Esports Event Participation: IEM San Jose

Key insights

6 takeaways

01
Women attending were often experienced at other conventions and fan events, which the authors suggest prepares them for esports tournaments. Non-esports conventions may therefore be useful places to reach potential participants.See it on page 3
02
The CSGO audience was on average 8% women, compared with 15% for League of Legends.See it on page 2
03
Women reported feeling socially isolated as gamers, and this was most pronounced around CSGO, where women typically attended with a male boyfriend or husband.See it on page 2
04
The gender ratio of attendees remained steady throughout the weekend, with women present across the event rather than only at the finals.See it on page 2
05
Attendees of both genders consistently framed the event as primarily a positive social occasion, a fun opportunity to hang out with friends and family.See it on page 1
06
Women's merchandise options were limited, with none available in women's sizes except one League support shirt, which some women cited as signs of being treated as outsiders.See it on page 2

Summary

AnyKey conducted fieldwork at IEM San Jose on November 21 and 22, 2015, led by Dr. Taylor and three graduate students, to study esports fandom through questions of diversity and gender. The team gathered about 70 hours of observational data, 150 interviews, and nine head-counts, most broken down by audience seating, with a slight oversample of women. The researchers examined why people attend esports events, the barriers to attending, and fan participation at live events. Attendees of both genders framed the event primarily as a positive social occasion, and fandom was displayed through t-shirts, signs, gear, temporary tattoos, and autograph or photo requests. Gender participation ratios held steady across the weekend. The CSGO audience was on average 8% women, while League of Legends was 15% women. Women reported social isolation as gamers, and women attending for CSGO were typically with male partners. Women frequently had prior experience at anime and fan conventions, and several described frustration with only one shirt being available in women's sizes and with the cancelled cosplay contest. The authors argue that friendship groups are often more gender-mixed than assumed, and that different game titles draw women in different ways.