FROM ZERO TO HERO WITH ESPORTS:

 

Every Esports Advocate can tell the power of Esports to the youth in creating a culture of hope, passion and youth development. Esports severs as a safe haven for the youth away from drug addiction, #boredom and other social vices.

Esports reach out to the youth via their interest and passion, and therefore creates alternative employment skills and disciplines that are never taught in the classroom.

In Africa, Esports is a tool for socio economic transformation via Technology, Entertainment, Education, Entrepreneurship, Sportsmanship and Community building programs that seeks to alleviate poverty and offers better livelihoods.

Esports offers new and exciting ways to engaging Generation XYZ. The broad spectrum of it being able to be integrated into any Experiential activities is only limited to one's imagination. 

Competitive Play,  Gamification, Streaming, Teams, Brand Affinity are all top of the iceberg but below the surface are critical success points that goes beyond the huge prize pool.

ESPORTS  can really HELP transforms the lives of ordinary people to rise up from #Zero to #Hero.

You are thinking of positive transformation... THINK OF ESPORTS.

Also read:

• Does Transformation have a place in esports?
• More on transformation!
• Quotas out - transformation is in!
• Transformation starts at school level
• Mbalula's latest outburst is good for TV, but in law it cannot be correct!
• 'We are all equal"
• Womxn’s Month Webinar On Gender-Based Violence (GBV)
• Coaching course shall be implemented by MSSA.
• MSSA celebrates its women who have earned Protea Colours.

It's all about leaving a legacy.

From time-to-time gamers query why MSSA has taken the association rather the profit-making-company route.

The answer  is simple.

In the profit-making-company route, the entire system is dedicated to making money for the owners. no matter what anybody claims, the people who really win in such  a system are the owners. Whether it is through increased marketing for their other products or whether by increased profit on a personal level.

Thus private ventures of this type are not, in my opinion, interested in doing development - as it just does not pay.

Thus, enter the association.

The association  is more concerned  with the athlete and  the rights of the athlete.

By expending monies and resources on building up systems from a grass-root level, structures are put into  place that are not only sustainable, but can  also weather the storm in the event of a dismally performing economy.

Only the associations are prepared to  play the long-game and to  invest in areas which otherwise are quite unprofitable.

However, it is those unprofitable ventures that may result in bigger dividends in the future. Who would have thought that MSSA's Mpumulanga Championships would turn into the second largest LAN Championship in the country, only to be eclipsed by MSSA's Gauteng LAN Championships.

Not only is the association the only type of structure willing to embrace development and transformation, but through  the work of the association a legacy is left behind.

Through the years of effort and toil of countless volunteers, athletes have been afforded the opportunity of obtaining an education, of developing their skills, and of claiming a piece of immortality through always being  remembered.

Now that MSSA too has its channel on Tuluntulu, even more doors are being opened for members and the athletes affiliated to such.

The legacy being created by MSSA is unsurpassed and will continue for many decades to come.

Soweto's first esports club is accepted into membership: Ekasi Esports.

Ekasi Esports

The latest club to apply, and be accepted by Mind Sports South Africa into membership, is Ekasi Esports.

Ekasi Esports is the first accredited esports  club in Soweto.

The founders, and current club committee members, Gabriel Ramokotjo, Mpho Tladi, and Smilo Katlegob Gosa have big plans for the club.

The three are determined to see esports to become a viable alternative to other sports in Soweto, and are driven to bring the technological advantages associated with esports into Soweto in order to benefit the lives of all.

The club too intends  to become a hub in order to allow schools in Soweto to have access to MSSA's online championships.

Allied to the above ideals, the club too sees itself at the forefront of transformation, and is determined to ensure that esports becomes truly representative.

These are big ambitions for truly wonderful people.

MSSA will be there with them as the club turns its dreams into reality.

The enthusiastic committee of Ekasi Esports.

Does Transformation have a place in esports?

There a a few gamers that have questioned whether transformation has a place in esports. The arguments largely revolve around esports being a 'new' sport that has only really developed in the post 1994 South Africa.

Such arguments do not take into account the legacy left by the Apartheid state which has an effect on current, and possibly even, future generations.

It is difficult for people who were born into advantaged and entitled families to truly understand the damage that Apartheid did.

Apartheid was in itself the ultimate expression of entitlement.

Transformation refers to each and every component element of South African society, including sport and all its sub structures.

According to the Province of KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation, "There are three categories of people in the South African society that have to be recognised, acknowledged and brought on board in the transformation process: 

• Those with both feet positioned in the past and who view current processes to change and adapt South African society as intrusive, unproductive and discriminatory in nature.
  
• Those who have one foot in the past and another hesitantly positioned in the future. They are generally uncertain, unsure, apprehensive and sometimes perplexed about the shape of the country’s longer term future.
  
