero: the beastmaster Rexxar. of 2016, DotA was using and balanced around the archaic solution of Attribute Bo- Warcraft heroes normally max out at level nus, which was never intended to do anything 10, but this campaign was styled as an RPG for balance or work in a multiplayer setting. and needed a steadier level progression

- 143 - Certainly, there were cases where early others. (This makes it very difficult to points in Attribute Bonus were an innovative focus key targets down.) move (Juggernaut used to do this some- • Unholy Frenzy: Increase a unit's attack times), but overall the +20 to all stats was rate by 75% for 45 seconds. The unit wasting clicks and making everything more loses 4 health per second while this is ac- homogenous. tive. The move to talents was monumental, and • Faerie Fire: The target loses 4 armour, befitting the leap to a new version number. and shares its vision with you for 90 sec- Over 800 new talents had to be written, and onds. gradually balanced over the versions to These powerful magics that come. could turn battles were coun- Talents were a positive move for the game's ter-balanced by dispel abilities design. The flexibility they offer to balance to which every race has access. not only individual heroes, but specifically They always affect an area: a being able to do so at later stages in the game single dispel can eliminate many buffs if the where items would previously have been enemy is clumped together. dominant is a big benefit. Heroes no longer The result is that it's generally possible to gain a skill point with every level like they keep some of your army buffed, but having used to, but in exchange the decisions made too many buffs out at once will make the en- with them are weightier. emy's dispels more efficient, and frees up Two of the key mechanics that were intro- their casters' mana to do other things. Note duced to the game through talents were res- that running out of dispels is disastrous: look pawn time reduction (formerly appearing at the duration on those abilities! It was a only on the item Bloodstone), and passive good system, and worked well in the context gold-per-minute talents. The former was of Warcraft. eventually removed due to disrupting the Lane-pushing games have a different dy- flow of the game, but gold-per-minute talents namic because there's no army to think about: have made a big difference in giving certain everyone controls one hero. There are few heroes (particularly supports) the option of targets worth dispelling, and scarce few abil- economic independence. ities that apply buffs in the first place. Other features were added in this patch, such In most lane-pushing games, dispels have as Shrines, the Backpack, and Monkey King, been rare and strong, while debuffs have but I think the story is really centred on tal- short durations (under 10 seconds). I think ents. this equilibrium was arrived at because short durations are less oppressive against heroes that don't have access to a dispel, and if 7.07 – Dispels something is too oppressive players will tend The emphasis in this patch was on dispels. to complain. These were a fundamental mechanic in The exceptions to this tend to be older abili- Warcraft III, where caster units played an im- ties that were adapted directly from portant role in armies due to their powerful Warcraft's RTS gameplay: such as Queen of buffs and debuffs. Examples of their spells Pain's Shadow Strike or Doom's Doom. include: Meanwhile, undispellable stat reductions like those of Undying or Slark seem to be the • Slow: Decrease a unit's movement speed modern solution for long-term debuffs, per- by 60% and attack rate by 25% for 60 haps because they are relatively unnoticeable seconds. to players and don't feel as oppressive. • Spirit Link: Chains up to 4 units together, causing 50% of damage taken by Anyway, back to the patch. The new content any of them to be distributed among the includes:

