In a new report, it has been claimed that the International Olympic Committee has put a temporary lock on the Esports Commission’s activities, putting an icy freeze on any progress towards bringing video games into the Olympic Games. The endeavour was unveiled almost two years ago, but traction has been nonexistent since.
Last June, the IOC appointed a new President in Kirsty Coventry, who seems to have no interest in working with the esports industry to attract a younger, more energetic audience.
Future of Olympic Esports Looks Tenuous at Best
In a report from Kyodo, a Japanese outlet, it was suggested that the IOC, the organization responsible for the Olympic Games, has put any discussions around esports out in the cold. The recent report suggested that ‘the drive is set to slow down under incumbent Kirsty Coventry,’ appointed last year with a stronger focus on existing sports.
Two years ago, the future was made brighter by the unveiling of the Olympic Esports Games, then scheduled for 2027 in Saudi Arabia, but the event was subsequently canceled.
To answer that loss, the Esports Foundation of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, set up the Esports Nations Cup. This global event has the backing of Electronic Arts, KRAFTON, Tencent, Ubisoft, and others, and it is set to land in November. It’ll welcome competitors from more than 100 countries, competing across 15 games.
It’s similar to the Esports World Cup, which is also hosted in Saudi Arabia, but it has a focus on national teams and not traditional esports organizations.
Elsewhere, the IOC is scaling back sports in the upcoming Winter Games in 2030 and cutting down the lineup in the 2032 Brisbane Olympics. The last Olympic Games, hosted in Paris in 2024, and the Winter Olympics that took place earlier this year, both saw brilliant viewership figures, all of which is thanks to the popularization of streaming platforms.
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For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that Wolves have been denied Salt Lake City Major visas
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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