New Sask. video game sports league draws hundreds

Every single day, about 27 million people on earth take time to playLeague of Legends. Someget paid to do it.

The virtualgame melds an intense, strategic take on a playgroundclassic,capture-the-flag, with an enchanted storyline and fantasticalchampions that act as a player's avatar.

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"There are a lot of teams that are looking for more players to add to their rosters," said Matthew Rousseaux of the video game.

Rousseaux is the president and founder of SK League (SKL),a new, provincial e-sports associationfor video game enthusiasts. The groupstarted in April 2015, and is hosting its first video game tournamentthis fallfor masters of the League of Legends game.

"It's basically just like hockey. You play in smaller tournaments, in smaller leagues and basically try to get drafted. That'show it works," Rousseauxexplained of the extremely popular, global e-sports world.

"Once that happens, you can make millions of dollars a year if you are good enough and you are doing what you need to be doing."

Rousseaux grew up playing video games in Swift Current, Sask.,and said he and his friends had always dreamed of starting their own league in the province. He said they tried a couple of years ago, but the idea didn'tget the traction it needed to take off.

"We just didn't have the manpower," he said.

This time, it was different.

"There's a much, much larger group of people who are behind it and who are passionate about it," Rousseaux said.

Hesaid that presently, 33 teams from Canada and the U.S., consisting of seven people per team, have signed up to play in SKL's first League of Legendstournamentthis fall.

The 231 people will battle it out in rounds of video game trials. The finals of the tournament will take place at Regina's Matrix Gaming Centre.

E-sports an untapped Canadian market

Rousseauxsaid SKL believes the unexpected, positive reception to its first tournament is evidence of a growing desire in the province for serious video gaming.

"E-sports is a global phenomenon that has really started to grow in the last six to seven years in North America," he said. "In other places like Korea and Japan, it has been a pretty big sport for 15 to 20 years. It is actually South Korea's national sport."

Rousseaux said SKL plans to hold another tournament in early 2016. At this point, they'reworking on a model that relies on sponsors and keeps playing in the virtual trials free for competitors.

"Unfortunately, there's not much for minor-type leagues in Saskatchewan or even in Canada," he said.