The United Kingdom eSports Association or UKeSA (pronounced ''You-Kes-Sah'') attempted to be a

governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or political entity. The most formal is a government, a body whose sole responsibility and authority is to make binding decisions in a taken ge ...

eSports Esports, short for electronic sports, is a form of competition using video games. Esports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Although orga ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Ivan, Tom. (2008-10-31
"Big Things Instore For eSports"

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website ...

. Retrieved 2009-02-23.T, Steve. (2009-02-11
"Be Broadband Is UKeSA Broadband Provider 2009"
. Broadband News. Retrieved 2009-02-24.Varsani, Kishan. (2008-12-22

. Arm3d.com. Retrieved 2009-02-19. and a member of the

International eSports Federation The International Esports Federation (IESF) is a global organisation based in South Korea whose mission it is to have esports recognized as a legitimate sport. Member Nations So far, there are 130 member nations in IESF: History The Interna ...

(IeSF).(2009-05-29
"UKeSA treed toe tot de IeSF en benoemd nieuwe General Secretary"
. e-sportbond.nl. Retrieved 2009-06-19. The headquarters were in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The UKeSA was responsible for governing

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

and

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

eSports, building a structure with the government, industry and community in mind. These include

Metropolitan Police Service The Metropolitan Police Service (MPS), formerly and still commonly known as the Metropolitan Police (and informally as the Met Police, the Met, Scotland Yard, or the Yard), is the territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and ...

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

, Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association,

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer hea ...

Future Publishing Future plc is an international multimedia company established in the United Kingdom in 1985. The company has over 220 brands that span magazines, newsletters, websites, and events in fields such as video games, technology, films, music, photogr ...

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the d ...

, Codemasters, The New World Assembly,

XLEAGUE.TV XLEAGUE.TV was a broadcast production unit owned by The New World Assembly Group, creating and providing content on its primary subject of Video Games. It covered eSports, competitive video gaming by providing coverage for organisers including ...

Team Dignitas Dignitas, formerly known as Team Dignitas, is a professional esports organization based in Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest c ...

, Reason Gaming, Team Infused, Fnatic, QuadV and Cadred.Cole, Corin. (2008-11-27
"UKeSA Structure Announced"
. ''Cadred.org''. Retrieved 2009-02-23. The association was launched on 31 October 2008 during the

London Games Festival The London Games Festival is an annual video gaming festival for both consumers and trade specialists held annually in April. The Festival is part of Games London an initiative to boost investment and skills in the capital, delivered by Ukie and ...

and was chaired by former

channel head Ray Mia.Silver, Max. (2008-11-20
"Ray Mia Explains the UKeSA"
. ''Cadred.org''. Retrieved 2009-02-29. He explained that UKeSA will essentially be the eSports equivalent of

The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the ...

, offering a centralised infrastructure to UK eSports as well as support towards semi-professional and professional team and UK community led projects with the government. UKeSA set up leagues and cup tournaments, split between three divisions: Open Division, Championship Division and Premiership Division.Silver, Max. (2008-12-05
"Event Structure and Seasons Announced"
. ''Cadred.org''. Retrieved 2009-02-24. Each division represents the different levels of competition from amateur to professional and is played online via the internet through the means of a personal computer or a video games console. Teams can compete in a series of video games including '' FIFA 09'', ''

Call of Duty 4 ''Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' is a 2007 first-person shooter video game developed by Infinity Ward and published by Activision. It is the fourth main installment in the ''Call of Duty'' series. The game breaks away from the World War I ...

'' and '' Counter-Strike''. Competition finals of these divisions were hosted at a specially selected venue in the United Kingdom. Teams are gathered to play against each other in off-line,

local area network A local area network (LAN) is a computer network that interconnects computers within a limited area such as a residence, school, laboratory, university campus or office building. By contrast, a wide area network (WAN) not only covers a larger ...

(LAN) setups as opposed to online play in the initial stages of the tournament.

