People
The players and the people who work around them.
P-1S visa explained for esports coaches and support staff
Coaches, interpreters and other staff who travel with athletes have their own US classification, P-1S. What USCIS requires, how long a stay lasts and what stays open case by case.
EducationUNIVERSITY Esports Masters marks ten years with a 14-country final
GGTech's university championship for Europe, the Middle East and Africa returns for its tenth edition, with national champions from 14 countries playing Valorant and League of Legends online in July.
SalariesFrance's esports player contract: one to five years, pay in writing
France gives salaried esports players a contract of their own, open only to approved teams. How the approval works, how long the contract runs, what it must say and what it protects.
PlayersG2 opens a Performance Lab to study how esports players are developed
G2 Esports has announced a research platform backed by Red Bull, with two universities, four areas of work and a first project on leadership among its coaches and staff.
PlayersIEM Cologne 2026 Shows the Five-to-Seven-Year Career Myth Is Dead
From 16-year-old s1zzi to 36-year-old karrigan, the IEM Cologne 2026 Major field shows veteran and teenage Counter-Strike 2 players competing side by side.
PlayersIEM Cologne Major 2026: 31 players make their Major debut
HLTV counts 31 first-time players at the IEM Cologne Major, which opens on June 2. Five teams bring 21 of them, and two start in the last group stage.
CreatorsESL names 17 broadcast talent for the IEM Cologne Major 2026
Presenters, five analysts and four casting pairs will carry the broadcast of the Cologne Major from June 2, with a former GamerLegion coach making his analyst debut.
EducationWest Virginia University Launches Online Esports Business Degree
WVU's College of Applied Human Sciences opens an online Esports Business and Entertainment bachelor's degree for its first cohort in fall 2026.
EducationHow UK university esports works: NSE, BUCS and the BUEC explained
Who runs British university esports, who may play, how a BUEC season runs from sign-up to the live finals, and how the Esports University of the Year table is built.
PlayersLEC rulebook now ties each starter to one declared in-game role
A rulebook update dated May 18 makes every LEC starter declare one of the five roles and play it, defines the emergency substitute pool and sets a Split Final draft rule.
SalariesHow the Esports Nations Cup pays players, coaches and their clubs
The US$45 million money model of the first Esports Nations Cup: the same prize for every seat, a 40 percent payment to clubs and a fund for national partners.
EducationWarwick named NSE Esports University of the Year for an eighth time
The University of Warwick topped National Student Esports' 2025/2026 table with 3,852 points, ahead of Southampton and King's College London, in a season of 117 universities.
EducationCECC May Madness brings its college esports finals to Waco
The Collegiate Esports Commissioner's Cup expects more than 2,000 students in Waco from April 30 to May 3, its first year away from Arlington, with a high school event alongside.
SalariesWhy the Call of Duty League cannot cap or tax what teams pay players
A 2023 federal court judgment bars Activision from capping player pay in its leagues or fining teams that spend too much. What the case said, and what the decree allows.
CreatorsCS2 talent lists for PGL Bucharest, IEM Rio and BLAST Rivals 2026
Three spring Counter-Strike 2 events named their broadcast teams. Who hosts, who analyzes, who commentates, and which voices work for more than one organizer.
CareersHow Japan's JeSU pro license works and why prize money depends on it
In Japan, large tournament prizes run into consumer law. How the Japan Esports Union's pro license turns prize money into pay for work, and what the junior license allows.
SalariesUK minimum wage and worker status: what it means for esports players
How UK employment law sorts a player, a coach or a caster into worker, employee or self-employed, and the National Minimum Wage rates that apply from April 2026.
CreatorsCo-Streamers, Not Official Broadcasts, Drove Q1 2026 Esports Viewing
Esports Charts data for Q1 2026 shows co-streamers leading hours watched across League of Legends, Counter-Strike 2, Valorant and Rocket League.
SalariesWhen a team stops paying its players: what a league can do
Leagues have barred owners, removed teams, left slots with the players and set prize money aside for the people owed. How those tools worked in four published decisions.
Salaries6GPA Expelled From Prime League 2 Over Unpaid Wages
German club 6GPA lost its Prime League 2 slot and its Valorant Challengers DACH spot after failing to pay players and staff owed since October 2025.