So, i was wondering for a while if anyone around here plays Magic: The Gathering and whether it would be worth writing about it. This week i got the perfect excuse, when i got SK-Gaming featured on the 'Monday Night Magic' podcast over at MTGCast.com. You can find the 1 hour 15 minute podcast at that link.

So how did this come up? Since i got back into MTG a few months ago i discovered the professional/competitive side of the game that i never knew about when i used to play (8~ years ago). I've been following the Pro Tour and the recent Worlds event this time around, as well as attending a couple of Friday Night Magic drafts at my own local shop.

But one thing that struck me as an esports writer and fan is that MTG players, even the best in the world, have little-to-no sponsorship. So i e-mailed the guys from MTGCast about this and they thought it was a really interesting question. He e-mailed me back and said he would ask his co-host on this week's episode, as well as giving us a free plug.

His answer was pretty interesting, and could be inspiration for a future Zechs Files. He pointed out that MTG, unlike most esports, is run wholly by one company, Wizards of The Coast. The equipment needed to play the game is very, very minimal so there where esports has the ground level sponsorship like mousepads and headsets, there isn't really such a thing in MTG. The only thing you see is players wearing t-shirts that advertise online card shops.

Why this was particularly interesting is that i saw parallels with WoW and Blizzard here. Lack of regular tournaments has been a huge problem for WoW as an esport over the years because anyone wishing to run one needs the full support of Blizzard. Just like Wizards, they ARE their game. Although the intricate details are obviously different, the fact is that very few WoW teams manage to gain sponsorship.

So, what do you guys think about it? Are there any MTG players lurking out there on SK? I'd love to hear from you and maybe we could play some MTG online.