Is online poker a sport?

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Any athlete will laugh when people refer to poker as a sport, in fact if you mention chess or esports most people will discount them as real sports.  Let’s start with a definition of sport and what the oxford dictionary says:

“an activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment”.

If we focus on the first part of the definition then we can rule out esports etc.  However the second part is inclusive of esports or even poker.  As poker is technically a form of gambling, we then need to as the question, “is gambling a sport”?  Again we refer to the Oxford dictionary – Poker is the only form of gambling that can be considered a sport, at least by the Oxford Dictionary definition. No other gambling game involves individuals or teams competing against each other.

Here’s a few other sports that fall into a bit of criticism when it comes to their classification.

Chess 

Chess is another game that gets a lot of criticism for being classed as a sport, but if in doubt, look to the International Olympic Committee, who have recognised chess as a sport.   Chess may not be the most physically demanding sport but it’s hugely mentally demanding, most chess grandmasters are considered geniuses.

Esports

There’s no doubting esports now, it a truly global and one of the fastest growing sports.

The short history of eSports has been an amazing growth story, esport has seen a stratospheric rise in popularity over the last decade and 2022 will see that continue.

As a result of the recent pandemic, sports fans were looking for something to fill the void, eSports stepped into the breach, helping it turn into a billion dollar a year industry.  In 2019 the total audience size grew to 380 million and in 2019 that figure was over 450 million!  Goldman Sachs expects that eSports will have roughly the same viewership levels by 2022 as the NFL.

Competitive gaming has also had a huge boost in viewing figures and also revenue jumps of late. Some of the biggest eSporting events such as League of Legends and Call of Duty have massive prize pots and according to statista, it is estimated that the e-Sports industry will be valued at $1.5 billion in the coming years. It’s frightening how quick and global the industry has become, yet it is no surprise since we are in the forever rise of the digital age!

The history of poker

The game of poker was developed some time during the early 1800’s the and spread throughout the Mississippi River region of United States, during this century the game travelled west during the gold rush and became a favourite on the Mississippi river boats.  Compared to roulette, blackjack and baccarat, poker is relatively new, but since those early beginnings in America, poker has grown to become an extremely popular pastime throughout the world.

The 20th century saw poker spread and grow around the world but it’s not until the 1970 that it really exploded in popularity.  Modern tournaments were the reason for this and the game became a regular in American casinos after the World Series of Poker began, in 1970.

By the 1980s, poker was a stable recreational activity and even played by families.  The legalising of gambling on Indian reservations in California and the spread of the game to the casinos of Atlantic city continued to drive the growth of the sport, but it was online poker that brought the game to the next level

Online Poker

An important milestone in the history of online poker was in 1999 when Mike Caro founded Planet Poker.  This was the first real money online poker game and these real money games started to act as a magnet for prospective players.  Also in 1999, Late Night Poker debuted on British television.

Online poker takes off in 2000

Texas Hold’em poker continued to draw large crowds and quickly became the most popular type of poker played over the Internet. Ultimate Bet was founded in the year 2000 and one year later, it was joined on the big stage by Party Poker and Poker Stars. Meanwhile, Hollywood blockbusters depicting poker professionals and ambitious amateurs contributed to the surging popularity of the card game.

The most mentally demanding sports

By the mid 2000’s internet connection were much more reliable and millions of poker players took to online sites and many chose to forsake live games altogether. Full Tilt Poker came along in 2004 and at this point players had plenty of worthy alternatives, so they could make an educated decision. The growing number of online poker rooms resulted in more and better promotions, fully fledged loyalty schemes and cash back programs. Casual players continued to dominate the online landscape, but they were joined at all levels by amateurs and semi-pro gamblers.

The use of hole-card cameras made online poker a huge spectator sport.  Broadcasts of poker tournaments such as the World Series of Poker and World Poker Tour brought in huge audiences for cable and satellite TV distributors.  The recent pandemic did nothing to slow poker and the game is now truly global both online and as a card game.

The bottom line is – Online poker is a sport!

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