The large coalition’s initiative to pay more attention to eSports is not well received everywhere. DFB President Reinhard Grindel sharply criticizes eSports and virtual football. He probably can’t make much of FIFA 18 and PES.
EA has long been steering FIFA towards eSports. Since the Weekend League, FUT Champions Cups, and the eWorld Cup, this has become increasingly clear.
The growing reach of eSports – not just for FIFA 18 – is not going unnoticed: The CDU/CSU and SPD have now stated in the coalition agreement that they want to promote eSports more and possibly even provide it with an “olympic perspective”.
Strong headwinds are now coming from Reinhard Grindel, the President of the German Football Association (DFB).
“E-Sports is not a sport to me”
Grindel’s position is clear. For him, football “belongs on the green grass and has nothing to do with other things that are computerized.” He does not see great competition for football clubs in other sports, but rather in virtual football simulations such as FIFA 18 or Pro Evolution Soccer (PES).
Grindel sees nothing appealing in the coalition’s plan to provide computer games with an “olympic perspective”. The idea would be “absurd”. He hopes it does not come to that.
In general, he does not consider eSports to be a sport and sees the youth’s engagement with digital devices as an “absolute impoverishment”.
eSport-Bund-Deutschland responds on Facebook
The President of the eSport-Bund-Deutschland (ESBD), Hans Jagnow, stands firmly against Grindel’s statements. In a Facebook post from the ESBD, Jagnow is quoted: “Shutting oneself off from digital innovation is rarely a good idea, and I can only warn against it.”
He speaks of reaching a young audience with values such as tolerance, respect, fair play, and teamwork through eSports. He sees the current developments as a great opportunity to complement traditional club sports with digital offerings.
eSports has already arrived in the Bundesliga
Despite prominent opponents like the DFB President, eSports has long found its place in the top German Bundesliga.
Seven Bundesliga clubs already have their own eSports departments. According to gameswirtschaft another eight teams, including Bayern Munich, are said to be looking into hiring professional FIFA players. Only BVB, SC Freiburg, and TSG Hoffenheim are distancing themselves from FIFA eSports.
Recently, however, the German eSports scene was faced with a scandal. A player intentionally lost against his teammate and was subsequently suspended.
