Project Summary

For my final project, I intend to research the flourishing industry of eSports, otherwise known as electronic sports. Essentially, eSports is a competitive gaming industry designed much like any other sports league. The ESL (largest eSports league) has created a sophisticated gaming experience and in turn generated a setting where a community of millennials can indulge in a new form of entertainment. eSports is a community dominated by millennials and in this project I explore the history of this industry to further our understanding on how it has transformed into the juggernaut it is today. Because eSports is a relatively new industry the sociological data is limited, thus, my project consists of a more exploratory research project where I create an agenda to specify the right kind of sociological questions we should research in the near future. Throughout my research I discover three main trends that illuminate the current state of eSports within mainstream society. 1) finding legitimacy in mainstream culture 2) the role of class and accessibility and 3) the future of equal gender participation.