There’s a new “Sport” on the rise, called professional gaming.

Many shrug off that gaming is a sport, but it’s getting bigger every day. Professional gaming is where people compete in a video game tournament or league to win money. Professional gaming is a lot like golf, in the sense that the higher you place on the leader board the more money you can win. It takes all kinds of talents to be able to play such as; great reaction time, hand eye coordination, intelligence, dedication, and much more.  There are many types of games that have tournaments or leagues, most are hosted by either big companies, developers, or the game company itself. Cash prizes can range from $500 to $21 million. Obviously the more money the more competition.

Now you might be wondering what kind of games do these people play? It can range from fighting games, shooting games, strategy games, and much more. Just to name a few that they play are; Dota, Call of Duty, League of Legends, and Over Watch. These are just a few of the big cash prizes games. Many hold millions of dollars as cash prizes.

It’s not just a job. Many schools now, including colleges are creating there own gaming teams. Some colleges even offer scholarships. Just to name a few that offer scholarships are Ohio state, Penn State, New York University (NYU), and much more. “ I love playing video games, but getting paid to do it, even better ” said by Zachary Farwell. During the month of April, many tournaments are held for the colleges. Not only can they get college scholarships, but if they win, they can get grants to help pay off the rest of their college loans. “If getting to go to school for almost nothing by playing video games, where can I sign up?” said Farwell.

There are a few downsides to playing video games professionally. It can take up a lot of time just practicing the game, to just have that slight better edge than the next guy.  A problem with any sport is drug abuse. A few just to name is caffeine and adderall. They are not extremely horrible drugs, 90 percent of Americans consume caffeine every day.  Adderall is also a growing issue amongst leagues. A Tournament/ League can also kick a player out if found taking these drugs . Adderall is the equivalent of doping for an athlete.

The fan base is getting larger and larger every day. Many can watch these events either in person, or on the internet. You can watch these events from home either on Youtube, or Twitch. Most watch through the internet, attracting millions of people to watch live games, also in person they can have events in stadiums broadcasting the game on huge TVs, and you can watch them in person play. Could a gaming team be coming to your school?