[thrilling music playing]
[Idris Elba] For thousands of years,
we've played sports to hone our skills.
In our pursuit to be faster,
jump higher,
become stronger,
our playgrounds have shaped the human race.
But in modern times, play has become a serious business.
After all,
sport is entertainment.
It delights audiences,
and where there is demand,
- there is opportunity. - [crowd cheering]
[Elba] The unstoppable rise of technology
and our human obsession with making money
has turned the games we play into big business.
[roars]
[Elba] You might think the most profitable game played in Africa...
is football.
But in Senegal, that's not true.
Here, the richest athletes learn to fight.
This spectacular Senegalese game is a cross between boxing and wrestling.
The body is both a weapon and a target.
[grunts]
[Elba] Whilst ancient Greek wrestlers fought to please the gods,
these young men fight for glory.
And some serious money.
[grunting]
[Elba] These Dakar boys dream of being the next wrestling superhero.
They look up to rising stars like Junior,
who is hoping to be the first man from his village
to fight his way to the top.
[Junior, in Wolof] We don't believe in football. We believe in wrestling.
It is our national sport. We value it more than any other sports.
We want to become "the king of the arena."
We want to make profit from it and help others.
We depend on wrestling to build our life.
[Elba, in English] But to get to the top will be difficult.
At least the rules of the game are easy to learn.
If your head, bottom, or back touches the ground,
you're out.
[grunts]
[Elba] Make no mistake, this is just practice.
During an actual match,
you're allowed to punch your opponent in the face
with bare knuckles.
[percussive music playing]
[Elba] Meanwhile, the National Stadium is getting ready for a big match.
It was a $50 million gift from China,
securing their influence in a developing economy
and a foothold in one of the fastest-growing businesses in Africa.
It is the biggest wrestling stadium in the world,
and on Fight Night, it will be brimming with paying spectators, gamblers,
and people selling food and merchandise.
An entire ecosystem of businesses.
No one is keener than the promoter
to make sure this event runs like clockwork.
Especially as he takes a 10% cut of ticket sales and merchandise.
[in French] Without sponsors, it is impossible to organize a big fight.
Because tomorrow is easily going to cost me $100,000.
There is no other country where you will find wrestling with punching.
You can only find it in Senegal.
It is a tradition that became a business.
Some wrestlers are now...
millionaires.
[yelling indistinctly in French]
[speaking in French]
In wrestling, it is all about money.
The wrestlers cost money.
Put "Construction" there, so I can see.
You have to pay the stadium $1,000.
You have to pay for publicity. Television and radio.
You have to pay for posters. You have to pay for merchandise.
You have to pay for fuel.
You have to pay all the people who help organize the event.
Everything is money.
[giving instructions indistinctly in French]
[continues giving instructions in French]
[Elba, in English] Junior's gym also makes a profit
by having a national star train here.
They're charging spectators to watch him train.
For Junior, the stakes are high.
[Junior, in Wolof] It is a great day. It is a day I like best. I am preparing.
It is a day where I need victory, and I am working for that.
I need victory.
[Elba, in English] To win the victory he's dreamed of since he was a boy,
Junior will need skill, speed, and power.
[grunting]
[Elba] First prize is a staggering $15,000,
an astronomical amount for the average Dakare.
But still, handing out autographs, attending press conferences,
and keeping up a relentless training regime is hard work.
[Junior, in Wolof] I just need victory next Sunday, just victory.
I would give my life for it.
[Elba, in English] Today is Junior's big day.
He starts by taking a mystical good luck bath.
The first of many rituals surrounding this playground.
The entire neighborhood flock to his home.
If Junior is successful,
he's promised to share his winnings with the whole community.
[clamoring]
To make sure he doesn't let anyone down,
Junior has spent his life savings
on the best potions and spells money can buy.
[clamoring]
[cheering]
[Elba] At the National Stadium, the riot police prepare for battle.
The hordes of fans tend to take fights that don't go their way to heart.
For Junior, the preparation is over.
It's time to see if he can fight his way into the history books.
[rapid-fire drumming]
[Elba] While the lion's share of the prize money
will be taken home by the winner of each fight,
the medicine men also take a cut.
Which is why they'll do anything to ensure their magic works.
Sometimes, the medicine men don't play by the rules.
The man running across the bottom of the ring
has just poured a potion on the opponent.
It's dirty play, and the fans don't like it.
This is why the riot police are always on standby.
[clamoring]
[Elba] The police send the most aggressive supporters home.
Meanwhile, Junior must keep his focus and patiently wait his turn.
The man in the red loincloth is his opponent.
Will Junior's muscles and magic bring victory or defeat?
The fight is on.
[whistle ringing]
[tense music playing]
[tense music intensifies]
- [crowd cheering] - [whistle rings]
[Elba] Junior has won
and is now on a path to become a member of the wealthy elite.
