Esports titles selected for all MSSA's Student championships.

North West University is an active participant in MSSA events.

Mind Sports South Africa (MSSA) is the only body in South Africa that currently runs official esports championships for students.

It should be noted that International Esports Federation (IESF), the only global esports body in the world is in partnership with International University Sports Federation (FISU) in order to have esports recognized as a true sport at university level.

Thus while MSSA also has awards for students at all of its Premier Provincial and National Championships, MSSA also runs additional championships for students which allows MSSA to host those esports titles that are only for mature audiences.

Since most students at tertiary education level are of the age of majority, students in these dedicated championships are able to play esports titles which would, otherwise, require additional logistics.

It should be noted that persons who are under age, by law, are not allowed to even watch titles which are not appropriate.

The championships shall allow players not only to earn medals, but also enable students to earn student provincial colours.

The colours shall be based upon residency, so even if a Registered Player is originally from Louis Trichardt, but is studying at Stellenbosch as a boarder, such player may earn Western Cape student provincial colours.

Thus, it is at MSSA's Student Championships that students are able to play esports titles which have 18 age restrictions.

The titles to be played at all MSSA student specific championships are as follows:

Period/genre	Title	Platform	Age restriction	Players
Shooter	CS GO	PC,	16	5 v 5
	Call of Duty – Modern Warfare	PS4	18	5 v 5
	Paladins	PC/console	12	5 v 5
Sport	FIFA ‘20	PC	3	1 v 1
	PES 2020	PC	3	1 v 1
MOBA	Clash Royale	Mobile	12	1 v 1
	Dota 2	PC	12	5 v 5
	League of Legends	PC	12	5 v 5
Fighting	Tekken 7	Console	16	1 v 1

Also read:

• Esports titles selected for all MSSA's School Championships.
• 2020 Calendar of Events
• Why schools and universities should invest in esports.
• New National Team Selection Criteria

The bigger picture.

Time line of IESF's achievements.

With  esports sitting on the cusp of much greater things, there are still many gamers who do not see the full picture and only see a small segment.

The International Esports Federation (IESF) which was founded in 2008, has tirelessly worked away at having esports accredited as a sport by the main international controlling bodies.

Besides having organised and run World Championships consistently from 2009 through to 2017, IESF has had a number of important milestones with major sporting bodies like OCA, WADA, TAFISA, IAAF, and FISU.

Membership of IESF has shot up from the 8 original founding member federations in 2008 to 46 member federations.

Even the most major of private companies involved in esports, like ESL, openly backs the formation of national federations, please read: ESL helps found Germany’s Esports Association - eSport-Bund Deutschland (ESBD)

Mind Sports South Africa (MSSA) is cognisant of the changes occurring on the world platform, MSSA has  been affiliated to IESF since 2009, and fully subscribes to IESF's long-term vision.

In my opinion so should every organisation involved in esports. From the smallest LAN and online championship operator, to the biggest.

The global vision expounded by IESF will benefit all, just as MSSA's efforts have done so in South Africa. Without MSSA having had esports accredited as a sport in 2005, would the current growth and benefits that are accruing be possible?

Esports is changing and evolving.

This is a great time to be involved.

A steady, onward progression.

Since those initial days in 2008 when the International e-Sports Federation (IeSF) was formed in 2008, few could have imagined just how far, and how much, IeSF would come, and achieve.

The founding fathers, of course, had faith in having an international  controlling body that would be able to guide the development of esports and bring out  effective programmes that would in the long term protect the players.

IeSF through its strong volunteer base  has promoted esports  to an unheard of level where such sport has been accepted into the more traditional sporting fraternity.

Mind Sports South Africa (MSSA) is proud to be a member, and MSSA is convinced that  its membership will produce long-term results  that will benefit all gamers who go the accredited sporting route.

Markus Koskivirta, IeSF's first chairperson of IeSF's Referees' Commission.

Markus Koskivirta (on left) witnessing the Athletes' Oath at IeSF's 8th World Championships - Jakarta.

 International e-Sports Federation (IeSF) elected Markus Sakari Koskivirta (Finland), as the Chairperson of IeSF’s Referee Commission in June 2017.

             Starting his referee career in 2009, Markus Koskivirta has successfully held various positions as a top class referee. Markus was selected as, and held, the position of head referee of IeSFs 8th Esports World Championship.

"I'm very thankful for this opportunity to ensure the high quality of IeSF World Championship now and in the future. The Rules and Regulations used for competitions are what make a tournament reliable and ensure an even ‘playing field’ for all participants. In addition to guaranteeing the integrity of the World Championship I believe the Commission can benefit other esports operatives by creating a standardized set of rules and guidelines for use openly and around the world. I'm personally looking forward to starting the work in collaboration with the members of the Commission as soon as possible.” said Markus Koskivirta, the new Chairperson of IeSF’s Referee Commission.

             IeSF’s Referee Commission will be focusing on the management of competition regulations for its Esports World Championships. It will also have input on the criteria for venues, regulations for equipment, to allow esports athletes to play in a standardized environment. The commission shall also establish a training system to educate potential esports referees in relation to the International Esports Academy. Such training of referees is designed to support esports athletes once their gaming careers have ended.

             “IeSF is very pleased to appoint Mr. Koskivirta as the Chair” said Alex Lim, Secretary General of IeSF. “With his expertise, IeSF trusts that the new referee commission will be a milestone for standardizing the international esports scene, which is also one of the core mission of IeSF. We will continue enhance the esports ecosystem and create more values for the welfare of esports athletes for the better of esports and protection of players.”

IeSF and FISU to work together.

The International University Sports Federation (FISU) and International e-Sports Federation (IeSF) have signed an MOU agreement to promote esports in FISU and also look for areas to create synergies between the two federations.

Both federations have been in conversation since the beginning of February this year, exploring the possibilities how the organizations can share their resources to extend their boundaries. The federations met during SportAccord Convention 2017 in Aarhus (Denmark) this April and have discussed the terms and direction both bodies will follow.

 

As a first step, IeSF will be supporting the FISU WEB GAMES developed by FISU, an innovative proposal for engaging the university youth through international on-line competitions and contests, promoting sport, knowledge, entertainment, education, art and culture worldwide. IeSF will be sharing its knowledge and resources of esports, to support the understanding of the eco-system and also support the creation of esports rules and regulations aligned with FISU's guidelines. Moreover, both organizations will be looking into hosting joint events in the future to maximize the strength and synergies of traditional sports and esports.

 

FISU is the world governing body of university sport which operates the Summer & Winter Universiades and the World University Championships and Leagues, along with various other events. Officially founded in 1949, FISU is one of the oldest and profound sports federations in the globe. Its competition programs hold more than 50 sports disciplines, the highest number among all international sports federations. FISU not only focuses on promoting university competitions but also provides opportunities and promotes sports in the academic world, to pursue sport as one of the main components of the education system.

“IeSF is truly pleased to be in partnership with FISU to embrace esports” said Alex Lim, Secretary General of IeSF. “We believe that this initiative will support the development of school and university level esports and enhance the ecosystem as a whole. We also hope this will manifest and accelerate the trigger to benefit esports players in gaining access into public and social structures in each country. eSports is a new rising trend among the youth population and we look forward to creating various good cause and universal values with this Partnership”