ELIJAH NOUVELAGE/AFP via Getty Images (stadium); Colin Young-Wolff/Riot Games via Getty Images (gamers)

Is Playing Video Games a Sport?

April 24, 2023

As You Read: List how esports are similar to traditional sports. How are they different?

ELIJAH NOUVELAGE/AFP via Getty Images

Fans pack into a stadium to watch esports teams compete.

Each day, 12-year-old Brady Donbeck spends about an hour playing with his teammates. They practice scoring goals and working together. Brady’s team is so good that they finished fourth in last year’s North American Finals. But they weren’t running around on a field. They were at their computers playing Rocket League. That’s a video game that combines car racing and soccer.

Competitions that involve video games like Rocket League are called esports. Esports is short for electronic sports. More than 500 million people watched esports events last year. More people are starting to think playing video games is a sport.

Brady agrees with that thinking. He competes in the XP League. That’s the largest youth esports league in the U.S. He says esports aren’t that different from traditional sports like basketball.

Other people aren’t as sure. While many agree that esports takes skill, they say gamers are not athletes.

Each day, 12-year-old Brady Donbeck spends about an hour playing with his teammates. They practice scoring goals and working together. Brady’s team is good. They finished fourth in last year’s North American Finals. But they weren’t running around on a field. They were at their computers. And they were playing Rocket League. That’s a video game that combines car racing and soccer.

Competitions that involve video games are called esports. Esports is short for electronic sports. More than 500 million people watched esports events last year. More people are starting to think playing video games is a sport.

Brady agrees with that thinking. He competes in the XP League. It’s the largest youth esports league in the U.S. He says esports aren’t that different from traditional sports like basketball.

Other people aren’t as sure. Many agree that esports take skill. But they say gamers are not athletes.

Should playing esports be thought of as a sport?

Video Games: Then and Now

Watch a video to learn about the history of video games.

Esports fans say that gamers are like athletes who play traditional sports. Both need many of the same skills. Those skills include the ability to concentrate and to do well under pressure.

To many people, the competition level of esports is high. It puts esports in the same category as sports like football, basketball, and baseball.

“It’s different than sitting around and playing a board game,” explains Daniel Kane. He’s a teacher who has written about esports.

Kane says the meaning of sports has changed over time. For years, many people didn’t take skateboarding seriously. Now skaters compete at the Summer Olympics. Kane believes that esports are on a similar path.

In fact, more than 8,600 high schools in the U.S. have added esports teams since 2018. And the National Basketball Association (NBA) has become the first major sports league to welcome esports. It runs the NBA 2K League for pro gamers.

Esports fans say that gamers are like athletes who play traditional sports. Both need the ability to concentrate. They also have to do well under pressure.

Many people think the competition level of esports is high. They say this puts esports in the same category as sports like football and baseball.

“It’s different than sitting around and playing a board game,” explains Daniel Kane. He’s a teacher who has written about esports.

Kane says the meaning of sports has changed over time. Many people didn’t take skateboarding seriously for years. Now skaters compete at the Summer Olympics. Kane believes that esports are on a similar path.

Many people argue that being an athlete means doing something physical. They say esports don’t require much exercise. Most video games are played sitting down, sometimes for hours at a time.

Esports involve skill. But many people say they have more in common with games like chess than ones like football. Others point out that cooking shows and singing contests are also competitions. They can have big audiences too. But few people would argue that they’re sports.

Justin Simpao works at a video game company in Canada. Simpao says esports belong in their own category.

“Using the term sports to describe esports doesn’t quite do it justice,” Simpao says.

He thinks esports and traditional sports are like siblings. They have a lot in common. But they also have qualities that make them different.

Many people argue that being an athlete means doing something physical. They say esports don’t require much exercise. Most video games are played sitting down. Sometimes players sit for hours at a time.

Esports do involve skill. But many people say they have more in common with games like chess than ones like football. Others point out that cooking shows and singing contests are also competitions. They can have big audiences too. But few people would argue that they’re sports.

Justin Simpao works at a video game company in Canada. He says esports belong in their own category.

“Using the term sports to describe esports doesn’t quite do it justice,” Simpao says.

He thinks esports and traditional sports are like siblings. They have a lot in common. But they also have qualities that make them different.

What’s the purpose of the paragraph about Brady Donbeck at the start of the article?
Why does Daniel Kane compare esports to skateboarding?
Why do some people think playing video games is not a sport?