Huge audiences pay good money
to be absorbed in Junior's dangerous and thrilling playground.
The enormous stadium is designed for one thing only,
to make as much money as possible.
The bigger the spectacle, the bigger the business.
And one playground that attracts millions of fans worldwide
is motor racing.
[engine revving]
[Elba] An industry worth billions of dollars.
With, at its center,
a machine that has shaped the human race.
The car.
Developing and racing cars is not cheap,
which is probably why its spiritual home
is one of the most expensive playgrounds of the world.
The tax paradise, Monaco.
Here, in the millionaires' boys club,
professional driver Stoffel Vandoorne is practicing his moves.
From his home in Monaco,
he's preparing for the next big race.
And, ultimately, the world title.
He has come a long way.
[Stoffel] The very first time that I jumped in a go-kart,
I was probably four or five years old.
At such a young age, you do it for fun.
It was the speed, the adrenaline I was getting from it.
And really being the fastest guy on the circuit
was really motivating me to continue that
and finally managed to make a professional career out of it.
[upbeat music playing]
[Elba] Recently, Stoffel left Formula One
to compete in its more innovative cousin,
Formula E.
Instead of dirty fossil fuels,
it's electricity that feeds these racing machines.
If they want to keep making money, manufacturers must look to the future.
These super-computers on wheels
compete to prove which company has the fastest, smartest tech.
But it's all for nothing
if the drivers fail to get their multi-million-dollar machines
over the finish line first.
[crowd cheering]
[Stoffel] It's not given to anyone to become a professional racing driver.
It's not always the real talents that shine through.
There's a lot of kids out there that come from a very rich family,
and right now they almost have a little bit of an advantage
over kids that are coming from a standard family.
- Thank you. - Thank you.
My family, they're not rich people that could afford my racing career.
I had to prove myself time and time again.
[man over radio] Hey, one minute.
Radio's open. Radio check.
[Stoffel, over radio] Radio check, loud and clear.
[Elba] On this playground,
data is worth much more
than the eye-watering salaries the drivers receive.
[man, over radio] Off we go.
[engine revving]
[Elba] It's the job of the team to program the cars
to gain the widest of margins against their competitors.
[man, over radio] SSC is 97.7.
[countdown alarm]
[announcer] And we go green in Mexico City!
[man, over radio] Good. Let's go.
[announcer] Stoffel Vandoorne, championship leader, is all the way down...
[Elba] The fans aren't just spectating.
Like an interactive computer game, they can alter the course of the race.
Through their phones, they can influence the speed of the cars
by giving their favorite driver a so-called "fan boost."
It's a great way to guarantee advertisers and investors
that viewers are glued to their seats.
[man, over radio] How are your tires? Tire temps okay?
Do one more lap with it.
[announcer] Stoffel Vandoorne and Alexander Simms,
the championship leaders, wheel to wheel, nose to tail.
Stoffel Vandoorne to the inside of Mortara now.
He too is in attack mode.
[man, over radio] Car behind has 1% more energy than you,
and Simms is behind you 'cause he has 2% more energy.
[Stoffel] Do you know where the gap is?
[man, over radio] Yes, one or more behind.
Good job, keep your head in. Two more laps. Two more laps.
So we need to pull a jet from the draft unit,
save as much energy as possible.
[Elba] Stoffel and his team are leading the race, but then...
a small mistake changes everything.
[crash]
[Stoffel] Fuck!
[Stoffel yelling]
Fucking hell...
Oh, that was stupid. Fucking...
I don't know if my car is okay. I don't know if the car is okay.
[man, over radio] Yeah, copy that. Watch out for cars behind.
[Stoffel] I'm sorry, guys. Oh, no.
[Elba] That was an expensive crash.
The entire team is hurt because of the loss.
The car will need to be fixed.
But more importantly, they lost their standing in the championships
and their reputation, which is more than money can buy.
[Stoffel] Often by engineers, we're not even viewed as a driver.
We are viewed as part of the car
that is operating at the same performance level all the time.
They're so focused on data sometimes and looking at data traces
that they think we are something in the car that is never changing,
whilst we are probably the biggest change within the car.
We have different emotions.
One day you might feel better than another day.
We are human.
[Elba] Although this hyper-advanced car is developed to perform perfectly,
it still has one part that can be inconsistent,
unpredictable,
and can cost the team a lot of money.
A human being.
No matter how many billions we spend, nothing can match the engineering
of this highly intelligent, finely-tuned homing missile.
The Colombian rock dove.
This racing pigeon can accelerate from one to 60 miles per hour
in just two seconds.
[heartfelt music playing]
[Elba] That's quicker than the fastest cars on the planet.
For many, racing their pigeons is serious business.
Why?
