Esports—professional-level competitive gaming—is booming in popularity and officially became recognised as a sport by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2017
Students in the eSports programme take a class at the National esports Performance Campus in Sunderland, north-east England on December 19, 2023. Image: Daniel Mayhews / AFP©
Rows of super-powerful computers fill a classroom in northeast England, their LED-lit keyboards, mice and headsets washing the space in a futuristic blue glow.
Each one costs £3,000 (nearly $4,000) and is dedicated to one thing—training students to play video games at the highest level.