The Importance of Stakeholder Relations in Collegiate Esports Integration

From its humble beginnings to global mainstream success, the rise of esports has brought with it a litany of opportunities and challenges relating to regulation, varsity integration and professional institutionalization. Even with its proliferation around the world and relative brand name recognition, the relationship between esports and traditional sports continues to be a contentious one, leading to many universities and colleges taking a limiting approach to the flourishing esports market. In this paper I review the growing body of research available to understand the struggles, achievements and potential value of collegiate esports integration. While competitive gaming at the varsity level often finds itself at the behest of athletic departments, I argue that there is a need to refrain from trying to fit esports into conventional models. A lot can be learned from athletics, but the department’s expertise does not lie in esports. I make the case that with the continued adoption of esports into academic institutions there is a growing need to establish new frameworks, where finding a balance between competition, technology and education lies with the unified academic community.