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NA should launch new Esports channel like China

By Luis Tirado Jr.

Visitors cheer for international teams during the tournament of the computer game 'League of Legends' on May 8, 2014 in Paris. Launched late in 2009 by American video game publisher Riot Games, 'League of Legends' is a game in which teams of five players compete in a virtual arena, killing each other using different powers and equipments in the goal to capture the enemy base. According to Riot Games, more than 67 million people play each month, with peaks of more than 7.5 million concurrent players at peak hours. The game will last four days starting today. AFP PHOTO / LIONEL BONAVENTURE (Photo credit should read LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP/Getty Images)
Visitors cheer for international teams during the tournament of the computer game 'League of Legends' on May 8, 2014 in Paris. Launched late in 2009 by American video game publisher Riot Games, 'League of Legends' is a game in which teams of five players compete in a virtual arena, killing each other using different powers and equipments in the goal to capture the enemy base. According to Riot Games, more than 67 million people play each month, with peaks of more than 7.5 million concurrent players at peak hours. The game will last four days starting today. AFP PHOTO / LIONEL BONAVENTURE (Photo credit should read LIONEL BONAVENTURE/AFP/Getty Images) /
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North America is embracing the video games, professional players, and televised matches when it comes to Esports. It’s time a new Esports channel was launched to continue the immense popularity of the biggest game in the scene, League of Legends.

When it comes to Esports, it’s a scene that while some might not truly understand, is growing immensely in popularity. Professional players from all over the world are not only becoming famous thanks to how great they are in Esports, but they’re making a career out of it. Out of all the popular Esports games that are taking the world by storm, nothing is bigger than League of Legends.

With over 100 characters to choose from, a passionate community, and a game that is simple to pick up and learn, League of Legends has become the premier game to represent everything Esports are about. From the cosplaying community that dresses up as their favorite characters to the 5v5 format of intense competition, it’s time that North America followed suit just like China did recently.

In an article written by James “Obscurica” Chen of PvPLive.net, he confirmed that PerfectWorld, Tencent, and Riot Games are all co-founders of a brand new Esports channel in China. This new channel will be called ESPTV and showcase all the great Esports matches from various games, including League of Legends.

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It’s not hard to envision a group of investors/companies to want to also launch a North American Esports channel since many decades ago, no one ever thought a 24/7 channel dedicated to sports would work. Needless to say, ESPN was launched and the rest is history.

The same principle would apply here since clearly, viewers enjoy watching professional gamers do what they do best. Even the popular ELeague television show is on national television via TBS continues to grow in popularity. Considering it’s just a weekly show, they’re getting incredible ratings with different tournaments featuring games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Streetfighter V.

League of Legends is played by hundreds of millions of players across the globe and it’s picking up incredible momentum. Remember, without any television broadcasting, the Worlds championship just two years ago hit over 36 million unique viewers which to this day is a record for the most viewership of an Esports event ever.

Imagine if North America had a dedicated Esports channel that would feature tournaments of games like League of Legends, Counter-Strike, and even Streetfighter? Don’t forget, even more games like Overwatch, StarCraft 2, Pokemon, and Heroes of the Storm are becoming even bigger in the Esports scene. Having one channel dedicated to showing all kinds of tournaments would be a huge revenue making juggernaut that would take the scene by storm.

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Overall, China is taking the first big step into making Esports a part of everyday culture via a dedicated television channel. People tune in to watch football and baseball games all the time since it’s second nature. Heck, many even sit for hours watching ESPN poker or fishing tournaments which are nationally televised. It’s about time Esports got the national spotlight via its own channel in North America. It would undoubtedly do very well in the grand scheme of things.

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