- 144 - • Nullifier: An item whose active dispels I think a hallmark of this patch is that Ven- a target, and prevents them from using omancer's Venomous Gale ability became their items for a short time. Can be dis- dispellable, after many years to the contrary. pelled. Venomancer deals all his damage over time, • Spirit Vessel: An item whose active so the enemy having dispels (a tiny propor- temporarily reduces healing received on tion of matchups) would have historically an enemy, or increases it on an ally. Can been an incredibly hard counter to him. be dispelled. 7.07 gave him some talent changes that make • Meteor Hammer: An item whose ac- the hero less dependent on his Gale, and let tive stuns and leaves a damage-over- him fit better into a game where dispel is now time debuff on targets. The damage over a fully-integrated mechanic. Nice! time can be dispelled. • Aeon Disk: After being brought below 70% health, this item activates to dispel 7.07 – Ongoing Trend – Evasion and briefly protect its wearer from further damage. In Warcraft there were very few sources of • Necronomicon Level 3: Now has a sin- evasion, so no mechanics to counter it ex- gle-target purge (dispel). isted. In the entire game, two heroes had evasion as a passive ability, there was one eva- There's a strong trend here of making more sion item, and arguably units standing uphill buffs and debuffs available to dispel. We also could be counted. see this in the new heroes: Dota2 inherited this trend. For many years • Pangolier’s Heartpiercer: This passive evasion appeared on a couple of heroes, one applies a debuff to enemies which acti- item, and it had exactly one counter: the ex- vates after a 2 second delay. It can be pensive item Monkey King Bar which dispelled. granted True Strike (which causes attacks to • Dark Willow's Cursed Crown: Places a never miss). I don't believe True Strike ever debuff on an enemy which will stun the actually makes an appearance in Warcraft area around them after a 4 second delay. gameplay; it seems to have been a beta me- The innovation we're seeing here is hero abil- chanic that DotA adopted. ities with delayed debuffs to make dispels Dota2's patches have been steadily been do- more attractive. If you dispel before they ac- ing a better job of integrating evasion. The tivate: the ability is fully countered, just like history goes something like this: dodging a projectile! These two heroes were cleverly designed with this patch in mind. • 6.82: The evasion-granting item Butter- fly gained an active which allowed he- We also see a number of hero talent and abil- roes to temporarily trade their evasion ity changes: for increased movement speed. • Morphling: New ultimate dispels self • 6.84: Solar Crest was introduced as an on cast. item which grants evasion, and its active • Razor: New ability periodically dispels can gift temporary evasion to an ally, or nearby enemies. apply temporary Accuracy (evasion reduction) against a target enemy. • Slardar L25: Corrosive Haze undispellable. • 6.87: Bloodthorn arrives: another soft- counter to evasion which grants tempo- • Sven L15: Storm Hammer dispels ene- rary True Strike against a single target. mies. • 7.00: Twelve heroes now gain access to • Templar Assassin L20: Refraction dis- evasion through their talents. pels. • 7.06: The heroes Earthshaker and Witch • Troll Warlord L25: Battle Trance dis- Doctor have True Strike made available pels your team. on suitable abilities. Wow, that's a lot of buff interaction!

- 145 - • 7.07: The Javelin and Monkey King Bar maps adapted that into their gameplay. items cannot miss if they proc. Monkey Dota2 already has moved towards more King Bar's chance to not miss is now interactive buildings (shrines), and has a 70%. mature territory-control game through • 7.14: The Maelstrom and Mjollnir items wards that could be built upon (pardon cannot miss if they proc. the pun). At this point, evasion is a well-integrated me- If the team decides on new mechanics in- chanic and part of gameplay which has no stead, my guess would be: hard counters, and a wide variety of soft • Terrain interaction has appeared on the counters. The result is much healthier than three newest heroes (via Tree Dance, the previous binary relationship between "I Rolling Thunder, and Terrorize), sug- have evasion" and "I don't have evasion". gesting we could see more of this going forward: perhaps the ability to create temporary cliffs or walls. This has come What Next? up in forum suggestions before: with Each of the patches we've discussed above abilities like Pit of Malice being imag- has added depth to the game by taking a pre- ined as actual craters that de-elevate the viously niche mechanic and making it better terrain. integrated and something that more heroes Any of the above could serve to further can interact with. deepen the game. Whatever the mechanic, I Most of these mechanics have their roots in expect the 7.07 patch to be used as a model: Warcraft III. With a probable content patch with carefully chosen new heroes and some looming after TI8, it is an open question talent changes playing a role in its introduc- whether the team will dig once again into tion. Warcraft's mechanics, or take the opportunity to introduce something new. I’m sure the game If it's the former, then here's the Warcraft me- will wind its way chanics I think are most likely to be chosen: • Magic immunity is a fundamental part around to the rest of of the game, yet the only item that grants my guesses eventu- it is Black King Bar. Several other items have had their effects decomposed into ally! It does seem smaller items like Shadow Amulet and Talisman of Evasion: that pattern could we’re in for a long continue. One form of immunity that appeared in Warcraft was Anti-Magic ride. Shell: a buff that can be dispelled (Repel As a final note, I want to emphasize that a is based on it). Could something similar hell of a lot of thought went into Dota2’s appear on an item? patches. It's one thing for me to sit back and • Powerup items have seen recent popu- analyze, but quite another to plan these larity, with four bounty runes being moves in advance, even with the backing of added, and the river now spawning two a design team. Icefrog is highly acclaimed for after 40 minutes. Powerups were a sig- his work on balance, but what really steers nificant feature in Warcraft; perhaps the ship forward is content patches: and we'll see heroes with abilities that can credit is well-deserved there too. spawn or manipulate them? • Buildables, essentially the ability to construct small towers/buildings around Afterword the battlefield. Warcraft supplied the item Ivory Tower which let heroes place This article was written during TI8, and pub- a tower without workers, and several old lished the night before the grand finals. Like

