These are the parallels between e-sports and traditional sports

E-sports once began as a leisure activity for nerds and has grown into a billion-dollar industry over the years. Countless participants and millions of fans from all over the world have turned the digital sport into a serious competitor. So it's no wonder that traditional major clubs are also trying to get fans of e-sports interested in their sports and are looking for a connection.

At first glance, e-sports and traditional sports have little in common, but this impression is deceptive. The only difference between the two is the choice of tools, but the requirements are strikingly similar. Both are about competing against each other, which requires intensive training.

The success of e-sports has therefore also meant that the biggest and most successful tournaments have found their way to sports betting providers. There, sports betting can be found in the middle of football, tennis or basketball and has established itself as an integral part of the offering.

Sporting values as the foundation for top performance

For every form of sport, athleticism is the core value of its participants. Not only do they strive to reach the top, but they do so with values such as discipline and fair play. To be among the best, however, regular and intensive training is required. This not only extends to physical skills, but also to mental ones. Only those who are able to perform at their best under the highest pressure and sustained stress will make it to the top of their sport.

It doesn't matter whether the athlete is sitting at a console or performing in front of thousands of spectators in a stadium. The pressure is the same, after all, millions of eyes are watching the event unfold. Even the teamwork factor is reflected in e-sports. There is no need for egoists here, but rather team players who set themselves a common goal and use their individual skills to achieve it.

Spectators as multipliers

Spectators play an important role in e-sports, just as they do in traditional sports. Fans generate enthusiasm, cheer on their heroes and ideally turn a competition into an event. Both forms of sport attract masses of fans.

This has also become possible with e-sports thanks to the triumphant advance of numerous streaming platforms. Where in the early days fans would gather on site to watch the action, millions of fans now "flock" to platforms such as Twitch or YouTube to follow the events up close. As a result, a global following quickly developed, forming communities. The atmosphere created by these loyal followers is a key factor in the appeal of e-sports. This is where the passion of the players for the games meets the enthusiasm of the spectators. Together, both groups have managed to turn e-sports into a phenomenon.

Professional competition based on extensive structures

But all this would not be enough to create hype. Competition is always at the heart of success in sport. When two opponents or teams clash to compete under the toughest conditions, spectators get excited. However, this presupposes that the participants are capable of delivering top sporting performances. The stage for this performance is the stadium for traditional athletes and the digital world for e-athletes.

However, this first requires a comprehensive structure. Athletes need support, various leagues and teams as well as a professional infrastructure in order to develop step by step. E-sports has learnt how this works from conventional sports and has built up similar structures. These guarantee enormous competition and constant new blood. Coaches, analysts and sponsors support them in their endeavours to catch up with the best players.

Technology and tradition are merging more and more

Even the basic premise of e-sports, the digital revolution, combines digital sports with traditional sports. While the internet, consoles and graphics cards have created the technical basis for e-sports, traditional sports are utilising the possibilities of technology to advance the quality of their sport. Data is considered modern gold, and this also applies to sport.

It uses analytical tools to monitor the performance of its athletes and uncover weak points. Athletes have long since mutated into transparent human beings who can be optimised further and further with the help of technology. As if that wasn't enough, top clubs such as FC Bayern Munich are using their good name to get involved in the world of e-sports themselves. Those who are among the world's best on the pitch also want to achieve this on the digital playing field. The German football champions have been proving that this is possible for several years now. Football is using the popularity of e-sports to increase its appeal and attract new followers at the same time.

Learning from each other

Despite all the parallels, there are differences between e-sports and traditional sports. While the latter primarily require an alert body, the former primarily utilise an alert mind. However, training in the areas of strategy, mental strength and media work immediately unites the two very different forms of sport. These examples prove that both can learn from each other. E-sports benefits from the decades of experience of traditional sports when it comes to building structures and attracting sponsors. Conversely, traditional sports can increasingly utilise the possibilities of technology to push the boundaries of peak physical performance further and further.