The International Olympic Committee has plans to create specific Olympic games for eSports. The announcement was made by Thomas Bach, president of the IOC, during the opening ceremony of the 141st Session of the IOC in Mumbai, India, which took place on Saturday, 14. This initiative could further boost the presence of sports betting houses in this vertical, which has been growing exponentially over the past four years.
The Olympic eSports Games were justified by the large number of players around the world. According to Bach, there are three billion people playing electronic sports and other games at a global level. Of these, more than 500 million are interested in eSports. A relevant fact for the IOC, noted the president, is that most are under 34 years old.
This initiative of the International Olympic Committee could further boost the presence of sports betting houses in this vertical, which has been growing exponentially over the last four years.
Some of the main sportsbooks operating on five continents offer eSports markets and the endorsement of the main international sports body to the practice of eSports could further boost the betting offerings in this mode.
The organization already has a promising history in this segment. In 2018, the IOC organized the eSports Forum in Lausanne, Switzerland. Subsequently, it created a group for interaction among all stakeholders on the topic. In 2021, it started the Olympic Virtual Series.
Held earlier this year, the Olympic eSports Week in Singapore featured live finals, in collaboration with the International Sports Federations (IFs) and publishers. In total, more than 130 players from around the world competed in ten categories, 500,000 unique participants throughout the series, and more than six million views of the live broadcasts.
eSports and new paradigms
“We chose an approach that would allow us to be active in the electronic sports space while remaining true to our values that have guided us for over a century. As far as eSports are concerned, our values are and continue to be the red line we will not cross,” said Bach. He highlighted that a gaming company even adapted its popular game to be fully in line with Olympic values – so that players would shoot at targets and not people.
In his speech, he emphasized the need for a change in mindset in the Olympic movement to keep up with younger generations. The president pointed out that the group lives digital lives: “We should not ignore their thinking if we do not want to jeopardize our own future. We must empower them to guide us with their youthful mindset”.
Bach also recalled that one of the fundamental principles of the Olympic Agenda 2020 is that sport must go where the people are, including the digital world.
Among the risks of this new moment is artificial intelligence. Bach argued that the IOC should be in command in this regard. The IOC is already acting in the development of a holistic analysis of opportunities and risks of AI with a group of technology experts. If all goes well, he pointed out, it will be possible to see the consequences of the work already at the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Source: meio&mensagem / GMB