- 146 - any Dota2 fan, I was as hyped as could be, ity Repel. Its replacement grants status re- and wanted to have “patch predictions” on sistance (offering similar but less ‘absolute’ record before a potential next-day patch. benefits as spell immunity), and bonus strength (which is part of 7.20’s trend to have How did these predictions pan out? I think I more base stat interaction). was mostly on the mark. Perhaps the clearest example can be seen in 7.20 with the removal I’m sure the game will wind its way around of Omniknight’s classic spell immunity abil- to the rest of my guesses eventually! It does seem we’re in for a long ride.

Sean Carton, known online as Softmints, is an Irish game designer and historian specializing in lane-pushing games. He developed one of the original DotA maps ‘Dota Outland (2003)’, followed by its sequel ‘Rise of Winterchill (2007)'. He maintains the genre's most comprehensive game design and history resource Lane-Pushing Games, and is currently lead designer on an ambitious new lane-pushing game which seeks to nurture the emergence of leadership within teams. Happy to talk anytime, you can find him at [email protected].

- 147 - Competitive Gaming Between the Oceans

By Jana Möglich

The discussion about electronic sports in young people could be threatened with re- Schleswig-Holstein, Germany has made spect to physical activity, eating habits, and enormous progress. In the second half of addictive behavior (Schleswig-Hol- 2017 public awareness started growing con- steinischer Landtag 2019a.). Most policy- tinuously. During the year 2018 one could makers agree, however, that they should use see forward-looking decisions, and an in- the chance to influence behavior positively creasing amount of actions from diverse by bringing eSport activity into public bodies stakeholders. And now, in the first months of like youth centers (ibid.). Trained advisors 2019, there have already been several mo- could gain inspiration by looking at profes- mentous announcements. sional player’s daily routines of compensat- ing workouts, conscious nutrition, and re-

sponsible media consumption on their sched- Motivations and Goals ule (cf. Intel Corporation 2016, n.p.). eSport has become an ever-present concern Another subject is the inclusive character of in Schleswig-Holstein, and there are some eSport that is not transferring to the profes- motivations hidden behind this development. sional level - especially with respect to gen- From a political perspective, the Federal der (cf. BBC 2018). Bringing eSport into State declared in its digitalization pro- popular sport structures could help to exploit gramme in 2018 that it wants to become an this inclusive potential, bringing competitive “exemplary digital state”, and included eS- gaming from online tournaments back to of- port in its agenda (Landesportal Schleswig- fline events and adding supportive measures Holstein 2018). In this context eSport is func- for a diverse community (cf. AnyKey 2019). tioning here as a driver of innovation. Alongside the enhancement of soft skills like the ability to work in a team or critical think- eSport has become a ing, eSport also offers a way to increase media literacy – a fundamental skill in our dig- movement that can- itized society (Schleswig-Holsteinischer not be ignored any- Landtag 2019a). By actively participating in eSports as a player that has to convince the more. It’s now the scene and sponsors of their skills, media competences are naturally developed - in- task of the policy- cluding social media management, web development, graphic design, and audio and makers and society video editing. to positively support Looking at the over 3 Million eSports enthusiasts in Germany (NewZoo/BIU 2017) e- this development. Sport has become a movement that cannot be ignored anymore. It’s now the task of the pol- As competitive gaming is a part of the icymakers and society to positively support agenda, there are some social challenges that this development. come up with it and have to be discussed. Critics postulate against the public funding of eSport, saying that the health of children and

