Ygam introduces new Gaming & Esports Programme

• The Gaming & Esports Programme is a new initiative by Ygam that focuses on educating and protecting young gamers
• The charity's newest program has gone through a pilot launch earlier this year
• Lia Thompson, Sheffield Hallam University's President of the Gaming & Esports Society, speaks about the importance of combatting inappropriate behavior and protecting young gamers

The award-winning charity focused on education and safeguarding young people from gaming and gambling harm, Ygam, expanded its portfolio of prevention programs with the addition of a new initiative that focuses on young gamers.

Only recently, the charity uncovered details regarding the Gaming & Esports Programme, a new initiative that seeks to provide support and education for young gamers, their parents and carers, as well as individuals working in the esports and gaming sectors.

The Gaming & Esports programme will address a number of important topics

The comprehensive program will cover a range of important topics, including the role of advertising and the evolution of gaming mechanics.

The initiative will also focus on virtual currencies, microtransactions and the effect of gaming on motivation and mental health.

Ygam's Gaming & Esports Programme will also delve into the benefits of esports as a career path and other hot topics from the gaming and gambling sector.

Ultimately, the new program seeks to "create a safer, more supportive experience for young people," as described by Ygam in a press release.

Back in February, the charity completed a pilot version launch of the same program, which was delivered to young people at the Sheffield United Community Foundation and esports students from Sheffield Hallam University.

According to Ygam, the pilot was successfully delivered and received by young people, as well as university and foundation officials.

The initiative seeks to prevent the normalization of inappropriate behavior

Lia Thompson, Sheffield Hallam University's President of the Gaming & Esports Society, who attended the pilot session, shared her excitement.

"I think the new Ygam programme is really important – the Gaming and Esports industry is going in the right direction with the increasing ability to report inappropriate behavior, but safeguarding needs to start before that," she revealed.

Thompson spoke about the importance of raising awareness of such inappropriate behavior with a goal of preventing it from being "normalized."

The University's President of the Gaming & Esports Society added: "If we can get young people to think about this early on, we can stop it from happening in the first place, and Ygam’s new programme really helps to achieve this."

Thompson revealed that she has witnessed such inappropriate behavior as a woman in the gaming vertical from a young age adding that many young people mistakenly see it as the proper way to act "to be accepted by the community."

However, she said: "This is not the true version of yourself, and toxic behavior online should not be enabled like this."

Finally, Thompson reiterated the importance of Ygam's program, predicting that it may help young people and decrease inappropriate behavior.

The initiative comes at a time when the global esports market has recorded significant growth and is expected to continue soaring.

By 2032, the esports vertical is expected to be worth $10.91bn.

At the same time, as of 2024, more than 80% of young adults, age 16 to 24 years old, enjoy video games.

Undoubtedly, Ygam's new program will help deliver education and safeguard young people in the gaming sector.

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