Experts say the e-sports industry has seen "remarkable growth" in China, ahead of the Asian Games which take place in Hangzhou this weekend. E-sport events will make their debut at the tournament, with seven sets of medals on offer. 

It's difficult to miss the ever growing popularity and influence of e-sports. Short for electronic sports, it involves video games that are played competitively by professionals across the globe. 

With hundreds of millions playing and watching worldwide, the e-sports market is estimated to be worth almost $2bn by 2025. The industry has attracted major brand partnerships including Gucci, BMW and Coca Cola. 

In China, universities have launched specialized programs to train future professionals who can meet the growing demands of the industry. Students say there are many opportunities and it's not hard to find an internship or a job.

Tom Cannon, an expert on sports' finance at the University of Liverpool, told CGTN that e-sports has spawned a rapidly growing jobs market. 

"Whether it's some of the companies who are producing the games, people who are creating the infrastructure because the infrastructure is necessary, all of those are creating jobs," he said. "Which is why you can turn around and see at the moment maybe there's thousands, I reckon it'll be hundreds of thousands of jobs growing in the industry, particularly across Southeast Asia." 

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E-sports events are expected to draw the most spectators at the Asian Games. Tickets have been sold through a ballot lottery due to its popularity – with nearly every session of e-sports competition expected to be a sell-out. Gamers and experts say it's a major step towards Olympic recognition. 

The sport was given full medal status at a meeting of the Olympic Council of Asia in 2017, with e-sports appearing at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta and Palembang, Indonesia, as demonstration events.

However, the rapid growth and popularity of the sector means regulation has been slow to catch up. Tom Cannon told CGTN "E-sports require regulation. They require that there are referees that are people that make judgments. And certainly the truth of the matter is, once you talk about electronic things, it's conceivable that actually the risk of dishonesty grows."

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