Thus, the MSSA, in partnership with the Namibian Electronic Sports Association (NESA), decided to hold an official test match between Namibia and South Africa at the largest eSports competition in Namibia ? NAMLAN – to be held on 12 December 2010 in Windhoek, Namibia.
This is the first time that a South African national eSports team had ever travelled to Namibia. Consequently, both sides were wary of what to expect and of the standard of play that they would encounter.
The Namibian organisers Brendan Ihmig and Kai Eysselein did everything humanly possible to make the event a success.
The test match was held in COD 4 and FIFA 10 and both federations selected official teams to represent their respective countries.
Even though South Africa won the test match, the result was not nearly as important as the fact that the event was held. It is now an established fact that the governments of both South Africa and Namibia recognise eSports as fully-fledged sports and that international test matches between different countries are not only possible, but are also necessary, in terms of the long-term-development of eSports as a sport.
