While the video game industry in the 1990s was a multi-billion-dollar colossus, nobody could have envisaged that the world of professional video gaming and esports tournaments would become a standalone multi-billion-dollar entity just a couple of decades later. However, seeing how far this industry could go is exciting now that esports events are enormous and fill out arenas worldwide.
It’s too early to say, but it’s not likely to reach the same lofty heights as professional sports, at least anytime soon. However, esports is still gaining sensational momentum and continuing to dominate significant portions of the gaming sector and the smaller market, which provides excitement, high-level competition, and gambling market value.
While betting markets in esports are the most prominent new market to emerge in the world of sports betting for a considerable length of time, this has been driven by the fact that they’re so well organized, put together, and broadcast seamlessly across the world via various streaming services. It’s not just games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CSGO) that capture the attention of those who wish to gamble on the sports betting market; there’s League Of Legends, Fortnite, NBA 2K23, and NFL Madden, to name a few.
Even the best esports CSGO betting experience at Thunderpick relies on a strong undercurrent of fans who help the market develop organically, allowing reputable gambling operators to facilitate markets you can gamble on. Therefore, the most significant individual esports events and the biggest esports gambling markets often correlate directly.
Many of the most significant individual esports events rely on hardcore fans who spend large sums following their favorite teams, and many like to bet on the outcome of esports events. Today we will explore three of the most significant events ever in the world of professional gaming.
#3 – League Of Legends World Championships 2020
It’s a miracle that this event even managed to get out of the starting blocks, given that it took place at the height of the lockdown in September 2020. Although the teams involved had to play with strict social distancing rules in place, the tournament was an overwhelming success, given how many people tuned in to watch the action unfold online via various streaming services.
League Of Legends is comfortably the most popular esports game in the world today. Every conceivable measure you could use to define this puts it at the top. Tournaments involving the best League Of Legends teams attract the most viewers, the tournament prizes are often the biggest, and the gambling markets often see a lot more action than they do for other games.
This might seem like a statistical anomaly, given that games like Activision’s Call Of Duty have sold upwards of 300 million units and host games for millions of online players 24/7 via XBOX and PlayStation online networks. Microsoft acquiring Activision in a deal worth over $68 billion shows how much money is involved in the video gaming sector, and it continues to grow exponentially.
This tournament was streamed to a total audience of just over 3.8 million, a massive number for esports. However, some people believed this was down to the fact it was one of the few live events that managed to still go ahead in the sports world at the time, but this has since been debunked given that the most watched event took place post-covid, and the second highest took place in 2019.
#2 – League Of Legends 2019 – World Championships
League Of Legends was bound to appear in this list more than once, given how influential and significant it has been in the growth of the esports sector. The 2019 World Championships were in several European locations, but the final occurred in Berlin. It was watched by a global audience of just over 3.9 million people, with thousands packed into arenas to watch the action unfold too.
#1 – Free Fire World Series – Singapore 2021
Mobile gaming is becoming a colossal piece of the gaming industry. As smartphones continue to become even more sophisticated, with even more fantastic facilities to bring higher-quality games, it’s no surprise that the Free Fire World Series tournament from a couple of years ago is comfortably the biggest individual esports event of all time.
Although many people watched the tournament live, over 5.1 million people watched the tournament unravel online. Given that the three most significant individual esports events have all taken place within the last five years, the current trend for this market is a sharp, upward trajectory.
With massive streaming platforms like Twitch moving into the area with great success and esports professionals and teams earning more money in endorsements, sponsorships, and bonuses, if we were to compile another list like this again five years from now, the likelihood is that the top three would comprise at least one new entrant, but, in all honesty, the entire list may also look completely different.