Is Video Gaming a Sport?

Nearly 100 million people tuned in to watch the 2019 League of Legends World Championship, one of the biggest video game competitions in the world. Video game tournaments are also known as esports, or electronic sports. In recent years, esports have become increasingly popular. The audience for esports grew to 495 million people worldwide in 2020. As the field of esports grows, a debate has emerged about whether or not gaming is, in fact, a sport. A founder of a high school esports league and a graduate student specializing in physical education square off about whether video games should be considered sports.

May 10, 2021

Some people think of video games as a time-waster—just entertainment. But in reality, video games train our brains, improving our reflexes, strategic thinking, multitasking ability, and attention spans. These are many of the same skills we use in traditional sports.

Others believe video games are a solitary activity, but in fact the biggest esports are team games. And by bringing esports onto our school campus, joining up with our friends, and competing for school pride, we can use games to teach us sportsmanship, discipline, teamwork, and leadership.

At the pro level, esports are already a lot like football and soccer: Millions of people tune in to watch championship matches on TV. Top players get paid big money and even get sponsorships from huge companies like Nike.

In 2012, I helped start a company called High School Esports League, which has worked hard to bring esports to high schools for many years now. We’ve seen the impact organized competitive gaming has on students’ lives, their school performance, and their college prospects.

Video games improve our reflexes, strategic thinking, and attention spans.

Just like traditional sports, esports can help pay for your college tuition. Many colleges and universities have esports programs, and they’ve given out more than $16 million in scholarship money to high school esports players from our league so far.

Students who participate in sports and other after-school programs often have better grades, attendance, and engagement with teachers and peers. That’s absolutely true of high school esports too: According to data we collected in 2018, students who took a class about video games and competed in the High School Esports League had on average a 1.7 point improvement in their GPAs.

At least 70 percent of high school students today play video games already, and that number is only going up. Video gaming is here to stay, and high schools should embrace esports for the incredibly positive effect they can have on students’ lives.

—MASON MULLENIOUX

Co-founder & CEO, High School Esports League

In this new digital era, video games have become an important pastime for children and adults alike. While video games can be very competitive, and professional gamers can make millions of dollars at competitions, video games shouldn’t be considered sports.

Sports are inherently physical, and even sports with lower amounts of physical exertion, such as golf and archery, can still be classified as “physical activity.” The benefits of regular physical activity are well-known. Exercise strengthens your muscles and bones, improves memory and learning, increases mental health and resiliency, reduces your risk of many diseases, including type-2 diabetes and some cancers, and helps you to live longer.

Sports are an inherently physical activity that provide health benefits.

It may be easy to confuse the racing heart of a stressful gaming situation with the racing heart you experience during exercise, but the two situations are not the same. In stressful situations, our heart rate spikes and blood pressure is elevated in a classic “fight-or-flight” response. We have a dump of sugar and fat into the blood that is intended to be used by our muscles to get away from the threat. Our body is ready for super-intense physical activity that never occurs. This can lead to a host of downstream health problems, ranging from a greater susceptibility to colds and flus to more serious conditions. On the flip side, the racing heart you experience during exercise delivers oxygen and essential nutrients to your working muscles and brain, helps your heart and muscles become stronger, and helps you to better handle future stressors.

Physical health aside, true sports often provide an environment for real-world social interactions. While video games these days can involve team members, you can’t beat the shared experience of physical exertion on a sunny day with a group of your closest friends. Altogether, while video games certainly have a place as a fun hobby, let’s not make the mistake of confusing them with sports.

—ALEXANDRA COATES