History

31 October 2008 sees the official launch of the United Kingdom eSports Association during the 2008

in London. The launch party was held at the Haymarket branch of th
Sports Cafe
On 26 November 2008, it has been announced that several of the following organisations, both private and public sector, have been involved in the setup of UKeSA:

, Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association,

, Codemasters, The New World Assembly,

, Reason Gaming, Team Infused, Fnatic, QuadV and Cadred. The Executive Committee of UKeSA were announced on 12 January 2009. Members consist of personnel from the likes of Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association, British Broadcasting Association and Future Publishing.Witts, David. (2009-01-13
"UKeSA Confirms High-Profile Executive Committee"
''sweetpatch.tv''. Retrieved 2009-02-23. £35,000 GBP prize fund was announced for the Championship and Premiership Divisions on 13 January 2009. A selection of video game titles were listed as part of the Open Division. Future Publishing are partnering with UKeSA and aligning itself with the Open Division, announced on 23 January 2009. A selection of video game titles were announced for the Championship Division on 27 January 2009. They were chosen from the amount of sign ups in the Open Division. Top four titles will be picked to represent the Premiership Division. On 6 February 2009, UK Internet Service Provider, Be Unlimited has become the official broadband provider sponsor of UKeSA for 2009. UKeSA has announced the selection of eSports teams to represent and play in the Premiership Division on 13 February 2009. They include established teams such as

, The Imperial, Crack Clan and Team Coolermaster.Hazell, Matt. (2009-02-13
"UKeSA Premiership Teams Announced"
. ''Tek9 Networks''. Retrieved 2009-02-23.

Dell Dell is an American based technology company. It develops, sells, repairs, and supports computers and related products and services. Dell is owned by its parent company, Dell Technologies. Dell sells personal computers (PCs), servers, data ...

becomes the sponsor for UKeSA's Premiership Division on 17 February 2009. UKeSA opens up nominations and voting for the Community Committee on 25 February 2009.Witts, David. (2009-02-26
"UKeSA Community Council Elections Officially Begin"
''Sweetpatch TV''. Retrieved 2009-02-27. They also increased the prize fund for the UKeSA Championship and Premiership Division from £35,000 to £40,000. On 18 March 2009, UKeSA have appointed Richard 'Dr. Gonzo' Lewis, Michael 'ODEE' O'Dell and Stuart 'TosspoT' Saw as the elected Community Council members.Bembenek, Mike. (2009-03-18
"Community Council Election Results"
''enemydown.eu''. Retrieved 2009-03-18. On 2 April 2009,

HMV Sunrise Records and Entertainment, trading as HMV (for His Master's Voice), is a British music and entertainment retailer, currently operating exclusively in the United Kingdom. The first HMV-branded store was opened by the Gramophone Company ...

and UKeSA have announced that they are pairing up to organise the "GameOn! London" exhibition at the

Olympia Exhibition Centre Olympia London, sometimes referred to as the Olympia Exhibition Centre, is an exhibition centre, event space and conference centre in West Kensington, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, London, England. A range of internationa ...

, London, which takes place in June 2009.French, Michael. (2009-04-02
"HMV reveals new consumer games event"
''MCV''. Retrieved 2009-04-02. The governing body signs up to become a member of the

. In December 2009, amid controversy, the UKeSA signed for bankruptcy and has since made no attempt to pay back any individual or organisation it owed.Cadred.org. (2009-23-12
"UKeSA Files For Bankruptcy"
. ''MCV''. Retrieved 2011-01-22.

Committee Structure

The UKeSA structure is made up of three key committees and a players union. Each committee plays a vital role in the operations of the eSports Association. So far, only the Executive Committee and the Community Council has been officially announced. The Executive Committees purpose is to assist, direct and act as ambassadors for UK eSports to the wider public. The Committee shall be composed of prominent industry, media and government figures and shall include senior representatives from the games industry. *Ray Mia - Chief Executive, United Kingdom eSports Association (UKeSA) *Duncan Best - Director, Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA) *Richard Keith – Director,

Future PLC Future plc is an international multimedia company established in the United Kingdom in 1985. The company has over 220 brands that span magazines, newsletters, websites, and events in fields such as video games, technology, films, music, photogr ...