- 148 - Regional Players The year 2018 started strong for the video game industry too in Northern Germany as A movement such as this is always driven by another engaged initiative for its support was fully committed people, and fortunately you founded: the Initiative for the Support of the find masses of them in the eSport industry. Video Game Industry in Schleswig-Holstein This is the main reason why it has become so (IFgameSH) focusing on making the state big with nearly no public support so far: it’s more attractive for game developers to keep a community-driven and highly engaged sec- them working here and not leaving for big tor. The players that are driving the topic in cities due of poor conditions (IFgameSH our country represent the different disci- 2019a). One example for their efforts was the plines of the industry worldwide. hosting of a Global Game Jam Site in the The eSports Nord e.V. (e.V. is a German ab- 2019 episode - an event for game developers breviation for registered association) in Har- to find people to collaborate with and making rislee near Flensburg is the most longstand- a video game within 48 hours (Global Game ing participant. The association was founded Jam 2019). in 2016 and is also one of the founding mem- IFgameSH added eSport to their catalogue of bers of the German Esport Federation (in topics in October 2018. Since then, they have German: eSport-Bund Deutschland e.V.; eS- been very active in the eSport scene and were ports Nord e.V. 2019.). They focus on host- also invited to speak at the Landtag among ing events, networking, and educational other experts to consult the politicians (IF- work and therefore have also been invited to gameSH 2018; Schleswig-Holsteinischer an eSport consultation in the Landtag SH Landtag 2019b). (Schleswig-Holsteinischer Landtag 2019b). The association to their motivation: The University in Kiel (in German, Chris- tian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel/CAU) is “The original idea of founding an eSports concerning with eSport, too, but on a differ- club in northern Germany was born in 2015. ent level. Several students from the CAU A group of a few friends started thinking founded an eSport student group to partici- about raising an organization that could ar- pate in the German University League (UNI range LAN events and promote eSports as a eSports GmbH 2019). The group is con- popular sport for everybody. In 2016 we be- stantly growing and today they regularly came an official club in Germany. compete in three different titles: League of “We hope to bring eSports to the next level Legends, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive especially in the state of Schleswig-Holstein. and Rocket League (Christian-Albrechts- We want eSports to be accepted as a sport Universität zu Kiel 2019). Besides training from a political, societal and lawful perspec- matches they offer additional tactical ses- tive. We work very hard to bring eSports to sions etc. to build up their cognitive skills regular sports clubs and to explain eSports to and knowledge of the game. They are espe- the society. We also want to clear up some cially concentrating on providing their mem- prejudices about eSports that many people bers a suitable and healthy environment so might have. the players can reach their fullest potential. “Together with the University of Applied Another key player is the game association Science West Coast we started to set up some (game-Verband 2019) with the aim to make research projects about eSports. In 2017 we Germany become one of the best game in- participated at different events to make e- dustry locations in the world. The association Sports more popular, like at the internation- has founded a regional delegation for Schles- ally renowned open-air festival in Wacken. wig-Holstein in September 2018. Members We will continue working for our beloved are Jens Bahr, the co-founder of the inde- sports!” (eSports Nord e.V. 2019) pendent game studio Off The Beaten Track, Boris Zander from seal Media - a mobile This statement evidences the enthusiasm you game studio and full service digital agency find in the young and engaged community of based in Kiel - and Jens Junge, founder and competitive players. director of spielen.de, a website that provides

