eSports has been growing and growing over the last few years. Tournaments with millions of dollars in cash prizes have spawned, hundreds, probably thousands of players have become superstars, and major TV networks have noticed how popular the trend is and have jumped in on the action.
This weekend, the popular sports network ESPN2 will be broadcasting the Street Fighter V finals live from EVO (Evolution Championship Series) in Las Vegas. Viewers can tune into ESPN2 on Sunday night at 10 PM ET, if you're not home or can't get to your TV, you can watch it on the ESPN app as well.
“It’s great to be back at the Evo Championship Series Final with Street Fighter V this year,” said Kevin Lopes, director, ESPN programming and acquisitions. “This final will provide no shortage of compelling competition, and we look forward to delivering this event to fans.”
“Fighting games bring a tremendous level of hype and excitement, and Evo’s mission is to share that experience with fans worldwide,” said Joey Cuellar, President of Evo. “We’re pleased to team up with ESPN to bring this game to new audiences.”
This isn't the first time an eSport tournament has been televised, ESPN and TBS have covered the event before and it has caused some controversy. Lots of people, both within the gaming scene and outside of it, have debated whether or not eSports are a genuine sport and if they should take up a time slot a sports network. Obviously, it seems to be pretty beneficial for ESPN as they're airing an eSport competition again so I guess there's enough interest regardless of what you think!
EVO runs from July 14th – July 16th.
[ESPN]
