IeSF sends out bid document for the 8th IeSF World Championships - 2016

Earlier this month I wrote an article (To host, or not to host) on hosting international championships.
There is no doubt that times it is essential to host events if the measurable effects of doing so outweigh the expense and the effort.

Thus, I was pleasantly surprised to see that on the MSSA facebook page they mentioned that the IeSF has sent out the bid document for the 8^th IeSF World Championships.

So far the IeSF has held its World Championships in:

2009 – Taebeck, South Korea

2010 – Daegu, South Korea

2011 – Andong, South Korea

2012 – Cheonan, South Korea

2013 – Bucharest, Romania

2014 – Baku, Azerbaijan

The 7^th IeSF World Championships will be held in the city of Lodz, Poland.

In order to have a truly international character, it is important that the World Championships is rotated amonst its members. This way member countries can show off their abilities to their nearest and dearest.

However, hosting an international championship only really works if you are:

• Using existing facilities,
• Not going to run at a loss,
• Leave an enduring legacy.

So many major sporting events (like the Olympics, World Games, Continental Games, and Commonwealth Games) are hosted by smaller countries are purely held for prestige and pride. As a result the facilities built stand idle and are a net expense covered by the taxes of a hard-working population. Even the current President of ANOCA, Palenfo, has expressed his belief that Africa cannot host an Olympic Games (http://www.sportindustry.co.za/news/palenfo-rules-out-african-olympics)

However, with eSports growing at an unprecedented growth rate, and able to be accommodated in existing infrastructure, eSports events promise healthy returns and can benefit any state that has suitable internet connection.

So until South Africa gets its act together, it seems that the MWEB Protea eSports Team is destined to be playing a lot of away games.