Exploring the transformation of the gaming and esports landscape through platforms such as Twitch. Youtube Gaming and Kick.

4se Material explores some of the many stories at the intersection of sport, entertainment, lifestyle and culture. In this episode, we look towards gaming, gaming influencers and esports athletes – and how they’ve utilised livestreaming to forge a legitimate career path that only two decades ago would seem entirely unfeasible.

How has the rise of livestreaming change how games are played, shared and even made? How has it aided in the professionalisation of esports? And how has it created a new kind of influencer, and a new kind of athlete?

To provide all pixels needed to build a complete picture, we needed four contributors. To help us understand the world of esports and professional gaming, we spoke to Alexander Inglot, Commissioner of the ESL Pro League; speaking primarily to gaming from the perspective of talent, we have interviewed Stephanie Ijoma, Founder and CEO of NNESaga; for a journalistic viewpoint, we reached out to Grant Taylor-Hill, who has written for Game Rant, Insider Gaming and Esports.net; and for insight on overall impact of livestreaming on the gaming industry, we connected with Kristina Skogvard - Marketing Manager and Team Lead at esports data provider Abios.

Perspectives on the path to sporting legitimacy with the Olympic sport that’s breaking the mould, a post-pandemic paddle phenomenon, and a fantastic new sport with fantastical origins.

4se Material explores some of the many stories at the intersection of sport, entertainment, lifestyle and culture.

Sport has existed in some form for millennia. And every sport that we see as legitimate – soccer, basketball, cricket, and so on – was at some point in its infancy. So how do sports go from niche to national? From backyards to big leagues? How is credibility forged in the modern age, and how might this process look different now than it did for more traditional sports?

Pickleball has seem immense growth in the past few years, with an A-list roster of players including George Clooney and Leonardo DiCaprio. Quadball, originally inspired by Quidditch from the Harry Potter series of books and films, is enjoying a number of new commercial opportunities following a rebrand last year. And Breaking, also known as Breakdancing, is due to make its Olympic debut at Paris 2024.

Three new and exciting sports, very different in gameplay and origin, which have experienced (or are experiencing) different journeys to the same desired destination: credibility. What kind of obstacles has each faced along the way? What are the advantages and challenges of growing a sport in the digital age? How does being part of the Olympics change the sport and how it’s perceived? And in the sports industry, what are the markers of credibility?

This episode features contributions from four experts: Tom Webb, Chief Marketing Officer for the Association of Pickleball Players; Rob Pountney, Founding Board Member of Breaking GB; Jeremy Schleicher, Director of Operations for the International Quadball Association; and Declan Ramsay, President of Quadball UK.

An exploration of how the multi-billion dollar anime industry has mastered emotive realism and visual storytelling – and what the sports industry can learn from it.

4se Material explores some of the many stories at the intersection of sport, entertainment, lifestyle and culture.

Anime as an art form can be misunderstood by adult professionals in the western world. But what if we said that it has inspired directors such as James Cameron? Quentin Tarantino? Christopher Nolan? The argument isn’t necessarily that animation is just for kids (adult cartoons like Bojack Horseman and Ricky and Morning have received critical acclaim during their runs) but that it’s often unsophisticated and best utilised for comedy.

While sports anime can often have comedic elements, it also has masterfully choregraphed action scenes, gripping drama, diverse casts of characters, and it thoughtfully explores themes such as resilience, ambition and sacrifice. Live-action content can also do so, but the creative freedom that comes with drawing the characters, the action, the backgrounds and all of the stylistic elements that make for a scene allow for a new level of visual and emotive storytelling.

So what is sports anime? What impact has it had to the sports industry? And last – but certainly not least – what makes it perhaps the best vehicle for sports storytelling?

The episodes includes contributions from two expert guests: Rayna Denison, Professor of Film and Digital Arts at the University of Bristol, and Tatiana Tacca, an esports and anime consultant and founder of Oni Vision. Thank you also to Nikhil Sonmali for his assistance with researching the topic.