Persuasive Essay
Weld County, Colorado takes great pride in their high school sports programs. Any
skepticism of this claim can be erased with a quick drive through some of the more rural cities in
Weld County. Soon, one will know who the local mascot is, and what sport is in season. Signs
and flyers can be seen hanging from gas stations and restaurants, all of which support the local
high school football, soccer, or basketball team. Despite the popularity of these activities, not all
of the student body has an opportunity to participate in these activities. This demand can isolate a
large margin of the student body from being able to or even willing to be a part of any sports
program. Luckily, the Colorado High School Athletic Association has recently given the green
light to pilot an esports in their list of approved competitive activities. Now is the time that Weld
County schools should establish their own esports program. With an esports program in
place, opportunities would expand for students less interested or unable to participate in the
dominant, physical sports. Esports would also allow them to build social development and
engagement skills, as well as enhance career and college skills, all the while bringing in an
additional revenue stream for the school itself.
Esports, or electronic sports, is a relatively new concept, as it has only started to gain
popularity in recent years. In layman’s terms, esports is competitive video gaming. It involves
players, often in teams, who compete in a specific video game to become the winner, with the
rewards typically being a sum of money or different prizes. Popular games like Overwatch and
League of Legends have teams all over the world, from Seoul to San Francisco to Shanghai
(Teams). It is not unlike many popular sports today, in which athletes (players) train and
compete to earn top spots on some of the more national and international teams. Esports itself is
growing to be just as popular as these major sports events. According to an article published by
CNBC, a 2018 League of Legends match brought in an estimated 100 million viewers, compared
to the 2017 Super Bowl viewership of 103 million (Pei). It is safe to say that, although esports is
new to most, it is growing and growing fast.
To give perspective on just how popular esports is becoming, a Newzoo market report
put audience viewership of esports in 2016 a little over 280 million, with revenue estimated
around 843 million (Kortekaas). In addition, 2018 viewership increased 36% to 380 million with
a revenue jump of 90% to 1.6 billion and if that isn’t impressive, projected numbers for 2021 put
viewership at 557 million (a 47% increase) with an astounding 88% increase to over $3 billion in
revenue (Kortekaas). With numbers climbing steeper and steeper, esports is starting to earn its
spot within the professional sports arena, with major broadcasters like Disney, ESPN, and ABC
securing spots for broadcasting specific esport tournaments (McKenna). This shows the potential
for esports to become one of the most highly viewed sports programs, right up there with the
NFL.
By Weld County adding esports to their after-school sports programs, the options for
students broadens, and includes a demographic of student that has normally not been reached.
Esports itself is an all-encompassing field, and is about as diverse as one could possibly get,
where any age, gender, physical ability or race can train and compete and offer a role in these
competitions. It is also able to include a group of students that may otherwise not participate in
any after school activities. Esports are not only able to unlock opportunities for those who are
simply less interested in physical sports, but they enable those who are unable to perform the
physical demand of most after school sports activities. This high level of inclusion gives video
gaming its uniqueness from traditional sports activities, where just about anyone can pick up a
controller and start playing a video game.
That is where true beauty of inclusion lies within esports. Those who are physically
disabled or have special needs have long been excluded from being able to compete in a majority
of sporting events. Across the nation, Michael L. Williams, Coordinator of athletics for a
Maryland high school, wrote an article to the National Federation of State High School
Associations which shed light on the need for disability accommodations for disabled students
who wish to participate in sporting events with their able-bodied counterparts (Williams). Many
students with disabilities want to play their sport with those who are not disabled, to show off
their skills and prove that disability is only a word. Here in Weld County, Special Education
Secretary for the RE-5J School District Cil White estimates that “approximately 10% of the…