Because every year, people from all over the world
gamble millions of dollars on these quaint races.
[Jelle, in Dutch] A good pigeon has the characteristic
that it can fly home as quickly as possible.
Fly quickly from point A to point B.
And that's all they have to do.
[speaking indistinctly in Dutch]
[Jelle] My grandfather, great-grandfather, father, uncles...
In our region, we're one of the biggest pigeon racing families.
We're very well positioned in the market.
Foreigners try to buy the top pigeons
and sell their offspring in their own country.
They say we are the cradle of the pigeon sport.
A lot of money is involved.
And China is the market leader at the moment.
[Elba, in English] These athletes are worth more than their weight in gold.
Recently, a racing pigeon was sold to a Chinese buyer for $1.8 million.
Hello.
- [Mr. Green] Hello. - Everything okay?
Yes.
You see the one flight here?
[Elba] Mr. Green acts as a middleman for a wealthy gambler
who sees pigeon racing as an attractive investment.
Successful birds can earn their owners millions in prize money
over their six-year lifespan.
[Jelle] So let's hope they perform good, uh, on the birds' national race.
I mean, it's a big race for us, so everyone needs good luck.
Yeah, of course.
So we will see what the national race will bring us.
- Yeah. - Light some candles and pray.
That's all we need.
[Elba] Today marks the most important race of the year.
All the pigeon handlers in this tiny region are bringing
their best specimens to the starting line in France.
With prize money over $100,000 at stake,
there is tension in the air.
The owners of a winning bird can sell it for a huge sum at auction.
Many humble pigeon racers have retired from the sport as millionaires.
But that's far from guaranteed.
[man, in Dutch] The game has totally changed.
I recently got an offer to sell my entire dovecote.
Roof included?
- [laughs] - No, only the pigeons.
I could keep them until the end of the year.
But I have to train two Chinese guys.
100,000 euros. That's a lot, right?
[indistinct chatter]
I'll take a bet on myself.
[Elba, in English] Pigeon racing begins with a single starting point,
but it has a thousand finish lines.
Each bird is transported 300 miles away.
Then all they have to do is find their way home.
Technology plays a major part in this modern playground.
Ankle tags will tell the judges
the exact time the birds cross the finish line.
[atmospheric music playing]
[Jelle, in Dutch] Train, put them in the basket, head to the site,
let them out, they come home.
And the results will prove which ones are good or bad.
Release!
[uplifting music playing]
[Elba, in English] The birds will fly from France back to Belgium,
traveling for over four hours.
It's a grueling race,
and of the 18,000 birds taking part,
only one bird from the flock can win.
For its owner, fortune awaits.
[uplifting music continues]
[Jelle, in Dutch] We have 82 pigeons in today's match.
It would be a disaster for us if the pigeons end up in bad weather.
And that a lot of pigeons are lost. And you don't want that.
Then you run the risk of losing your top athletes.
[spectator, in Mandarin] Hello, everyone. Welcome to my chat room.
Today the pigeons were released early. At about seven o'clock Belgian time.
So the pigeons should be here any minute now.
[Elba, in English] Online, thousands of gamblers are watching
the livestream of the race,
desperate to know if their pigeon will win and make them some money today.
[whistling]
[gentle music playing]
[man] Go, go, go!
[Jelle, in Dutch] Come on.
Number one and two of my old ones made it back home.
That's what I needed.
The commercial side runs the show. It's just that simple.
Money follows money.
It's going to happen. So you have to adjust to it.
And it's that simple.
- Does he see me now? - [man] Yeah.
[in English] The first arrival is out of seven,
Junior with the mother of Mississippi Girl.
We score points now.
That's all we need.
Are you happy with this or not?
Are you gonna fire me?
[laughter]
- No. - You can do the job. Okay?
Lazy bastard!
- I will go to China. - [man] It's sent.
[Elba] Jelle's prize pigeons performed well.
His birds finished in the top ten,
earning him and his partners a decent share of the prize money.
$30,000.
[in Dutch] Pigeons.
What exactly is it, a pigeon?
It just flies around.
But pigeon racing has given quite a few families a better life.
I know that.
I mean, financially.
[Elba, in English] For centuries, we have interacted with the natural world
to create all kinds of games,
but even nature has its boundaries.
Until recently, games we have played were bound by the rules of this earth,
but not anymore.
[intriguing music playing]
These days, the only limit to our playgrounds,
and the profit we can make from them, is our imaginations.
And it's all thanks to this magic ingredient.
Silicon.
Mined from rock that makes up the earth's crust,
these tiny things are the most powerful technology
humankind has ever invented
and are responsible for creating
the greatest wealth the world has ever seen.
When it comes to creating playgrounds, there are no limits.
