JANUARY 2021 ASM Magazine Vol II Issue I | Page 34

I N S I G H T
E - S P O R T S C O N T ' D F R O M P 1 1 .
W H Y A F R I C A I S A F E R T I L E G R O U N D F O R A N E - S P O R T S B O O M . . C O N T ' D
enjoying their moments . I told myself that if those boys could shun the lures of New Year ’ s Eve in favor of eSports then it could be fast becoming a phenomenon .
Esports , which stands for Electronic Sports , is not new to the world or Africa though . It has been in practice for more than 30 years now , with its awareness , development and growth expanding every
C O N T ' D F R O M P 3 2 .
year .
THE LOVE , THE FANS , THE MONEY
Attendance is huge . Each major event attracts thousands of spectators across the country . A purpose-built 20,000 seat stadium in Dakar is always jam-packed , while the national stadium Demba Diop is often used to host bigger tournaments .
Local and foreign sponsors are getting more involved , promoting and improving the irresistible blend of music and wrestling . Fans of all age groups do not mind sacrificing their weekend activities to see their muscular idols in action .
“ I sell clothes in Dakar , but nothing on earth can stop me from going to see a wrestling fight on weekends . I love it . We love it . It is part of our culture ,” said Mariame Ndiaye .
“ Although , some combats are shown live on TV you really don ’ t have the same feeling when you are there in flesh and blood watching and listening to the prelude rituals , like the traditional music , the dancing parade of the wrestlers , etc .
" i prefer a wrestling match to watching the English Premier League on TV , and many locals would tell you the same thing . Wrestling is our thing , football is theirs .” Heavyweight wrestlers earn between
$ 100,000 and $ 200,000 per match and fight in two to three matches per year . The
most expensive fights so far varied from
$ 160,000 to $ 400,000 - all these happening in Senegal . No footballer in the domestic league has ever been paid a
quarter of that in a given season .
Big stars , mostly former and reigning champions , are celebrities in Senegal , such as Balla Gaye 2 , Yékini ( Yakhya Diop ),
Tyson ( Mohamed Ndao ), and Bombardier
( Serigne Ousmane Dia ). They live in mansions and drive sport cars , and are often mobbed by excited fans wherever they go in the country .
Many Africans are conversant with video or console games but get confused with the eSports appellation . It is a competitive and organized video game competitions played before live audiences and may be broadcast over the Internet as well and followed by millions of fans all over the
world .
Some of the popular games are Fortnite , League of Legends , Counter-Strike , Call of
Duty , Overwatch and Madden NFL
Gamers ( players ) put in thousands of hours to master their choice of games .
There are little to no barriers of entry for anyone of any age . All it takes is the knowledge and then a controller / mouse / keyboard .
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