Last week, the Minister of Culture, Jakob Engel-Schmidt, joined key representatives from the Danish esports scene at Astralis Nexus to hear The Confederation of Danish Industry (DI) present their latest analysis of the Danish esports industry and ecosystem.
The event was arranged by The Confederation of Danish Industry (DI) and hosted by Astralis, with DI's Head of Digital Policy, Andreas Espersen, and Jakob Lund Kristensen, co-founder of Astralis and current CEO of BlackBox Media, welcoming the minister on August 17th at Astralis Nexus.
Following the presentation and live interview on Danish TV2 News, the Minister took time to join Counter-Strike players from the main team, in-game leader Benjamin "blameF" Bremer, and the young and talented rifler Victor "Staehr" Staehr, as well as DI representative Laura Månsson, for intense two versus two duels on the server at times.
Luckily, the Minister of Culture also took some time to share his thoughts about the event and the new grand analysis of the Danish Esport Industry. Not only is he much better at the game than expected, but he also had some interesting words to share about esports as a culture and industry.
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Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt, who dedicated an hour of his day to engage with esports stakeholders, emphasized the overlooked potential of Danish esports:
- We have some of the world's most skilled esports athletes and stars, along with major organizations like Astralis and BLAST, who are performing phenomenally on the global stage, he said.
- Some Danes do not believe esports is a real sport, but I disagree. The industry has professional organizations, skilled coaches, a focus on talent development, and players in the world elite. And to be part of that (a part of the world elite, ed.), one must meet a wide range of requirements, just like in handball and football.
- I see a good opportunity for political engagement. And I have held this view for some time. I was personally involved in putting Esport Denmark on the budget last year. Sometimes it's not just about the money but also the political recognition. The report provides an opportunity to do more politically in the coming years.
The minister also expressed a keen interest in learning more about Danish esports, future talents, and grassroots development.
Read the full interview right here.
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