The market of video games has become more relevant since the pandemic struck the year 2020. This industry has generated millions of dollars and continues to do so. The world of electronic sports or eSports has events that are even held in stadiums besides in live streaming channels. Besides eGaming, the gambling industry has also been doing well.
Growth Trends in Electronic Sports
Figures from the global eSports market report show that profits have been over 1 billion dollars, and growth was 15.7 % as compared to the figures achieved in 2019. By the year 2023, the figures are expected to reach 1.6 billion as well. Indeed, it has an impact on the sports betting market as well. Related is eSports gambling which is said to reach 142 million dollars in 2021. It is expected to grow at an annual rate of 6.2 % and will reach 203 million by the year 2026.
Dota 2
This is one of the highest-ranking tournaments in sports. It is a game associated with The International tournament, which is a popular and much-anticipated tournament held every year. Inter stadiums fill up with fans of about 2 million who come to watch the final rounds. Prize pool money in this gaming tournament is more than 34 million dollars. Hence the upcoming tournament of Dota 2 in 2021 is a must-watch for any fan. It is slated to happen in August 2021.
World Championship of League of Legends
This is another tournament that has been going on and is most popular among MOBA fans. The League of Legends has a world championship tournament held every year. Here players advance by playing against each other in different rounds. The competition is split into different events that are held during different parts of the year, such as spring split, summer split and mid-season invitational.
FIFA Global Series
The online tournament is slated for November – December 2021 worldwide. Over 30 leagues will be participating in tournaments. Football fans will have a whale of a time watching online events.
EVO
Also known as the Evolution Championship series, this is one of the largest tournaments in eSports. It has two dedicated fighting events. It is also one of the popular events that the community of fighting games regularly attend every year. Fans of this event travel to the city of Las Vegas to participate and witness several fighting game competitions. Games such as Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, Super Smash Bros and Tekken are regularly featured in this tournament. There are online blogs and streaming channels where professionals and fans log in to witness this Championship series every year.
Call of Duty League
This is one of the biggest game series in the world, and it is no surprise that it is a tournament that is quite popular amongst sports fans. The league series best players in Call of Duty fight in teams to make it to the ultimate final prize. The league has a playoff format and follows a point system. The point system decides the players or teams and their standing. The Twenty20 Championship event, which was planned, had a prize pool of 5 million US dollars. This year the prize pool is assumed to be as big.
Fortnite World Cup
This is one of the new two events that have started in eSports but have gained popularity already. It has millions in the player base where players compete from different parts of the world and participate in the final rounds. The prize pool out here is a staggering amount of 30 million US dollars. In 2019 about 2.3 million fans watched the finals through online channels.
IEM Katowice
IEM Katowice is the International CS: GO tournament, which makes a comeback in 2021. Fans can look forward to this event as early as February this year. Total prize money is slated to be a million dollars for the tournament, which will have in-person competition at certain locations in Europe where 24 teams will battle it out. It will have its familiar tournament format and would be awarded the Intel Grand Slam status, and other championship events in the eSports gaming arena; those are the much-anticipated Call of Duty League Championship, Overwatch League, among others.
Conclusion
While the pandemic did put most of the eSports tournaments to a halt in 2020, they are slated to be an exciting comeback in 2021. Hence, those who are fans and look forward to visiting the stadium events can easily look at the schedules and plan or book ahead. Travel plans are opening up internationally, and hopefully, the eSports stadium events will have large turnouts, as will the online streaming versions.