While women are poorly represented Montenegro Email List in video game competitions, we interviewed several players in the French esports scene to understand the reasons for their low presence and what solutions could be put in place to remedy it.While more than 17 million women regularly play video games in France, according to the Syndicate of Software and Leisure Publishers (SELL), very few of them embark on a career in esports. Out of 1.3 million practitioners competing in France, only 6% of these followers are women, according to the latest barometer from France Esport. Why are women so poorly represented in this sector? What barriers are holding them back and preventing them from becoming professional? What should be put in place to attract more women to esports? Among the reasons that could explain this under-representation of women in esports, gendered education and the absence of a female figure in advertising for video games are singled out.
“ Girls are not educated to play video games. We will be much more likely to offer a doll to his daughter rather than a console. For me, gender education is the basis of it all. And even outside the family setting, society does not show us a female figure playing games, especially in advertising campaigns. This gendered education has contributed to reducing the number of female players, and thus the number of women in competitive circles , ”explains Kenza, head manager at ROG Esport, the esports section of Asus. Another explanation put forward by Margaux, founder and CEO of the mixed association Enoxia Esport: sexism, which is strongly present in the world of esport. “
Gender education and sexism at the root of the lack of women in esport
The reason for this more than suffocating presence of sexism in esport is the ease of speaking on social networks without any risk, behind a screen. Insults towards women are always easier to pronounce since they feel protected through their screen. The players try to protect themselves, even sometimes not daring to say that they are girls, because they know full well that they will take remarks the second after. “If esport remains” a very young ecosystem which takes up the patriarchal model of society “, according to Kenza,” it is mentally difficult for a boy to lose to a girl at video games just because of the misconceptions transmitted by society ”.Despite the lack of supervision that some players may suffer from, Mel, Yououtuber and Fortnite streamer, has chosen to get into esports to fight the clichés that persist in this environment.
“ I turned professional because I wanted to represent the image of girls in video games, especially now in Fortnite, where there is the most prejudice. For Mel, who is also a member of the Enoxia Esport association, the low presence of women in esport is not only due to prejudices, but also to the lack of motivation that they can engender in young girls. ” They lack a lot of support to help them launch their careers, because the clichés are not pronounced only by the players, but sometimes also by staffs, which does not make their job easier , ”adds Margaux. Faced with this observation, solutions exist. Beyond a feminine esport , it is the diversity that should above all be strengthened to encourage women to invest in this environment. “
Strengthen diversity in esport and support female players
We used to talk about women’s esport, we didn’t talk about developing diversity. Unlike some sports where there is a real physical difference between men and women, in video games we all have the same abilities with a controller in our hands. They have plenty of qualities to demonstrate: speed, intelligence … A woman can be stronger than a man in a game. We start with exactly the same chances at the start. For us, talent has no gender ”, proclaims Edern Plantier, sporting director of the CRaZY Esport team. Her observation is shared by the manager of Asus: “ there is no difference between a man and a woman playing a video game. I think you shouldn’t hesitate and that, despite everything, being a girl is an asset.
You will be noticed more, you will make more viewers, people will remember you ”. To help the players find their place, the founder of Enoxia Esport recommends that they find someone they trust to support them in their daily life. “ I would advise them to find one or more people they can count on to support them. When I think of the worst times, when we have to take unwarranted insults or even fabricated stories just to damage our image, we crack and we have to be surrounded to endure all this pressure sometimes. Surrounding yourself with good people can only be beneficial, as can joining a structure, a company or even a competent agency that supports, trains and helps young girls to integrate into esport.If the influencers can also sensitize their community in order to try to change mentalities, for Edern Plantier, the solution must be collective.