• Those who have both feet firmly planted in the future some of whom who are actively engaged in dealing with the problems challenging South African society. A momentous task considering some of the structural deficiencies, relatively inexperienced and untested human resource base and sometimes deficient support structures in place."

It is true that transformation in every sporting code is a subject that has been debated at length ever since South Africa became a democracy in 1994. 

Change has to take place from the ground up for there to be any meaningful changes at the top, and that means that it has to start at school level. 

Since 1994 efforts to ‘transform’ in various sports has been largely unsuccessful. In its attempts to ‘transform’ and re-invent itself the concept of ‘transformation’ and the motivations for and against the need thereof have been oversimplified, often emotional, not clear and sometimes misunderstood.

What is clear though, is that transformation is needed in order to unlock the full potential in South African gaming. 

Federations like Mind Sports South Africa have taken a very different approach. The MSSA is active in enabling the formation of clubs (especially at school level) that will cater for the majority of South Africa's population, and have active policies to promote a more sustainable form of development. The MSSA too has come out strongly against the imposition of quotas in the belief that the attempt to force quotas is actually illegal.

After all, transformation in sport is dependent on transformation in the economy.

It is not possible to get volunteers where people do not have enough money to feed themselves. Nor is it possible to get people to play games when they lack the basic infrastructure, and also lack the equipment that they need to play.

Unfortunately, most South Africans are born into poverty. 

With high figures of unemployment, transformation requires an active mentor system by ALL.

Every clan and club should be concerned with transformation. Of course it can all be funded at club level by the National Lottery.

The biggest problem is, quite frankly, that if we do not see it as all of our duty, it may not be long before the rules change, and a form of transformation is thrust upon the gaming community.

Mbalula's latest outburst is good for TV, but in law it cannot be correct!

On 25 April 2016 Mr Fikile Mbalula announced that he was going to punish four of South Africa's National Federations for lack of transformation. See: http://www.timeslive.co.za/sport/other/2016/04/25/Mbalula-punishes-sporting-federations-for-lack-of-transformation

But can he do that?

Does any legislation currently enacted in South Africa give him such powers?

Did a single journalist investigate with which legal powers he is acting with his dramatic announcement on 25 April 2016?

Is it that the Sports Minister, like the rest of the government, just doesn't give a damn about the Constitution?

It would be nice if for once if journalists did their homework and asked the relevant questions.

One wonders how he can forbid these National federations from hosting events when the Minister has not yet issued Regulations for such in terms of section 14(jC) of the National Sport and Recreation Act?

The truth is that he can't 'ban' an event, he can just pull government support .

'We are all equal"

Jaun-Luc Krylo Cronje recently wrote, "...race and gender has no bounds. We are all equal, we are all gamers and lastly ANYONE can join a clan and play competitively as long as the person can do one thing....."

If only...

The problem with many middle-class South Africans is that they do not really understand the problems facing South Africa.

Currently, there are 8,500,000 South Africans unemployed with another 16,000,000 who receive social grants, and that is out of a population of 55,000,000 where half the population is below the age of 18.

Thus, if these figures are correct South Africa has an unemployment rate in excess of 80%.

Just driving from  Cape Town International Airport and passing rows and rows of low-cost housing and squatter camps, only a person blind to the inequities of South African society would think that we all equal.

While many middle-class gamers are moaning that they do not yet have FFTH supplied to their homes, there are many people going to sleep hungry. I also state going 'to sleep' as opposed ti going 'to bed' as many South Africans do not even have a bed, a pillow, or a mattress.

How can a person who begins life in such poverty then compete equally against a person who has never known want, malnutrition, safety, or the lack of all modern technology?

Imagine you are standing at the bottom of a well in a large estate. Your thoughts are not about the mansion on the property or the abundance of food that  the estate produces. Instead your thoughts are almost entirely focused on getting out of the well. However, without an external force, it is impossible to get out of the well.

The owner of the estate can say, "We are all equal", but clearly we are not!

With the high  levels of unemployment, the low levels of education, and the poor services rendered to  so many South Africans, it is going to take herculean efforts to raise the  levels of the majority of  South Africans to ensure that all South Africans are  equal.

When you watch the privately owned tournaments the disparity becomes even more pronounced.

It is quite clear that  only Mind Sports South Africa is the only body in eSports that is really concerned with transformation and development.

The private companies involved in eSports in South Africa seem to  be  quite content with keeping the status quo by saying that  every  gamer  has the same chance. 

However, as seen in the above, we can  see that the vast majority of South Africans will never have a chance unless someone lends a helping hand and goes the extra mile.

It could too be argued that any organisation that does not participate in transformation and development is a dinosaur as their bodies will become less-and-less popular, and will, eventually disappear.

Bitter for having missed out?

