The president of the German Football Association (DFB) has declared the concept of including esports in the Olympics as “absurd.” According to Reuters, Reinhard Grindel told reporters hopes that esports do not make their way to the summer games.
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Grindel said that “the biggest competition to kids coming to our sports clubs” is not the lure of other traditional sports such as Handball, “but the use of digital equipment. That is absolute impoverishment.”
Grindel went on to proclaim the social importance of sport within the community, saying that “with sport you have direct contact with those you play. Football belongs on the green pitch and has nothing to do with other things that are computer-related. For me esports is not sports.”
Esports are currently being considered for a place at the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, but the International Olympic Committee has already ruled out the inclusion of violent games. That means that some of the world’s biggest esports, from StarCraft to Counter-Strike, might be passed over in favour of sports-themed esports such as FIFA.