Roald Van Buuren, former director of Fnatic, shared his opinion that esports’ attempt to gain legitimacy by imitating traditional sports formats was a mistake for the industry. According to him, the future of esports depends on developing its own digital platforms and culture.
“Esports has a ‘purism’ problem, and I say that as someone who used to be part of it myself. For years, like many others, I believed the path to esports legitimacy was through traditional sports: huge stages, polished broadcasts, rigid structures, and rules — all of it seemed like the obvious road toward the recognition we thought we lacked.
In the late 2000s and early 2010s, we chased television, believing that if esports appeared on TV screens, the mainstream would respect us. Then Twitch arrived and proved the opposite: esports didn’t need television. Instead, we built our own version based on community and culture, which felt far more authentic.
Ironically, television eventually came to esports itself. When I worked on shows for NBC, ESPN, and Turner at FACEIT, it became clear that traditional broadcasters wanted access to audiences they could no longer reach; they adapted to esports and gaming rather than leading them.
My perspective changed once it became obvious that large-scale, sports-style events alone were not a sustainable revenue model. For FACEIT, the real goal was strengthening market position and bringing players onto the platform. The platform itself was where the real value, retention, and growth existed.
That’s where my ‘purism’ collapsed. It was built on the idea that esports had to revolve around giant stages and spectacle, even though time and time again the strongest innovations in the industry came from solving digital problems through platforms like FACEIT and Twitch.
I don’t believe esports will move forward by imitating sports or using templates that even traditional sports are now moving away from. It will move forward by creating products that reflect how players actually compete, watch, and interact. I strongly believe the future of esports belongs to people who understand digital culture, not those trying to recreate a model that never truly fit this amazing industry.”
Reminder: Loot boxes in CS2 and other games could face a complete ban across the European Union.