《英雄聯盟》引領電子競技成爲全球化產業

There are no bats, balls or baskets but there's no doubt the growing industry of eSports, a type of competitive video game, has become a global spectator sport.

從事電子競技無需準備球棒、球或者籃筐。但毫無疑問，這項電子遊戲的競技賽事已成長爲一項全球範圍的觀賞性運動。

In fact, the games are very similar to traditional, professional sports in presentation and recent financial success. eSports tournaments have sold out major stadiums across the world, top eSports "athletes" (as they're called) make up to seven figures annually and corporate sponsors are pouring millions into the industry.

事實上電子競技與傳統的職業競技比賽在表現形式和商業盈利上幾無二致。電子競技錦標賽在全球各大運動場館都備受關注，而頂尖的電子競技"運動員"每年的收入高達七位數，企業贊助商也不惜血本地投入大量資金。

"This is the type of content where people watch it online. They watch for long periods. And advertisers love that. They need to be able to get their products and services in front of the millennial audience, which is really hard to market to," Steve Arhancet, co-owner of Team Liquid in Los Angeles, told Fox News.

洛杉磯Team Liquid戰隊的合夥人Steve Achancet在接受福克斯新聞採訪時表示："人們在網絡上收看電子競技的比賽。觀衆收看這些比賽有很長一段時間了，這正是廣告商的最愛，他們需要在80後觀衆面前展示自己的產品和服務。以前這樣的市場營銷是很難實現的。"

Industry experts estimate eSports revenues could come close to half a billion dollars this year. Games like 'League of Legends,' a free-to-play strategy game created by Riot Games based in West Los Angeles, California, are wildly popular. There are full-time players, teams, coaches, trainers, broadcasters and corporate sponsors.

行業專家預計今年電子競技行業的收益將達到5億美元。總部位於加州西洛杉磯的拳頭遊戲公司出品的即時戰略遊戲《英雄聯盟》廣受歡迎，而類似的遊戲還有很多。目前該行業有很多全職的選手、戰隊、教練、訓練師以及主播，還得到了許多企業的贊助。

The youngest professional players are 17-years-old. Their parents have let them put their high school educations on hold to pursue such a lucrative hobby for several years.

世界上最年輕的職業選手年僅17歲。這些選手的父母允許自己的孩子放棄高中的學業，轉而從事這項吸金能力極強的"業餘愛好"。

"A lot of people get like 20 thousand, 30 thousand, 40 thousand people watching them a night and when you're doing that you get to basically run commercials and you get money off commercials," Hai Lam, one of the most talented eSports athletes in the world, said.

世界上最頂尖選手之一的Hai Lam說："大概有2萬、3萬甚至4萬多的觀衆整晚都在收看比賽。其實在這樣做的時候，你就是在從事基本的商業行爲，而且通過這樣的商業行爲掙到了錢。"

eSports athletes and teams earn money from salaries, merchandise sales, tournament winnings, corporate sponsors and from online streaming.

電競選手和戰隊平時的收入來源包括工資、周邊商品銷售、在線視頻流量的分成，賽事獎金以及企業贊助。

The industry is now discussing if certain substances should be banned. In the meantime, investors see eSports as a thriving industry that continues to catapult its way to record setting profits year after year.

該行業內部已經開始探討是否應禁止服用某些藥物。而在投資者的眼中，電競業蓬勃發展，每年都在刷新去年創下的收益記錄。

Even colleges are getting into the action. UC Irvine recently announced its intention to create a sports arena, offer eSports scholarships to students and hire a coach.

一些大學甚至也將參與其中。加州大學歐文分校最近宣佈，有意爲學生建立起一座電子競技平臺，提供電子競技獎學金並僱傭教練。