Federal State Associations for Esports Criticise the Government and Call for Non-Profit Status; Update with Mehring
The lack of recognition of the non-profit status of esports is upsetting the esports associations in Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia and Schleswig-Holstein. Their message to politicians is to keep their promises and create certainty so that Germany remains internationally competitive. Update: Fabian Mehring, Bavarian Digital Minister, has also spoken out.
Update published at 15:10: Meanwhile, Dr Fabian Mehring, Bavarian State Minister for Digital Affairs, has also spoken out about the lack of non-profit status. In a statement obtained by GamesMarkt, the digital minister says: "The hesitant attitude towards the issue of non-profit status is another sign of the complete failure of the federal government in the area of games. I am clearly in favour of recognising the non-profit status of esports. In my opinion, there are many reasons for this: In Bavaria, there are many hundreds of volunteers and a two-digit number of esports clubs that fulfil the same social function as other clubs. I don't understand why we should exclude them from this honorary position. By classifying them as non-profit, we could also counter some of the scepticism towards esports that is still widespread. If someone looks at their mobile phone today, it could also mean that they are currently volunteering for a club. They are not involved in a shooting club or a music club, they are involved in esports because that is part of the reality of young people's lives today."