Football fans are among some of the most passionate people on the face of the planet. While it's not uncommon for fans of the Beautiful Game to enjoy a game of FIFA or PES from time to time, it appears that some fans don't want these digital versions distracting leagues from the real thing, so much so that they stopped a league match to protest the rise of eSports.

During the match, fans of BSC Young Boys, a football club based out of the Swiss city of Bern, threw tennis balls and controllers with derogatory messages scrawled on them onto the field as Young Boys played against the French club Basel. The fans also unfurled a banner with a pause button on it, further conveying their distaste of eSports.

The event didn't hold up the match for very long, with the entire protest only lasting about 2 minutes before the match proceeded as normal. It doesn't appear that the protest had much of an effect on Young Boys' psyche either, as the team went on to crush Basel 7-1.

controller on field

So what was cause enough to delay an entire league match by protesting? Fans were upset at how many clubs are beginning to invest in eSports and feel that the money would be better spent on the actual club itself. Young Boys themselves have an eSports team that competes in FIFA tournaments.

eSports have grown exponentially in the past few years, being helped along by massive million-dollar tournaments like those put on by Epic Games for Fortnite. It makes sense that more professional teams are beginning to see eSports as a wise investment. The rapid rise in popularity and nearly endless potential for brand growth means that teams are almost guaranteed to make a decent return on the investment.

It's not likely that fans will change their minds overnight, but, hopefully, more people will begin to see the potential benefits that an eSports team could bring. At the very least, charged fans should consider what they do to controllers a bit more carefully, as they're pretty expensive. And who knows, maybe this will spur EA to include some protest DLC in the upcoming FIFA 19.

Source: Eurogamer