On 7 March, an exhibition on e-sports and videogames was held in the European Parliament building in Brussels, hosted by MEP Laurence Farreng (Renew) with the support of the S&D, the EPP, the Greens, and the International Software Federation of Europe (ISFE).
Several MEPs made an intervention, highlighting e-sports as a rapidly developing sector with significant potential for economic growth. MEP Iban Garcia del Blanco (S&D) and MEP Viola von Cramon (Greens) particularly emphasised the necessity to promote gender equality in e-sports and videogames. MEP von Cramon also called for increased regulation to guarantee the safety and well-being of young people participating in e-sports. Additionally, MEP Tomasz Frankowski (EPP) urged for the formulation of a common definition of e-sport in comparison with traditional sport.
The European Commission recently published its answer to a citizen petition, which stated that under the existing European legislative framework, no definition of ‘sport’ or ‘e-sport’ was established. In addition to that, although the Commission acknowledged the EU-wide cultural, societal and economic impact of videogames and e-sports, it further restated that the EU did not hold any competence to establish legislation in that area.