Esports is now considered a worldwide phenomenon, with the industry undergoing a degree of globalization in recent years. However, this hasn’t always been the case. For a long time, the esports sector was largely confined to East Asia, with a few grassroots organizations cropping up in Europe and college campuses across the United States. Audiences in the Western hemisphere might have since caught the esports bug, but the delayed uptake has led to wildly different cultures forming around competitive gaming.
International Appetites for Video Games
Unsurprisingly, video games are devoured a little differently across the globe. This is most evident in the types of genres that are most popular in certain countries. In the United States, it’s shooters, sports games, and action-adventure titles that are most popular with console players, with strategy and role-playing games topping the PC charts. However, look to Asia, and you get a different outlook entirely.
In Japan, it’s role-playing games that are most sought after, with homegrown brawlers and platformers also proving popular. It’s a largely similar picture in South Korea, although simulation games and shooters also sell well.
International Esports Culture
Until recently, esports tournaments were still considered something of a novelty in the Western world. The likes of the League of Legends World Championship have become some of the most-viewed online events of all time, with the 2023 edition bringing in an audience of more than 6.4 million.
While esports are only now penetrating the mainstream in North America and Europe, they’ve been a staple of popular culture elsewhere for more than two decades. Esports as we know and love them today were conceived in South Korea, with Seoul playing host to the World Cyber Games in late 2000. The success of esports in South Korea can be largely attributed to Blizzard Entertainment’s StarCraft series, although a thriving internet cafe culture and countrywide broadband network certainly helped. Within a few years, esports had become a national pastime, with television channels dedicated to nothing but video games.
For many gamers, South Korea will always be seen as the spiritual home of esports. In 2024, the capital city will once again be playing host to an international esports tournament, with teams from across the world converging for the latest edition of the Valorant Champions Tour (VCT). Want to see who comes out on top this year? Get the latest Valorant schedule here.
Esports Elsewhere in the World
While other countries lacked South Korea’s broadband infrastructure, an early framework for esports was taking shape. Germany was one of the first European countries to embrace competitive gaming. Several months before the inaugural World Cyber Games, the German city of Duisburg played host to an event christened Gamers’ Gathering. Hundreds of competitors from across Europe descended on the city, with several high-profile titles of the time on the tournament schedule.
More than any other European country, Germany has played a key role in bringing esports into the mainstream. Founded in 2000, the Electronic Sports League – now known as ESL Gaming – started life as an internet-based gaming tournament. Within a few years, this online-only league had blossomed into a bonafide esports organization, with tournaments like the Intel Extreme Masters becoming some of the most-watched esports events of all time.
Over the past decade, esports has become a truly global enterprise. Today, every international region has its own leagues, with Chinese esports organizations emerging to dominate the Asian sector. Meanwhile, interest in competitive gaming is finally stirring elsewhere in the world, with the likes of South America and Oceania the latest regions to embrace esports.
