Before we start talking about the biggest Esports tournaments, let us discuss what Esports is and what the difference between Esports and gaming is. The word Esports is short for electronic sports, which includes all video-game competitions.
Nowadays, not only children but adults are also starting to take part in Esports. You may ask why? The answer is pretty simple and straightforward. Esports has a 1.38 Billion USD net worth as of now, and it’s expected to increase up to 1.87 Billion in 2025.
So, this is clear that it’s not only for entertainment purposes, but people are earning a handful of cash out of it. Every year there are a bunch of tournaments with amazing prize pools. Teams from all over the world participate in those tournaments to win cash prizes and show the world that they are the best.
Let’s check out which are the biggest Esports tournaments in the world!
The International (TI):
On top of our list is a no-brainer, the Dota 2 International Tournament. Dota 2 is one of the finest MOBA titles because of the crowdfunding and big prize pool. The game has an exceptional fan base and support from all over the world. Last time at TI, the crowd managed to gather $40 million as prize money for this event. They also broke their own record and went up to 2.7 million peak viewers, making it the top tournament of all time in gaming history.
League of Legends World Championship:
Next on our list is the League of Legends World Championship. Compared to Dota 2 it may have a low prize pool, but the fact it is the most-watched tournament makes it worthy of this spot. The prize pool of the tournament was $6.7 million. Riot has always made sure that they provide a great experience and atmosphere to its viewers, and this was no exception.
With over 4 million peak viewers, Riot made sure that their viewers get what they deserve from a world-class event. Not only is the viewers count amazing but also the watch time. Almost 174 million collectively hours were watched during the tournament, which is just as amazing as it sounds.
In addition to watching, people also like to place bets on Esports, and Worlds is no exception. A record number of Esports bets is always recorded throughout the duration of LOL World Championship.
CSGO Major Championships:
CSGO is a decade-old game and has a very good reputation among shooting games. If you know about CSGO, you probably heard about shroud, s1mple, and KennyS. They are the pioneers of CSGO gaming. The most recent CSGO tournament was the 2021 PGL Stockholm Major which brought an astonishing viewer count of 2.7 million and a prize pool of around $2 million.
Such viewer count and prize money for a computer game? Isn’t it jaw-dropping? This is just the tip of the iceberg. Every year more and more games are released, and the Esports industry is growing exponentially.
Fortnite World Cup:
Next on our list is a fairly new game that made its ground in the Esports gaming base. Fortnite is a battle royale game in which the last player to survive wins. The game was released in 2017 and got boom within a year. Fortnite took over the Esports industry in 2019, pitting 200 players against each other for a massive prize pool of $30 million. The winnings were to be separated in two events, one for solo and one for the duo battle.
The viewership of the tournament was more than good as compared to the age of the game. It was almost 2.3 million peak viewers. The tournament was a huge success and still, and the game is being updated on a regular basis, and players still enjoy the gameplay. The game is not going away anytime soon.
Honor of Kings Champion:
Arena of Valor is next on our list. It was created for the Chinese market and then was released to compete with the popular MOBA game, Vainglory. The game has gained so much hype and now has a 100 million concurrent player base around the globe. The game has now become a giant in the esports area. The latest tournament had a $7.7 million prize pool and a decent viewership of around 800k peak viewers.
PUBG Mobile Global Championship:
Another game with so much height and player base around the world is PUBG Mobile. The reason it got so much hype was the mere fact it was mobile friendly, and everyone quickly grasped the game. The latest tournament was held in 2021 with a prize pool of $3.5 million and whopping peak viewers of 3.8 million, which itself is a record for a mobile game.
Final Thoughts:
These are the tournaments that are, so far, the biggest tournaments. But who knows, with the upcoming games and increasing net worth of Esports gaming, how much this industry has to offer? So, just stick with us as we bring more exciting news!