Operational rules and “hacking” detection is implemented across online professional competitive gaming contexts in effort to thwart manipulation and encourage fair play. Violation of “unwritten” rules and implicit local norms, however, are harder to track. Using boundary-work theory, this article demonstrates how different perspectives of unsportsmanlike behavior are defended and disputed by spectators within the esports mode of Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO). Triangulating data drawn from 50 hr of online observation followed by spectator interviews, this article examines how boundaries of (un)acceptability are drawn and/or redrawn around specific and ostensibly unsportsmanlike behaviors associated with “bad mannering,” “throwing,” and “bug exploiting” in CS:GO. These broad spectra of behavior imply a degree of complexity in local esport gaming contexts, engendering a protean boundary that sets it apart from more traditional views of sportsmanship and would benefit from further critical scholarship.

Trash talking is a contentious and prevalent practice in traditional sports but few studies have examined its practice in esports ‐ a computer-mediated form of sports competition in videogaming. This study used practice theory to identify different forms and dialectical relationships of trash talking in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Fifty hours of structured observations of professional tournaments were conducted followed by semi-structured interviews with fifteen spectators/casual gamers. Inductive analysis of data based on practice theory-related constructs identified varying perspectives on trash talk, and six distinct forms. Trash talk was directed towards players from opposing players, coaches, fans, casters and analysts. ‘Teabagging’ was the most controversial, but a predominantly positive ethos for trash talk was found, such that it was a distinct part of this esports scene. Theoretical and practice-oriented implications are discussed and a conceptualization of the practice of trash talk is given to encourage further debate and discussion in the field.

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Esports, much like conventional sports, are guided by social norms that determine the acceptability or unacceptability of certain behaviors. One act guided by social norms is trash talk. However, understanding its practice has been difficult due to the various definitions of its use. Focusing on the first-person shooter genre, this study aimed to uncover and encapsulate the various forms of trash talk into a single framework. Applying Presseau et al.’s Action, Actor, Context, Target, and Time (AACTT) framework for specifying behavior, 61 cases of trash talk were analyzed across Counter Strike: Global Offensive, Overwatch, and Rainbow Six: Siege esports. Actions associated with trash talk were primarily found through verbal and written exchanges though they can occur through in-game mechanics—a practice unique to esports. Traditionally, actors and targets are the professional players in a game. However, trash talking was also practiced by coaches, stage talent, and esport organizations. The context of trash talk can be further identified through physical, environmental, and social settings, nd whether the time trash talk occurs is centered around a match or tournament. Understanding the impact of each AACTT element may have on the social norms of trash talk can allow researchers to further distinguish behaviors across esport consumers.