*Steve Carsey – Deputy CEO/Creative Director, Steadfast Television/Apace Media *James Claydon – Head of News & Entertainment,

Motion Gallery (

BBC Worldwide BBC Worldwide Ltd. was the wholly owned commercial subsidiary of the BBC, formed out of a restructuring of its predecessor BBC Enterprises in January 1995. The company monetises BBC brands, selling BBC and other British programming for broadcas ...

) and CEO of London Features International & Idols *Crawford Balch – Senior Manager, Reid & Casement The Community Council consists of six people: Three elected members of the UK eSports community, two permanent Executive Committee members of the UKeSA and one Senior Operational Manager.(2009-01-09
"Internal UKeSA Structure Announced"
''enemydown.eu''. Retrieved 2009-02-24. Originally, the three elected members of the eSports community had to be Team Managers from Championship or Premiership Teams. This was changed to make the Community Council both representative and inclusive of the UK eSports community. However, candidates must be UK passport holders and they must reside in the United Kingdom.(2009-02-27
"UKeSA Community Council Begins Nomination and Election Process"
''Jarralz''. Retrieved 2009-03-18. Candidates put themselves up for electoral status and are given an opportunity to state their wishes as to why they should be chosen for the Community Council. Questions are then submitted to the candidates by the public and are then answered by writing or through a live debate broadcast on Internet Protocol Television (

IPTV Internet Protocol television (IPTV) is the delivery of television content over Internet Protocol (IP) networks. This is in contrast to delivery through traditional terrestrial, satellite, and cable television formats. Unlike downloaded media, ...

) or web-streaming.Witts, David. (2009-02-26
"UKeSA Community Council Elections Officially Begin"
''Sweetpatch TV''. Retrieved 2009-03-15. Voting for potential Community Council members are done via public vote and are tallied via electronic means, such as a website. Voters are allowed to vote for 3 candidates and can only choose once per election. Elected members are not able to sit in the Community Council for two consecutive terms, however, they are able to be re-elected after standing down from a single term. No length of time has been given as to indicate how long these terms are. Elected members of the committee are responsible for community related operational and disciplinary matters. These include the enforcement of game, tournament and cup regulations and rules, disciplinary breaches of regulations and conduct, allocation of the seasonal cash retainers, game type and rule suggestions and responsibility for video game specific sub-committees.Ivan, Tom. (2009-03-02
"Internal UKeSA Structure Announced"
''Computer and Video Games''. Retrieved 2009-03-14. Attendance is required for Community Committee members through bi-monthly conference calls and physical meetings by attending the General Assembly. On 18 March 2009, UKeSA have announced the results of the elections for the Community Council. The following will be sitting in as members of the Community Council for one term: *Richard Lewis - Freelance writer and former eSports manager. *Michael O'Dell - General Manager,

. *Stuart Saw - eSports Commentator, QuadV. Also on the board for the Community Council is Ray Mia, who sits in as the permanent Executive Committee members of the Council and Peter Simpson as the Senior Operational Manager. The Ethics Commission is charged with defining and updating a framework of ethical principles, including a Code of Ethics & Conduct, based upon the values and principles enshrined in the UKeSA Charter. The Players Association is a separate entity that is supported by the UKeSA. This body, once established will be permanently represented on the Ethics Commission.

General Assembly

Meetings are set up between the Executive Committee, Community Council, Ethics Commission, Players Association and other leading figures among the government, the eSports community (such as the

) and video games industry. Held three times a year, these meetings consist of debated issues concerning eSports in the United Kingdom, how they relate to operational aspects of UKeSA and the endorsement of the UKeSA Charter. The General Assembly is invitational only, with permanent membership endorsed by elective procedures.

