It might not be something you’ve heard of before, but eSports, global gaming competitions where solo players or teams compete against each other to be the best at popular video games, is big business, and it is growing fast.

Some people are so optimistic about the future of eSports they have even put their reputations on the line by claiming it could be as popular as the NFL by next year.

Whether or not you believe such a statement, there is no denying that the competitors of these eSports tournaments take their job very seriously, especially with prize pools of up to $18m (£11.9m) up for grabs.

Contrary to what many believe, eSports is not restricted to ‘obviously’ competitive games. In fact the fanbase of tournaments based around shooters like Call of Duty and fighting games pales in comparison to games such as League of Legends, an online MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role playing game), which has amassed millions of players who flock to see the best of the best battle it out to be champion.

At the end of 2015, the developers of the League of Legends game, Riot, revealed the 2015 World Championships, held throughout Western Europe, were watched by more than 334 million people, with an average of 4.2m viewers for each game. This might not be a shock to them, seeing as their game already has more players than the population of France.

eSports are now becoming so popular they are even changing the way many bookmakers and betting sites operate.

Video games on the same scale as traditional sports such as horse racing or football might sound a bit strange to the uninitiated, but to many it is a serious profession, with big money involved, and bookmakers are taking note.

Huge online bookmakers, who have for a long time only offered the traditional kind of gaming, such as football betting, are now dedicating huge sections of their online platforms and resources to cover the extensive worldwide eSports betting market.

Sites offer coverage of games such as League of Legends, Dota 2, Starcraft 2, Counter Strike CS:GO, Heroes of the Storm and, since December, Call of Duty.

Although its origins lie firmly in Asia – in countries such as South Korea and China tournaments of eSports can easily rival ‘traditional’ sports – it is becoming increasingly popular in the west. In fact, American media giant Turner recently announced plans for ‘ELeague’, based around the popular Valve game Counter Strike CS:GO, with an impressive $1.2m prize pool.

Turner has said the tournament, held over two 10-week seasons in 2016, will be broadcast on the US network TBS and have similar production values to the NFL and NBA. eSports aficionados hope this will shine a light on the sport and bring it into the mainstream.

Whatever the future is for eSports, we may all have to get used to hearing more about it. We might even end up joining in.

Pictures Credit:

“League of Legends Season 2 World Champio” (CC BY 2.0) by artubr

“gBots contra x6tence” (CC BY 2.0) by artubr