The Sixers are Going to Treat E-Sports Players like Actual Athletes
When Sixers ownership jumped into the e-sports world a couple of months ago, they said they would lend their “experience with sponsorship and digital marketing” to the growth of the teams. Today, on (of course) Fox Business, they said they’re going like eight steps further into…sports science? For e-sports? I feel old:
The Sixers, who became the first U.S.-based sports franchise to invest in eSports through their acquisition of Team Dignitas and Team Apex last September, are providing doctors, sleep experts, nutritionists, sports psychologists and various other wellness-related resources for their stable of gamers.
The renewed focus on training is a crucial development for the eSports industry, which has seen massive growth in revenue and viewership in recent years, but has struggled to develop players with crossover appeal for mainstream consumers, like the NBA’s LeBron James or the UFC’s Ronda Rousey. By treating gamers more like professional athletes and less like hobbyists, industry insiders are aiming to tap into a new audience.
I fully understand these are enormous stereotypes, but hear me out: This is nuts. To most people, a professional gamer conjures up an image of a sleep deprived, Code Red fueled, massively overfed (or underfed) schlub. But I guess if the people the Sixers trust could get Joel Embiid to (mostly) kick Shirley Temples, they can do anything.
Post-Script: E-Sports has “struggled to develop players with crossover appeal for mainstream consumers, like the NBA’s LeBron James or the UFC’s Ronda Rousey” in the same way I’ve struggled to date Emily Ratajkowski. I could try and try and try and try. It’s just never going to happen.