Abstract
As millions of dollars, euros, yen, and won continue to pour into the esports industry, esports has not been spared from the same challenges facing traditional competitive sports. While traditional sports leagues had the space to develop over decades, esports, by contrast, have enjoyed a meteoric rise in popularity and swift adoption by gamers and fans alike. The accelerated acceptance and adoption of esports means that the esports industry has been experiencing “growing pains” much like traditional sports leagues—as well as other issues endemic to esports—at a much earlier stage. Addressing these issues necessitates an unbiased and candid examination of the ability of the esports industry to address its challenges and continue towards professionalization.
This Article begins with an overview of the esports industry, a review of its primary challenges—match-fixing, doping, and gender-based harassment and discrimination—and the industry’s to-date attempts to address these issues. It is incumbent upon the esports industry to take an approach that encourages an analysis and adoption of best practices established by other sports organizations, as well as developing its own policies and procedures to further build industry integrity. If the esports industry can adopt uniform regulations, establish integrity policies and build consensus around them it can claim its rightful place among professional sports organizations.
Recommended Citation
Harris, Becky and Sartin, Tavis
(2025)
"Professionalizing Esports,"
Florida Entertainment and Sports Law Review: Vol. 4:
Iss.
2, Article 3.
Available at:
https://scholarship.law.ufl.edu/feslr/vol4/iss2/3