E-sports have taken the world by storm. And while many people still don’t treat them as full-fledged sports disciplines, one can’t deny their growing popularity. Gone are the days when gamers were considered weirdos who live in their mothers’ basements. Nowadays, the e-sport industry generates millions of dollars, and each tournament attracts hundreds of thousands of viewers.
With that in mind, the time might be to join the bandwagon and see for yourself what makes e-sports so popular. If that is the case, you are in the right place. Whether you wish to try e-sport betting online or simply give e-sports a chance to entertain you, you should start by watching the most renowned tournaments. And that is what we will focus on below. Here are the top X e-sport tournaments to watch this year:
The International Dota 2 Championship
The International Dota 2 Championship is one of the most highly anticipated e-sports tournaments in the world. Organized annually by Valve Corporation, this tournament has already earned itself a spot among the bests of the best. One of the most interesting facts about it is that the part of its price pool is crowdfunded via the battle pass system within the game.
The first edition of the tournament took place in 2011, and it has been growing ever since. In 2017, the prize pool exceeded $24 million, which was approximately twice as much as any other e-sport tournament. The most recent was even bigger as it was more than $34 million. That amount of money should be enough to convince you that we are not exaggerating.
League of Legends World Championship
League of Legends, or LoL, is one of the oldest e-sport games in the world. Created in 2009, it quickly became one of the most popular video games on the planet. And with good reason too! This multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game is easy to learn but tough to master. Nevertheless, millions of people all over the world still play it daily. And they wait impatiently for its annual world championship, which takes place in November each year.
The League of Legends World Championship is the annual tournament organized by Riot Games and Tencent Games. It features some of the best LoL players in the world, and it takes place in different locations around the globe.
The LoL Championship Series began in 2011 with the first World Championship. Since then, it has been attracting millions of viewers who want to see the best teams from all over the world compete for a big prize pool. If you are a fan of competitive gaming, you can’t afford to miss this one!
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major Championships
Counterstrike: Global Offensive, or CS:GO for short, is another popular e-sport game that attracts millions of players every day. And just like many other games of its type, it has its own major championships.
The CS:GO Major Championships are hosted by Valve Corporation and take place every year in different locations. They are significant events for the fans of the game. The first tournament of this type took place in Sweden and featured 16 teams filled with the best CS:GO players. In 2019, one of the Majors was held in Berlin from August 23rd to September 8th, and its winners, team Astralis, earned $500,000.
Evert since CS:GO Majors started their existence, the game has gathered a lot of new players and fans. If you get the chance, see for yourself why so many people watch this event every year.
Hearthstone Global Games
Hearthstone is one of the most popular card games in the world. And while it doesn’t have a set tournament like LoL or Dota 2, it still has its own international competition. The Hearthstone Global Games is held annually, and it features teams from different countries who compete against each other in a dual tournament format.
In 2019, the winners of the Hearthstone Global Games were players from Denmark who overcame in the finals the representatives of the United Kingdom. If you are a card games fan yourself, you have to check out this official Blizzard tournament.
Final Thoughts
E-sport tournaments are a great way to get acquainted with this exciting industry. They attract millions of viewers around the globe and offer some truly remarkable prizes.
Many fantastic moments have already been engraved in the memories of players and viewers who attended previous iterations of the tournaments we mentioned. If you love competitive gaming, you should definitely check them out. All you need to do is pick something from our list and check if this kind of entertainment form suits you.
Whether you decide to check out Counter-Strike: Global Offensive or League of Legends, you are bound to have a wonderful time watching skilled players battle it out with each other. Have fun and good luck!
