Today it is:
Dota_2. The 2017 tournament prize pool totaled $ 38 million, with a total of 160 tournaments held around the world. Now this figure is almost twice as high, and the number of participants in these tournaments has exceeded several thousand players.
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. There were 6 times more tournaments held in the same year, although the prize pools were smaller. In 2017 alone, about 900 official tournaments were held, with a total fund of $ 19 million. As practice shows, professional teams use different tactics here, preferring many small ones to one big tournament, which allows them to earn good money.
Third place went to League of Legends, one of the most popular games in Korea and Western Europe. In 2017 alone, since we started comparing its performance, more than 175 tournaments with a prize pool of $ 12 million were held on this game.
The fourth was Heroes of The Storm. In 2017, she could not boast of such a large prize pool. Although he still made an impressive $ 5.5 million, won in 40 championships.
Call of Duty is not far behind, taking fifth place in this rating with a prize pool of $ 4 million. True, web site the championships were held many times more. In 2017 alone – 72 tournaments.
It should also be borne in mind that tournaments themselves are only a part of the global money turnover. Because, during a major event, a large number of sponsors are connected, giant advertising campaigns are held, so-called «merchandise» is released – things with the official symbols of teams and games, including electronic format. If the tournament is held on a physical platform with spectators, then there is a large turnover in the creation of shows and trading platforms.
Many games keep the public interested by hosting a large number of small tournaments throughout the year and one major event that brings together the best teams, has the largest prize pool and is eagerly awaited by fans throughout the year. For example, «The International» for Dota 2 or the League of Legends World Championship.
In addition to the five leaders in eSports, there are still a lot of games that cause great delight and education of professional players. Both team and individual farmers, because not all championships are held in team games. For example, championships in electronic versions of collectible card games are extremely popular now. Among them, Heartstone took the lead.
Tournament money also spins in other games: Overwatch, FIFA, StarCraft2, Quake Champions, Street Fighter, PUBG, NFL and many others.