Competition structure

Competitions are split into three divisions, some of which will comprise a league and a cup tournament. Each of the divisions represent the different levels, citing grassroots amateur level to the professional level. There are three seasons per year, which last approximately three months per season. Teams from each division can face promotions and relegation depending on how they perform in each of the leagues during the season. Throughout each of the seasons, a trophy cup tournament is held between teams of the Open and Championship Division.van Manen, Hidde. (21 March 2009
UKeSA: Season One Cup Events
. Cadred.org. Retrieved 21 March 2009. Competition finals of the Cup Tournament, Championship and Premiership divisions are hosted at a specially selected venue in the United Kingdom each season. Qualifying eSports teams are gathered to play against each other in offline, local area network (LAN) setups as opposed to online play in the initial stages of the tournament.Ivan, Tom. (19 March 2009
UKeSA Season One Grand Finals dated

. Retrieved 21 March 2009. The Open Division represents the grassroots of eSports and form part of the amateur competitions. Playing restrictions are set to a minimum standard and games are played for fun or for practise. Because the Open Division is viewed as the amateur level of eSports, many teams that participate are generally those who have just started or want to determine whether they are suitable at competitive level before moving to the semi-professional side of eSports. The Championship Division represents the semi-professional competition level. Teams that choose to play in this division are generally groups who wish to move to the next stage of eSports and play for financial gain. Many of these team are established and may have squads for each individual game/title. Teams can be promoted from this division into the Premiership Division, through participation. Support and training are given to teams to aid their development. Such training includes both management and business elements, which is seen as crucial to building a team into global brand. The Premiership Division represents the professional level. Teams are given retainers to support themselves and develop their internal infrastructure as well as business support and training. Teams can be demoted through participation of competitions and must follow guidelines and rules throughout their participation. A seasonal Cup Tournament is held between the teams of the Open Division and the Championship Division. Teams are required to pay to enter and games are then carried out online. The final remaining teams will face at an offline,

(LAN) event. Premiership Division teams are not allowed to enter.

Teams

Currently, there are 13 selected eSports teams that represent the professional level of eSports. These teams participate in the UKeSA Premiership Division and play in different leagues that represent the video games they compete in. These teams are given media coverage through website editorials, terrestrial, satellite and cable television, internet protocol television and podcast. Business, management and financial support are given throughout the season, offering training managerial skills and business development, which will prepare the teams for sponsorships from companies like

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized as adidas since 1949) is a German multinational corporation, founded and headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, that designs and manufactures shoes, clothing and accessories. It is the largest sportswear manufactur ...

and other major business companies. Retainers are paid to Premiership teams at the end of each season, which will give financial support they need to carry on pushing the team brand as a primary business. The number of Championship Division teams are determined by several factors such as paid entry fees and completion of team data like video game user identification tags, with teams submitting themselves for the competition each season. These teams are working towards being promoted into the UKeSA Premiership Division, which will offer the team the support they need to get their brand off the ground. Teams in the UKeSA Championship Division are given limited support for business and management training, while financial support comes from winning the competition.

Competitive Video Games

There are a total of 17 video game titles currently used throughout the different divisions. They consist from a range of

first person shooters First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the pl ...

driving simulation Driving is the controlled operation and movement of a vehicle, including cars, motorcycles, trucks, buses, and bicycles. Permission to drive on public highways is granted based on a set of conditions being met and drivers are required to follo ...

beat 'em ups The beat 'em up (also known as brawler and, in some markets, beat 'em all) is a video game genre featuring hand-to-hand combat against a large number of opponents. Traditional beat 'em ups take place in scrolling, two-dimensional (2D) levels, ...

real-time strategy Real-time strategy (RTS) is a Video game genre, subgenre of strategy video games that do not progress incrementally in turn-based game, turns, but allow all players to play simultaneously, in "real time". By contrast, in Turn-based strategy, turn ...

