The UK Government’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has recognised esports as an official military sport.
In doing so, this will unlock more funding and new opportunities for personnel, according to this post on Forces.net.
The move is official recognition from the British Armed Forces that gaming and esports has benefits, such as fostering communication, leadership and strategic skills, as well as strengthening bonds between personnel.
The announcement was made by the Minister for Defence People, Doctor Andrew Murrison, earlier this month.
“This isn’t something just to be done out of work time, this is something that contributes massively to digital skills,” said Lt Gen Copinger-Symes. “We want to give [gamers] support doing it. We recognise the benefits it brings to defence.”
Claire Fry, Digital Skills for Defence Programme Lead, added: “Esports encapsulates all the kind of skills we need from people. The ability to think strategically, I think for our soldiers, sailors and air people, it’s about using technology and devices, those fine motor skills are really important as well.
“But for me, esports is all about putting digital on the map and people seeing that as something critical to defence, and can enhance what we do in our missions every day.”
The British Armed Forces’ involvement in esports is nothing new, of course, but recognising esports as an official military sport makes it clear that competitive gaming has been accepted by higher ups.
The British Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force (RAF) and veterans all have esports teams or activities, as do other armed forces initiatives.
The Army often has a presence at Insomnia Gaming Festival – which is taking place this weekend – and other gaming events.
The Ministry of Defence is the department responsible for implementing the defence policy set by the UK Government, and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces.
Related article: Should the Army be allowed to exhibit at gaming festivals like Insomnia? Opinion on the blurred line between recruitment and engagement.
Dom is an award-winning writer and finalist of the Esports Journalist of the Year 2023 award. He graduated from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 degree in Multi-Media Journalism in 2007.
As a long-time gamer having first picked up the NES controller in the late ’80s, he has written for a range of publications including GamesTM, Nintendo Official Magazine, industry publication MCV and others. He worked as head of content for the British Esports Federation up until February 2021, when he stepped back to work full-time on Esports News UK and offer esports consultancy and freelance services. Note: Dom still produces the British Esports newsletter on a freelance basis, so our coverage of British Esports is always kept simple – usually just covering the occasional press release – because of this conflict of interest.
