Video game company Blizzard’s “Overwatch” staff, back during the beginning of development of the game in 2013, would have never expected their game to be big enough to not only create a gaming league, but also be seen as the new National Football League.

“Overwatch” is a multi-player online game available on PC, Xbox and Playstation 4. Players work together in teams of six against another team of six to either capture or defend capture points or objectives. The simplistic gameplay and diversity in character selection — ranging from offense to defense, tank and support — has created a playground for players to create strategies to increase winning odds. Because of this development, “Overwatch” now has its own competitive gaming league and world cup.

July 12, 2017 is when the league would gain wide recognition after the New England Patriots chief executive owner Robert Kraft became the owner of the Boston “Overwatch” league, “Boston Uprising.” Following Kraft’s lead, the New York Mets’ chief operations owner Jeff Wilpon became the franchise owner of the New York’s “Overwatch” team, “New York Excelsior.”

Nate Nanzer, who was Blizzard’s previous global director of research and consumer insights, expresses genuine hope and confidence in an interview with Wired.

“We are literally building a new sport,” Nanzer said. “We’re trying to build this as a sustainable sports league for decades and decades to come.”

There is quite a bit of debate that surrounds the idea of “Overwatch” getting as big as the NFL. Some are excited to see this game gaining international recognition, while some believe that getting big money involved will only ruin the game. The majority of the “Overwatch” community are competitive players, which is a commonly misused word.

Competitive play is quite literally available to anyone who buys the game and bothers to play until they reach level 25. One does not have to be a master or professional at the game to play competitively. However, many in the competitive play community strive to be “the best” at the game, which results in a lot of toxicity. Many worry that the hype and recognition the game is getting will only result in people wanting to strive more and more, resulting in even more toxicity.

Jeff Kaplan, Blizzard vice president and lead designer of “Overwatch,” and his staff have many steps towards ridding of toxicity, such as upgrading a report system and “prefer this player” system. Bad behavior still lingers.

Whether or not players want it, “Overwatch” continues to spread its name to all corners of the globe and brings in more consumers and players with each update, event and patch.