Nathan Anderson - Western Cape StarCraft Champion

The MWEB sponsored 2015 Western Cape Championships proved just what the MSSA is all about. The joy and happiness exhibited by all the gamers at the event proved just what a good job the MSSA is doing.

The short answer, of course, is that the MSSA is all about accrediting people and promoting the growth of gaming on an unprecedented level in South Africa.

There are those, however, that claim all sorts of fiction about the MSSA. Such fictions include that the MSSA has not chosen the best teams for E-FRAG and the IeSF World Championships.

Let us unpack these erroneous claims.

First it should be noted that only gamers affiliated to the MSSA may participate in MSSA events. Thus it stands to reason, based on logic, that the MSSA will (like all other national sport federations) only ever select gamers who are so affiliated to officially represent South Africa.

So why then do gamers not participate in the MSSA events?

Clearly this is not true across the board as the MSSA boasts of having the best StarCraft, FIFA, Hearthstone, etc. players participating in their events.

The only reasons why people refuse to participate in MSSA events can be chalked up to:

1. FEAR: Gamers, although brash behind their keyboards at home, are generally afraid to play in LAN championships where they will be seen by other gamers and will be held accountability for what they say and do.
2. UNWILLING TO ABIDE BY RULES: Those gamers who continually refuse to play in LAN championships are afraid to play by anyone else's rules in case they do not do well. Those that refuse to play in LANs are those who always cite some online leagues rules even though such rules have no bearing or weight in the competition in question.
3. BEING NOT COMPETITIVE IN NATURE: A lot of gamers that refuse to participate in MSSA events are just not competitive. Such gamers are unable to adapt to new and/or different rules and are thus doomed to continue making the same mistakes over-and-over again.Such players find it difficult to learn the rules of the competition and then whinge and whine about their results blaming everyone else but themselves for their performance.
4. TOO MUCH EGO: Many gamers have so much ego that they cannot see the 'big' picture. Instead they think that everything revolves around themselves and that they should be treated as 'special'. Well there is a life-lesson here, no-one is indispensable, and that a gamer is only as good as their last game. That is why the MSSA runs annual team trials in a transparent manner. No-one is just picked on whimsy or through any other form of bias as continually requested by 'community leaders'. All team members have earned their place in trials and all teams selected are the best possible teamsat such trials.
5. SELF-APPOINTED COMMUNITY LEADERS: There is always reference to the community by a small group of about 10 gamers. These 10 or so gamers also claim the be 'community leaders', but are they? Who voted them in, to whom are they responsible? Do they report to anyone or are they really just tyrants who are rabble rousing the masses in a bid to get their own ulterior motives enforced? What are their ulterior motives, do such only benefit the 'community leaders' or do such motives fall in line with a greater vision? If such a greater vision exists, it has never been expressed anywhere! All that has been expressed is condemnation, bile and bitterness....
6. UNWILLINGNESS TO TRANSFORM: The MSSA is committed to transforming gaming in South Africa. To exclude women is to exclude half of South africa's population, and to not promote demographic diversity is to exclude 80% of South Africa's population. Yet the critics who whinge and whine about the MSSA do not even attempt to transform South African gaming. Instead such gamers palm it off as being some-one else's responsibility. 
7. UNWILLINGNESS TO COMPLY TO THE LAW: A gamer has claimed, "There is no requirement for MSSA to exist". Obviously such gamer has not read the Sport and Recreation Act. An Act of Parliament. However, this seems to be a common thread among the 'community leaders'...that is, "I am a gamer, and the law does not apply to me!". We are all South Africans, the law does apply to all equally.

 To put it bluntly, the MSSA will be around for many decades to come. The MSSA will continue to produce national teams and do great development at school level. It is at school level that the MSSA will find its Protea Teams that will officially represent South Africa in international competition and which will help South Africa become competitive on an international stage.

More on transformation!

On Wednesday, 27 May 2015, the Minister of Sports and Recreation announced that a number of national
federations had further committed themselves to transformation.

My last article on transformation created so much ire among gamers that I received over 500 responses. Unfortunately few were able to be posted due to legal constraints.

However what is important is that transformation affects ALL sports and ALL of South Africa.

There were some rather weird reasons given by gamers why transformation should not apply to cyber-sports. One of the reasons was that since computer gaming is a post apartheid activity, transformation should not apply. Another gamer stated that it is not the responsibility of the clans to transform, but for organizations to create new clans among disadvantaged peoples.

On re-reading these comments, I am struck by the naievity of the gamers concerned.

Transformation exists in every aspect of South African life, and no matter if people oppose it, it will be enforced.

Just how it is to be enforced rests with the 'Powers that are'.

Many sporting bodies have gone for the easy route of applying draconian quota systems and by writing transformation into their rules and regulations. Such moves have created a great deal of unhappiness among the sportsmen/sportswomen concerned as some have felt that they have been denied the opportunity to compete at the very highest of levels and feel that they have been denied selection to national teams.