[cheering]
[roars]
[Elba] It is estimated that the e-sport marketplace
will soon be worth $1.8 billion,
and the mecca of e-sports is here,
in Seoul, South Korea.
[slashing, shooting]
[Elba] World-renowned gaming team Gen. G is preparing for a match
with its arch rival, T1.
This game is more than a matter of winning prize money.
It's about defending their pride.
[in Korean] Everyone in the mid will die. Their mid's coming up.
That guy was there all along. I am going to die.
Bloodthirster... I'll go with infinity sword to kill him.
Why didn't you get the dragon? Does this guy have ultimate?
Orianna has no ultimate.
Go to the three-way, guys! Let's go to the three-way in the front.
Let's go get the dragon.
[Elba, in English] Their chosen game is League of Legends.
[in Korean] League of Legends is a five-on-five game.
You can get stronger by killing the opponent.
You have to destroy their buildings.
My position is to hunt after awful-looking creatures.
And make money to buy items.
Other players have to get rid of cute-looking minions
and battle with the opponents.
[boy] Go get that guy.
Hey, guys, get this guy.
Kill it. [laughs]
[boy] Look at this, Brendan.
[Elba, in English] These e-athletes might be in their early twenties,
but they play in the Champion League of gaming.
[in Korean] Mordekaiser is winning.
[Elba, in English] Here, top players can easily retire before they hit 30.
[player] If you're a tier-one player, um,
you know, let's say you're an A-player,
uh, you're commanding at least a million dollars, right?
A-plus-plus-type players,
you're talking about multiples of that, right?
[interviewer, in Korean] Are you rich?
I am rich.
To be honest, I receive too much money for my age,
and it doesn't feel realistic.
I don't even know how I should spend it.
I spend at least
ten hours per day practicing.
Being tired...
has become part of my life.
Even if I feel tired...
there is nothing I can do about it.
I just live with it.
[Elba, in English] The Gen. G players share an apartment in downtown Seoul.
Here, they game from the crack of dawn until late at night.
Sleep gets in the way.
All that matters is winning.
[atmospheric music playing]
[announcer] Welcome, everybody, to another day of the LCK,
but not any old day. It is T1 up against Gen. G,
and this is a very big day for both of them.
I can't wait.
It's gonna be so good, and it's always Gen. G and T1...
[Elba] Today is the LCK Summer Playoffs.
If they win, they will earn a place on the global stage that is
the League of Legends World Championship.
[player, in Korean] Our reputation depends on how well I do.
So I feel responsible for that.
I feel that I cannot lose.
I have to just do well without any excuses.
I cannot make any mistakes.
[announcer, in English] So here we go. We're in game number one.
Gen. G versus T1. Here we go, once again.
He's got a Stopwatch, but it's a Stopwatch in a dream.
They'll be dreaming about game two.
[speaking indistinctly in Korean]
[announcer, in English] Uh-oh, Teddy's got a red buff,
and Oner's just running on in.
He's still trying to go for the kill,
but everybody's got a Stopwatch, it feels like, in this meta.
For some reason, Oner can't kill anybody, and it's because of this damn Stopwatch.
And now Life comes in, zones them away...
They're there in the mouth of the tunnel. Look at Ruler!
He nearly dies to two Mystic Shots.
And there you go!
[in Korean] Just die.
Can you come here?
Twisted Fate Ult. Twisted Fate Stun.
[announcer, in English] ...down everybody. Life is gonna try it.
So much for your combo!
They don't have anything against Teddy in this game. Nothing!
As T1 are gonna take down the Nexus
and they will make it to the finals of the LCK...
Incredible and a...
gut-wrenching loss for Gen.G.
[announcer 2] Yeah.
[announcer] T1.
[announcer 2] You gotta feel for the guys on Gen. G,
but, I mean, T1 came to play tonight, that's for sure.
[poignant music playing]
[in Korean] Jungmin, you can be more confident when you are playing.
I think you remember too.
I already told him.
Isn't this a team game? Right, it's a team game.
[Elba, in English] For generations, play has helped us experiment
and learn about the real world.
But now you can earn huge sums by conquering a fantasy game.
Have we lost touch?
When our favorite games are dominated by big businesses,
it's easy to lose track of why we started playing in the first place.
Some playgrounds are worth billions of dollars,
not just for the fighters, players, and drivers,
but for the gamblers, the investors, the food sellers,
the medicine men, and the fans.
[laughs]
[Elba] It's big business.
But even in the midst of all that moneymaking
lie the ancient ingredients of play.
[Amy] I have to keep going.
[Elba] Because play is much more than a money-making pastime.
It's essential medicine for our bodies, our minds.
It's what makes us human beings.
It's never too late to return to our playgrounds.
[screams]
[Elba] Because no matter who you are,
where you are born,
or what you look like,
we humans will always love to play.
[closing theme music playing]