(Author’s Note: This blog post was originally published April 2011 on the IGN Blogs)
When it comes to competitive sports we love to watch them. Whether it is American football, soccer, basketball, baseball, tennis, MMA, hockey, boxing, etc we love to watch them and cheer for our favorite team or person. After all, sports are the modern-day equivalent of the gladiatorial games of Rome and jousting of the Middle Ages. But despite the evolution and interest of competitive sports throughout the centuries, one thing has remained constant. Men and women never really compete against each other.
Even in today’s era, where women are supposed to be considered equal, do we still find huge gaps between the sexes and nowhere is that more apparent than in the world of competitive sports. We have the WNBA and the NBA, the PGA and the LPGA, the ATP and WTA, and of course the NFL and LFL.
So why are the two sexes separated if they are supposed to be considered equal in this day and age? At the very least have the championship teams, for each respective sport, face off with each other. Do you know how many views that would get!? Not to mention bragging rights to the gender whose team wins?
Yet, while competitive sports will most likely never merge the two sexes, there is one sport that can do this: eSports. For a while now eSports have continually grown at a steady pace. As video games continue to become more popular so does the eSports circuit. Of course eSports, involving Starcraft, are more popular in places such as South Korea than the States but that is starting to change since western competitions are gaining ground.
The biggest news, which could shift popularity to western eSports’ favor, is that SlayerS_BoxeR applied to the newly formed North American Star League (NASL) while leaving the Global Starcraft League (GSL). This is big considering that SlayerS_BoxeR is one the most beloved South Korean Starcraft players ever. This guy is a beast when it comes to the game and has made a ton of money throughout his gaming career (when there is a prize pool of $400,000 dollars on the table, it isn’t shocking that he would apply to the NASL.)
Of course, Starcraft is also the most-watched professional sport in South Korea and so it might be a long time before any western pro gaming league can match their veracity for the game and popularity. However, here in the States, we don’t focus on just Starcraft alone. The eSports League (ESL) hosts a large championship tournament featuring Starcraft, Counter Strike 1.6, World of Warcraft, and Quake Live where the best players will win monetary prizes (along with sponsorships and gear).
If you are good enough at your respective game, then you could be one of a small group of gamers who make thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, each year playing the games they love.
But of course you better be able to think on your feet and possess lightning-fast reflexes.
(Morrow vs Idra! Terran vs Zerg! Underdog against the Champion! Who will win!?)
Now eSports is the place where gender equality can be promoted. Physical strength and endurance is not a prerequisite to be successful. Intelligence, cunning, and fast reflexes are what you need to bring to the table. And these are qualities that both sexes have plenty of.
Unless you are a blonde person…
However, while eSports can promote gender equality it has yet to do so. Even now, eSports is predominantly male. In fact, it is extremely rare to see a female gamer participating in any of the competitions despite the fact that there are female gamers out there. After all, I’ve met quite a few women, who I have played with, in games such as Counter-Strike and World of Warcraft which leads me to ask; where are they in these competitions?
The latest example of this would be the NASL which just finished choosing the participants for the upcoming game tournament that was gleaned from the assortment of submitted applications. And, unsurprisingly, the final roster is all guys! Seriously, not one woman in the lot. But then again, I don’t think any women even submitted an application.
Of course, there is a new league in the works and that is the IGN Proleague. This will be another Starcraft II-only gaming league, as far as I can tell, which IGN is sponsoring and promoting (MyIGN got to hear about it a little while back). But will there be any female contestants? I don’t know. But I have a feeling that the participants will all be male.
Will there be female contestants?
So why is it that even eSports can’t seem to showcase gender equality despite the potential of such a thing happening? The arena is there and the possibilities are open to female gamers. And let’s face it; there are a lot of female gamers out there.
So while eSports can promote true gender equality the question I have to ask is: will it ever happen?
Do you think that eSports can be used as a vehicle to promote gender equality?
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