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[Gamersbook] - US Government Now Considers Pro Gamers as Professional Athletes

14K views 245 replies 142 participants last post by  TFL Replica 
#1 ·
Quote:
US Government now considers pro players as professional athletes. What this means for pro players is that it's much more easier now to obtain a working visa for United States. So pro players from all over the world can now work in US under the title of professional athlete.

Riot Game's Nick Allen spoke to Gamespot about the US Government, and what they consider pro gamers to be.

"The United States government recognizes League of Legends pro players as professional athletes, and awards visas to essentially work in the United States under that title"

Great news for pro players and gaming in general. What do you think?


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#6 ·
lachen.gif
in all seriousness this is awesome though now if you'll excuse me I'm doing my daily 3 hour bf3 workout no need to hit the gym now
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#8 ·
Don't see why not but people will react negatively because it's not as active as other sports.
 
#9 ·
I will give pro gamers credit on the level of dedication it takes to be among the best in the world at something.

But to be considered an athlete, the first requirement is to go outside.
Second, the possibly of serious injury is another risk of being a true athlete.

Danger and physical abilities are what makes athletes who they are and why they're paid so much to do it.
There isn't any danger or physical requirements needed to game. Only extreme focus and lots of practice is required.
 
#10 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by WorldExclusive View Post

I would give pro gamers credit on the level of dedication it takes to be among the best in the world at something.

But to be considered an athlete, the first requirement is to go outside.
Do you have to go outside to play darts?
 
#11 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Crooksy View Post

Do you have to go outside to play darts?
It maybe competitive and lucrative, but I don't consider darts as a sport. International Football/Soccer is though.
There has to be a high risk of serious injury for me to consider it to be a sport.
 
#13 ·
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Originally Posted by Sir Amik Vase View Post

How can you not consider darts a sport?...

Do you also not consider pool, indoor swimming events and gymnastics sports?
Yes, gymnastics and indoor swimming are sports. Those activities require physical exertion and competitiveness higher than any darts player or pool player.
The extreme physical exertion and high degree of injury are what separates athletes from leisure activities. Just because people are paid or given a medal, doesn't mean they're an athlete.

The lines over the years have been blurred between athlete and leisure activities.
The Olympic community is considering removing Wrestling from the Olympics in favor of other activities that generate more money. Sports are becoming more about how much money it generates than competitive play between two athletes/teams.

Video game competitions generate tax money, so the US government wants a piece of that action.
To do it, they classify pro gamers as athletes and grant Visa's, so when grand prize is won, Uncle Sam gets their cut.
 
#14 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by WorldExclusive View Post

I will give pro gamers credit on the level of dedication it takes to be among the best in the world at something.

But to be considered an athlete, the first requirement is to go outside.
Second, the possibly of serious injury is another risk of being a true athlete.

Danger and physical abilities are what makes athletes who they are and why they're paid so much to do it.
There isn't any danger or physical requirements needed to game. Only extreme focus and lots of practice is required.
1) pro gamers go outside how else would they reach their tournaments
tongue.gif


2) There are lots of risks like carpal tunnel syndrome, broken fingers etc. A lot of gamers have actually died because of marathoning and such

3) golf would beg to differ with your danger and physical abilities comment. Whos to argue that professional twitch shooter gamers don't have "physical abilities" they obviously have extremely fast reaction time and can pick up on details incredibly quickly

4) again try entering into a competitive twich shooter tournament and try surviving a round without the physical requirements of incredibly fast reaction time. As I mentioned before there are sports where danger does not come into play at all and again gamers have died because of gaming.

5) all sports require extreme focus and practice as well as strategy like games
 
#17 ·
ath·let·ics (th-ltks)
n. (used with a sing. or pl. verb)
1. Activities, such as sports, exercises, and games, that require physical skill and stamina.
2. The principles or system of training and practice for such activities.

Why would the government's recognition of e-sport contenders as athletes be of worry to anyone here?
This is fantastic news!

Imaging gaming went BIG... like im talking TV series BIG.
More $$, means more games, means more GFX cards means more hardware.

Guys! THIS IS FANTASTIC !
 
#18 ·
dear god... please no.

i understand the term professional and athlete can be used loosely. especially the term athlete. but what has our country come to where we now have athletes that are barely physically competing
doh.gif
 
#19 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Conspiracy View Post

dear god... please no.

i understand the term professional and athlete can be used loosely. especially the term athlete. but what has our country come to where we now have athletes that are barely physically competing
doh.gif
Give me one good reason this whole thing bothers you....... and dont give me any absurd reason because i know a fabrication when i see one.
 
#22 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by WorldExclusive View Post

I will give pro gamers credit on the level of dedication it takes to be among the best in the world at something.

But to be considered an athlete, the first requirement is to go outside.
Second, the possibly of serious injury is another risk of being a true athlete.

Danger and physical abilities are what makes athletes who they are and why they're paid so much to do it.
There isn't any danger or physical requirements needed to game. Only extreme focus and lots of practice is required.
how about indoor sports, such as Badminton? or does it change if we host gaming tournament outdoor?
rolleyes.gif

what about the risk of carpal tunnel? does the ability to pull the trigger (click) faster than others count as physical ability?
 
#24 ·
lachen.gif
really all gaming does for me is keep me moving so I can sit down longer seriously though why first you hate gamers via thinking games are bad then you think they are athletes.
 
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