ESPN has taken notice of the exploding world of e-sports and wants to be part of the rapidly growing industry.
A Mashable report points out that the Disney-owned sports conglomerate is looking to hire a general e-sports editor to oversee all e-sports coverage on ESPN.com. According to the job posting, applicants must possess "an expert-level knowledge of one or more the major eSports, including, but not limited to League of Legends, Dota 2, Hearthstone, Call of Duty, Counterstrike: Global Offensive, StarCraft 2 and others, including fantasy and gambling areas."
And from the sound of the job description, ESPN is looking for this person to help bring pro gaming coverage to the masses via the network's television, radio and print channels as well. This news marks a complete turnaround from September 2014, when ESPN president John Skipper (shown below) told Re/Code that the coverage of e-sports has no place on the network.
"It's not a sport—it's a competition. Chess is a competition. Checkers is a competition," he said at the time. "Mostly, I'm interested in doing real sports."
But that feeling seemingly changed in the months after that with ESPN airing coverage of a college-level competition in Heroes of the Storm this past April. Just last month, ESPN also covered The International, an event that had a team win $6.6 million for its mastery of the game Dota 2.
Let's not forget that earlier this summer, ESPN the Magazine also did an entire feature on Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch becoming a character in the upcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops III.
All this being said, it's clear that ESPN's interest in video games and esports has been building. Its willingness to hire a full-time editor dedicated to the coverage of e-sports proves that the network has recognized it as an undeniable force with sticking power.
Sounds like a matter of time before highlights from e-sports' competitions hit SportsCenter's Top 10 plays.
Be sure to follow T-Lounge on Twitter and visit our Facebook page.