- 149 - an extensive game database including ports business’ potential. There is the Busi- browser games, social games, board games ness Development Company of Kiel (in Ger- and more (game-Verband 2018). This line- man: Kieler Wirtschaftsförderungs- und up represents the diverse competence based Strukturentwicklungs GmbH/KiWi) that is in SH. The association’s four most important supporting the local eSport scene inter alia by demands are: delivering platforms and events to connect the actors with each other. That’s how many • the “introduction of a games funding”, collaborations within 2018 and 2019 have • the “strengthening of the networks”, arisen, including at the Digital Week Kiel, • a “commitment to theory and research in organized by the KiWi, with one week full of the universities” and different presentations and workshops from • a “leading role in eSport as mass sport” the digital field (Digitale Woche Kiel 2019). (game-Verband 2018). They even created an extra Digital Week e- Also, the German Esport Federation (which Sports team for their activities in this sector. is the primary eSport lobby actor in Germany Kathrin Reinicke from the KiWi (Admin- since its inception in November 2017) has istration Digital Week Kiel office) had this to recognized the potential of the current atmos- say: phere in Schleswig-Holstein (eSport-Bund “From our point of view eSport and the Deutschland 2018). President Hans Jagnow whole subject area of gaming hold big poten- is a frequent speaker at political discussion tials for creativity and initial impulses. The rounds, often praising the advancements and integration of eSport in traditional sports efforts located in the North of Germany clubs implies whole new possibilities for (Hans Jagnow 2019). ‘classic’ sports, honorary office and commu- Additionally, there are some regional sports nity life, which can be actively shaped clubs that are opening themselves up for e- through the ‚sportization‘ of digitization. The Sport. The north’s biggest sports club KMTV long-term chances of eSport formats as vehi- (in German: Kieler Männerturnverein from cle for ensuring young skilled and motivated 1844 e.V.) has already expressed the plans to labor is another one of many positive aspects. add eSport to their programme. It is currently We as Digital Week Kiel office under the holding talks with other actors to build up re- umbrella of the Kieler Wirtschaftsförderung gional tournaments for mass sports. Its trans- embrace and support the fact that eSport fi- formation into a “digital hub” in February nally made its way to the center of (urban) 2019, where people can get to know and try society.” (Kathrin Reinicke 2019) out innovative technologies includes public But it’s not only more established companies funding for the association and its eSport getting into eSports: In January 2019 there plans (Landesportal Schleswig-Holstein was also a startup founded which completely 2019a). There will also be the opportunity for concentrates on competitive gaming - Nor- people to supply digital services and acquire dix-Play. They have built up one of the first skills (Landesportal Schleswig-Holstein eSports startups in SH, and one can imagine 2019b). In this context eSport and digitaliza- that more will follow in the near future. tion in general are associated with each other. “We have founded an eSports company in On a professional basis the football club Hol- Schleswig-Holstein because there is a huge stein Kiel is competing in the virtual national potential in that sector which politics have al- league with two talents founded in a scouting ready recognized. tournament in December 2018 (see “Events and lighthouse projects” below) and two ex- “Reaching the younger audience is very im- perienced pro gamers (Electronic Arts Inc. portant not only from a product marketing and DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga GmbH view but also regarding the human resources 2019). problems. A lot of companies are missing junior staff, and these junior staff can be tar- With the increasing public attention, the local geted with the things that come with eSports. economy is gradually recognizing the eS-

- 150 - We see a huge growth over the past years the high engagement you find in eSports. which will be continued the next years, and Therefore, the aim is “to take up this engage- we want to be part of it by helping companies ment positively to achieve a strong integra- to get in touch with eSports, hosting eSports tion in the society” (CDU, Bündnis 90/Die events, helping clubs like Holstein Kiel to es- Grünen, FDP 2017, p. 95). tablish own eSports departments, and help The German chancellor Angela Merkel young people to connect with each other with opened the gamescom (the biggest video eSports.” (Nordix-Play 2019) game trade show in the world) in August Their first organized event as a newly 2017 and declared video games a cultural as- founded company was the #diwokiel FIFA set (Presse- und Informationsamt der Bun- 2on2 Charity Tournament in February 2019 - desregierung 2017) A few months later in based on a cooperation with the team of the February 2018 the federal government Digital Week Kiel (Nordix-Play 2019). With (CDU, CSU, and SPD) took up eSport in this tournament they combined eSport with a their coalition contract (CDU, CSU, and SPD positive aspect by hosting a charity event - 2018, p.48). following the example of fundraising Hidden away in a small paragraph one can livestream campaigns of Friendly Fire, find a very meaningful sentence: Streaming with Heart and many others (GamesWirtschaft 2018; Streaming with “Because eSport trains skills that are useful Heart). The participation fees and the earn- even outside the digital world and because it ings from the live stream were donated to a requires training sports structures in the fu- non-profit organization against hunger ture, we will recognize eSport as an own among children. For this purpose, there have sport in accordance to organizational sports, also been some challenges and show matches and we will support the acceptance of eSport to motivate more donors. regarding an Olympic perspective.” (CDU, CSU, and SPD 2018, p.48.) One of the sponsors for the tournament's prizes was the digital agency Braune Digital Since the German eSport community has – another company from Kiel. Among the been fighting for eSport to be accepted as a most important customers of Braune Digital sport for years they celebrated this paper as a is EA Sports with the Virtual Bundesliga huge success. (Braune Digital GmbH 2019). Since 2013 Braune Digital delivers software for live sta- The digitalization programme of SH - re- tistics, tournament administrations and regis- leased in July 2018 - goes one step further. tration for live events. They are currently Besides agriculture, education and veterinary working on strengthening their relations to medicine you find the category “sport” where eSport is specifically mentioned (Landespor- event organizers within the federal state. The tal Schleswig-Holstein 2018). In the pro- economic actions show that there’s a new market gradually emerging. gramme, the government of the Land Schles- wig-Holstein formulates their own goal: to support the sports clubs in building up an e- Sport division. That’s why they are in lively Political Situation exchange with the regional sports association The topic eSport is already a fixed compo- of SH, the Sport Youth and the German Es- nent in the politics in Schleswig-Holstein port Federation (in German eSport-Bund (SH) - both at the local and the country level. Deutschland) which are all involved inten- sively in eSport (Landesportal Schleswig- In June 2017 eSport was considered in the Holstein 2018). coalition agreement of the government in SH. Within the document eSport is recog- These and many other eSport parties were in- nized as a part of social life of the German vited to an esport consultation in the Landtag society. In their text the parties are not refer- SH in January 2019 to discuss the different ring to a specific definition of eSport as a related topics from their expert perspectives kind of sport. Instead what they focus on is (Schleswig-Holsteinischer Landtag 2019a).

