12 new members have joined the International Esports Federation (IESF), bringing the organization’s total to 123. Africa accounts for five of the new additions, with national governing bodies from Niger, Chad, Algeria, Somalia, and Burkina Faso joining the IESF. Four from Asia, representing Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Palestine, and Tajikistan, have also joined the fray. Organizations from Bulgaria, Haiti, and Guadeloupe complete the new intake.
“Congratulations to our newest 12-member federations,” said Vlad Marinescu, President of the IESF. “We are very grateful to everyone who has contributed to IESF’s growth across the world and who recognizes the work we do to unite the world esports family and secure the future of responsible esports worldwide. We look forward to supporting the development of our 123 members, both large and smaller nations, and seeing them compete under their flags at the 2022 World Esports Championships.”
The new IESF members in full are the Bulgarian National Electronic Sports Federation, E-sport Federation Afghanistan, Bangladesh Youth Development and Electronic Sports Association, Palestine Federation for Electronic and Intellectual Sports, Tajikistan Esports Federation, Mouloudia Algiers Centre, Tournament of Electronics Games of Ouagadougou, Chad e-sport, Nigerien Association of Esports, Electronic Somali Sports Federation, Haitian E-sports Federation, and Association GIGA’GAMES Fédération Guadeloupe d’eSports.
(All information was provided by Inside The Games)
Esports as a whole is fractured, with some games themselves having little to no organizational structure or governance. This basically means any non-profit “federation” can call itself an esports national or governing body even though:
– They are not involved in any of the major esports events or competitions.
– Do not influence the rules of any esport or how the publisher/tournament organizers run things.
– Most of the industry doesn’t know they exist, or actively avoids them.
What these epsorts feds do is pure theatre. Unfortunately governments fall for it easily.