DO ONLINE COMPETITIONS COUNT AS SPORT?

More than a quarter of the Swiss population sees online competitions as a new sport. This is the result of a study by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences. However, the federal government does not recognise so-called eSports as an official sport.

According to a study by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW), eSports are becoming increasingly popular in Switzerland. Around 28 per cent already see a new sport in the online competition, according to a press release on Monday. There is already an active eSports scene in Switzerland.

For the study “eSports Switzerland 2019”, 1,011 people were interviewed in all three language regions. The ZHAW conducted it in cooperation with UPC Switzerland, Basler Versicherungen and TCS. As the survey shows, around 31 per cent of the Swiss population know what eSports is and associate the topic with the term competition. The respondents also replied with the terms “exiting”, “interesting” and ” attractive”.

One-third of the Swiss are “eSporters

Around a third of the Swiss population describes itself as a “gamer” or “eSportsman”, plays around 11 hours a week and spends an average of CHF 1,270 on equipment.

Interest is unlikely to diminish in the coming years, according to the press release. Those who are already active in eSports are likely to stay, and the next generation is already growing up with the topic, the authors of the study write. The most popular information channel for eSports is YouTube.

A play culture, not a sport

At the moment, the question of whether eSports is a sport moves not only the game scene but also politics. The Federal Office of Sports (Baspo) recently wrote a report in which it states that eSports is not a sport in the traditional sense.

ESports is not comparable with conventional sports, because no primary experiences in direct contact with fellow human beings and the environment are possible. Moreover, the Baspo writes that e-sports games, which are often characterised by violence, do not meet the requirements for the protection of children and young people.