Electronic sports, also known as “eSports”, are a form of gaming that uses multiplayer competition as a way for video game professionals to compete against one another on a digital platform. An eSport that has recently blown up in the media is Fortnite. With over 250 million users and having only been founded just three years prior, Fortnite is an example of just how much traction an eSport can generate.
In a recent analysis, Grand Canyon University mapped out the concentration of eSports in every state, and the universities they are most popular in.
In the analysis, GCU discovered that the states with the highest number of intercollegiate eSports program are California, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New York. These four states possess over 25% of America’s eSport programs, which reveals the rest of the country is still catching on to this new form of competition. However, with a projection of generating $1.5 billion in 2021, and increased growth in every year since 2012, eSports are bound to attract more players and gain greater recognition across the country.
The type of school intercollegiate eSports are most popular in is NCAA Division 1 institutions. Creating quite the reputation, D1 schools are known for being the most competitive division of collegiate athletics and holding a high ranking in the athletic world. With this in mind, it’s no surprise that these types of universities explore different platforms for organized sports and strategic game play.
Expanding further on the facts and figures of eSports, the analysis also found that League of Legends, Overwatch, and Rocket League were the three most popular eSports in the nation. In contrast to traditional sports, these three games have themes rooted in fantasy, which strays from what athletes are able to actually play in real life. This is a possible factor as to why League of Legends took first place in the esport world, rather than more realistic games like NBA2k and FIFA.