- 151 - Thus, the invited speakers came from the Air heavy metal festival in August 2018 sports sector like the regional sports associa- (University of Applied Science West Coast tion of SH, from the youth protection, from 2018). addiction counselling, from the parents coun- The vice president of the University of Ap- cil and from the representation of teachers in plied Science West Coast said of their plans: SH, from eSport event companies and the e- Sport lobby. It has been a controversial dis- “As a university we want to contribute to de- cussion, always at the highest level, with veloping the competences of eSport athletes nearly all parties open for the interests and systematically and to make it usable for the ideas of the others (Landesportal 2019a). management of companies as well as for sports federations and associations. Addi- In addition to the political basis, individual tionally, we see our social mission in the in- parties are also examining the eSport field. formation and education about responsible Therefore, especially in 2018 we had several handling of eSport [also according to legal panel discussions with headlines from “Sport and security issues, values of society, addic- in front of the screen or simply a nerdy tion prevention and health].” (University of hobby” (Grün Digital 2018) and “eSports - Applied Science West Coast 2018) the sport of tomorrow” (Digitale Woche Kiel 2018) to “Opportunities and risks of eSports” And also the mentioned integration of elec- (Landtagsfraktion der CDU Schleswig-Hol- tronic sport in a festival like at the Wacken stein 2018). Lastly, a political party titled Festival is a pioneering project. The ESL “Next level? Esports in Flensburg” invited Arena at Wacken was another advance of regional players and local youth workers to a gaming and electronic sports in the society. debate (Rasmus Andresen 2019). There was not only a Free-2-Play-Area but also daily amateur tourneys with prizes, This meeting was also used by the partici- training sessions and show matches (ICS pants for networking with each other, finding Festival Service GmbH 2018). collaborative partners and asking questions about possible public promotions for their ac- In Schleswig-Holstein, there’s also influence tivities in the field. There have been some to be found by the neighboring big eSport na- critical voices but the general consensus of tion Denmark, which has an exemplary func- the caretakers was that eSport is part of the tion in this sector. For instance, the esport or- youth culture and has to be dealt with accord- ganisation Cross Border Esport (Cross Bor- ingly. The focus was on the potential that by der Esport 2019) has supported several including eSport in public structures they events in Kiel with technical resources and could also offer programmes to the children with their expertise in eSport event manage- and young people to improve their media ment. The request from the Danish minority competence and also to educate them and party (Südschleswigsche Wählerverband or their parents about media consumption. SSW) in December 2018 is another indicator of this influence. The application concerning

the local level was focused on an eSport cen- Lighthouse Projects and Events ter in Kiel (capital city of Schleswig-Hol- stein) financed by a funding programme of Since we have many engaged regional play- the government (Grüne Fraktion SH 2018, ers and changes in the political situation in SSW 2018). SH there have also been a lot of eSport events and some lighthouse projects in the state be- After the coordination with other parties and tween the seas. the regional eSports scene this proposal was unanimously adopted (SSW 2019). One of the most famous lighthouse projects concerning eSport in North Germany might One day after the council thereof the German be the planned eSport academy in the Uni- Esport Federation, the city Kiel and the Land versity of Applied Science in Heide that was of Schleswig-Holstein made an historic an- announced in the ESL (Electronic Sports nouncement: before the third Digital Week in League) eSport arena at the Wacken Open