sports simulation A sports video game is a video game that simulates the practice of sports. Most sports have been recreated with a game, including team sports, track and field, extreme sports, and combat sports. Some games emphasize actually playing the sport (s ...

and

rhythm action Rhythm game or rhythm action is a Video game genres, genre of Music video game, music-themed Action game, action video game that challenges a player's sense of rhythm. Games in the genre typically focus on dance or the simulated performance of ...

genres. Each of the video game titles have some element of competitive online and offline multiplayer modes, which allow the players to play against each other, specifically using competitive gaming rules set by UKeSA.Felix. (2009-01-13
"UKeSA Games and Prize Fund Confirmed"
. Goruchaf. Retrieved 2009-03-16. New video games titles are added when the eSports community requests for the inclusion in the competition. Titles are first placed into the Open Division to gauge the amount of sign-ups for that specific video game. If enough players register in the Open Division, UKeSA will move to include it into the semi-professional, Championship Division, where eSports athletes will be able to register to play for the prize fund. If a particular video game title is popular enough in the Championship Division, UKeSA will warrant that video game a place in the Premiership Division. Not all video game titles are suitable for use in a competitive environment as certain video game titles do not allow private sessions hosted by the players via

peer-to-peer Peer-to-peer (P2P) computing or networking is a distributed application architecture that partitions tasks or workloads between peers. Peers are equally privileged, equipotent participants in the network. They are said to form a peer-to-peer n ...

or server-led gaming rooms. Such games include UbiSoft's EndWar, where online play is restricted to its open

Theatre of War In warfare, a theater or theatre is an area in which important military events occur or are in progress. A theater can include the entirety of the airspace, land and sea area that is or that may potentially become involved in war operations. T ...

lobby system.

Membership To The International eSport Federation

The association was one of the members of the International eSport Federation (IeSF) alongside the following eSports associations: *eSport Verband Österreich (

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

)"eSport Verband Österreich"
Retrieved 2009-07-03. *Belgian Electronic Sport Federation (

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

),"Belgian Electronic Sport Federation"
. Retrieved 2009-07-03. *E-sport Denmark (

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

),"E-sport Denmark"
Retrieved 2009-07-03. *Deutscher eSport Bund (

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

),"Deutscher eSport Bund"
Retrieved 2009-07-03. *Nederlandse Electronic Sport Bond (

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

),"Nederlandse Electronic Sport Bond"
Retrieved 2009-07-03. *Swiss E-sport Federation (

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

),"Swiss E-sport Federation"
Retrieved 2009-07-03. *

Korea e-Sports Association The Korea e-Sports Association (KeSPA) is a South Korean body established to manage esports in South Korea. It is a member of the Korean Olympic Committee and the International e-Sports Federation. , it was the managing body for 25 e-sports in ...

(

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

),"Korea e-Sports Association"
Retrieved 2009-07-03. *Taiwan eSports League (

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

)"Taiwan eSports League"
Retrieved 2009-07-03. *eSports Vietnam (

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

).eSports "eSports Vietnam"
Retrieved 2009-07-03.

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

and

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

were also looking to join the federation at th
GStar 2008
exhibition held in South Korea.(2008-08-14
"The IeSF Is Born"
''ESR''. Retrieved 2009-02-27.

Future developments

UKeSA filed for bankruptcy whilst owing a large number of teams, players and industry related companies significant sums of money (http://www.cadred.org/News/Article/88207/)

Misconception

UKeSA are not to be confused by the Electronic Sports Ltd's eSports competitions organized by Richard Millington and Morgan Olsson under the same name from 2002 to 2005.

References

External links

What’s the future for eSports in the UK? UKeSA: The rise and demise of ‘The Football Association of gaming’
b
PostDesk
{{DEFAULTSORT:United Kingdom Esports Association Defunct esports governing bodies Esports in the United Kingdom Defunct sports governing bodies in the United Kingdom