Some  national federations have just buried their heads in the sand and have hoped that the problem would go away. However, that is not going to happen.....

Federations like Mind Sports South Africa have taken a very different approach. The MSSA is active in creating clubs that will cater for the majority of South Africa's population, and have active policies to promote a more sustainable form of development. The MSSA too has come out strongly against the imposition of quotas in the belief that the attempt to force quotas is actually illegal.

After all, development in sport is dependent on transformation in the economy.

It is not possible to get volunteers where people do not have enough money to feed themselves. Nor is it possible to get people to play games when they lack the basic infrastructure, and also lack the equipment that they need to play.

Unfortunately, most South Africans are born into poverty. While the government likes to claim that there is unemployment of 23%, I think that the figure is closer to 80% based on simple maths, being that there are 4 million taxpayers and that there are 25 million South Africans over the age of 18. Thus 4/25*100 = 16% employment.

With such high figures of unemployment, transformation requires an active mentor system by ALL.

Every clan and club should be concerned with transformation. Of course it can all be funded at club level by the National Lottery.

The biggest problem is, quite frankly, that if we do not see it as all of our duties, it may not be long before the rules change, and a form of transformation is thrust upon the gaming community.

Racism in SA gaming

In a recent article on “Lazygamer” titled “Racism continues in the local DOTA 2 scene” (http://www.lazygamer.net/south-africa/racism-continues-in-the-local-dota-2-scene/), the real issues of South African gaming are becoming more and more evident.

When going to LANs and watching games streamed online, it is apparent that very few PC gamers in South Africa represent the majority of the population.

It is a country that had its first free-and-fair elections in 1994. SA has a total population of 51 million where less than 5 million inhabitants are of European descent. (https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sf.html)

Also, it is rumoured that less than 10% of all South Africans actually have access to a computer.

So when you look at it, very few South Africans even have the ability to play online computer games.

Yet, when I wrote an article on transformation in eSports, I get insulted by a number of so-called gamers.

Then there is this article on “Lazygamer”. It is really disgusting that such a small minority can still have such entrenched racist ideas against the majority of South Africans.

While the article suggests that the gamers in question should be named and shamed, the article does not say who should do it.

Also, can we actually rely on people to actually do this? After all, these people are playing already, so are not all of the people who play with them also complicit?

To rid ourselves of the problem, there has to be a total transformation of gaming in South Africa, and for some, it seems that it should be forced...

QUOTAS

My blog on transformation certainly seemed to open an ant's nest!

Over 2,000 people read the blog, and over 65 people submitted comments.

Sadly few could be published as most contained, hate speech, racial slurs, cursing, and some just did not have anything to contribute.

Not a response suggested HOW to deal with the issue. All just stated that the idea was wrong!

Please read the following two sites:

1. http://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/mbalula-talks-tough-transformation-unveils-sports-awards-nominees
2. http://www.srsa.gov.za/MediaLib/Home/DocumentLibrary/THINKSPORT%20Journal%20Vol2%20No2%20August%202013.pdf

Both sites make it clear that this is a government initiative.

It is going to happen!

The MSSA under Webster has used a system which he claims has been effective. I just think that his system is weak and any system needs to be 'accelerated' to give more results and faster.

Cricket has started a policy of introducing two players of colour in each club team this year. There is not the uproar there, because they know it has to be done.

Read the links.

Then if you have a better idea on how to reach the goals set out in the score card, suggest them.

Those are the only replies I will publish!

Transformation in South African gaming!

While watching SABC TV2 yesterday morning (16 October 2013(, the Minister of Sport and Recreation announced the finalists of the South African Sport Awards.

Mind Sports South Africa managed to get Simphiwe Maphumulo nominated for the Indigenous Sports Star of the Year Award. This means as a finalist, Simphiwe automatically picks up a check of R15,000.00 and if he wins the category at the Awards dinner, Simphiwe will get a check of R130,000.00.

This is why eSports is part of the sports structure – so that the gamer can benefit.

The Minister also made it clear that quota's will be enforced in sport.

It is known that the MSSA does as much as possible to ensure that there is representation of all South Africans in its teams.

However, what of privately owned events. The TELKOM DGL still seems to be 'milky white'. All you have to do is look at the photographs, and you will see very few people of colour.

According to the last census, whites only make up 8% of the population, but if you went to rAge, you would think that you were still living in a pre-1994 South Africa.

DSGL, and all other competitions, should get in line with the governments' priorities, otherwise it could be seen that gaming, and the gamers themselves, are reactionary and do not identify with the New South Africa at all.

My suggestion is that DGL should not accept a team in their league if at least 2 of the team members are not blacks.

Think about it!