- 152 - September 2019 there would arise the nation- In January the first eSport meetup in Kiel has wide first Regional Center for Esport and been organized by the non-profit initiative Digitization supported by 250,000 Euro sub- IFgameSH (IFgameSH 2019b). These sidies (Landesportal 2019c). According to monthly meetups are always dealing with the internal state secretary Kristina Herbst certain topics and the introduction of its local it’s going to be a “central contact for sustain- stakeholders - like in January the SSW poli- able training and eSport events” (Landespor- ticians that were responsible for the eSport tal 2019c). center request or in February the sports associations Holstein Kiel and KMTV. The meet- As long as the deci- ings are offering a room for discussion, networking and collaborating and does im- sion-makers are not portant work for the community building on getting distracted by site.

the nationwide Conclusion tendencies in eSport Although the federal government is only hes- itantly and without certainty coping with dialogues there is electronic sports and its impact on the society, the most northern region of all German definitely a reason federal states is currently setting milestones for hope according in this sector. One advantage is surely the closeness to the role model nation These actions from the public sector are of Denmark. During the last two years SH added by several commercial and economi- regularly got impulses from the Scandina- cal activities. Started as a LAN party in 2012 vian direction in the intensive discussions the NorthCon is now a major event in Schles- about the promotion of eSport activities by wig-Holstein holding tournaments in leading the public authorities. With the link of eSport eSport titles (Team NorthCon 2019). Show- and digitization in the planned regional com- casing innovative ideas video game develop- petence and training center in Kiel, Schles- ment and eSport were also a part of the wig-Holstein makes a mark that attracts the 2018’s edition of the Waterkant Festival in attention of the rest of Germany and beyond. Kiel (waterkant 2018). A few weeks later the summer went on with the already mentioned The development in 2018 made eSport en- ESL Arena at Wacken (ICS Festival Service thusiasts dream of a bright future - in 2019 GmbH 2018). This was followed by another the Schleswig-Holstein government meets eSport summit with relevant players from the expectations of the eSport community in politics, industry, and eSport enthusiasts in the North. All in all, there are ideal condi- Husum (Messe Husum & Congress 2018). A tions to grow competitive or at least provide similar event was hosted at the second Digi- a supportive environment for the local eSport tal Week Kiel – which featured a multifac- players, operators, casters, community man- eted gaming showroom organized by the agers, and all other actors in this rapidly event agency Ocean.Global (Ocean.Global growing sector. While the economy gets 2018). more and more involved in this market, politicians only need to keep their word. During their playground event Ocean.Global mentioned that they intend to host further As long as the decision-makers are not get- events in the eSport field in addition to their ting distracted by the nationwide tendencies water sports focus. in eSport dialogues there is definitely a reason for hope. The networking idea also found access to the year 2019 - but more on a community-basis.

- 153 - eSports and gender related topics regarding video games are Jana Möglich’s métier. She has been a competitive player and manager in several eSport organizations for ten years. Her acquired expertise helped her in the function of a community manager at the Electronic Sports League. Later, in her bachelor and master thesis she also dealt with video games and eSports in a scientific way. Nowadays Jana Möglich is engaged as eSports consultant at the Initiative for the Support of the Video Game Industry in Northern Germany

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- 156 - The sixth edition of the eSports yearbook focuses on the recent developments in the scene. Especially with the ongoing professionalization, there is an increase in academic research observable. The topics range from governance and institutionalization of the eSports industry to the continuing professionalization of companies involved in the industry. Still, sponsoring stays crucial for the survivability of businesses in eSports. Furthermore, critical issues such as nationalism and censorship will be discussed. The book highlights the development of eSports from being a niche phenomenon towards becoming acentralpartofmodernsociety.