Going for gold

As the Commonwealth Games trials a videogame competition, does it feel like a torchbearer for esports?

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A QUESTION OF SPORTSWASHING

The GEF makes no secret of its ties with Saudi Arabia. The country will host the 2023 edition of its flagship event, the Global Esports Games, while Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud is a vice president and sits on the company's board. It's hard not to draw comparisons with the country's recent investments in traditional sports, which Amnesty International has termed 'sportswashing' - a way of distracting from its human rights record. We put this to Paul Foster. "I think that's a question for them, not really for me," he says. "And I think you can't talk about inclusivity which we talk about; it's one of our values where we include people - and then isolate [Saudi Arabia] because of different aspects that you might not agree with personally, or something like that."

Bella ella 'Crimson' Selwood is - along with the other two members of Team England - the first woman ever to win a Commonwealth gold for Rocket League. Aged 21, Selwood has been competing in various tournaments for the game since her teens, but the Commonwealth Esports Championships finals are the first time she's played in front of a live audience. It's enough to put her and her teammates, the clear favourites, off their game.