The esports industry is booming. Just in 2017, a total of $112 million was offered in prizes in a variety of esports tournaments, and a total of 3834 esports competitions were organized across a multitude of esports titles such as League of Legends, Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm, Overwatch, StarCraft 2, PUBG, and others.
Esports tournaments went from humble beginnings to worldwide fame in just one short decade. In 2010, there were only around 700 esports tournaments per year, and even the big ones had fairly small prize pools compared to today’s standards. In 2018, we’ll have around 4000 esports tournaments, many of which are live events held in huge arenas with a seating capacity of 1000+ or even 10,000+. These events are also streamed live via Twitch, YouTube, and Facebook to millions of others. Overall, the global esports audience is close to 400 million at the moment, and the number is growing at a rapid pace.
With esports getting bigger and bigger each year, the esports betting opportunities are also increasing, making it possible for people to put their esports knowledge to use in order to make money. The amount and diversity of esports tournaments and leagues that you can follow and bet on at any given time are staggering. So it’s all a matter of preference and expertise. You might be interested in team-based FPS games like CS:GO or Overwatch, or MOBAs such as League of Legends or Dota 2. Or maybe the RTS genre is your cup of tea. Regardless of what you enjoy watching and betting on, esports provides numerous opportunities all year long.
This is basically the Dota 2 World Championship, taking place once per year, usually in August. The International’s popularity is absolutely huge, not least because the tournament offers the largest prize pools in all of esports. In 2017, The International had a total prize pool of $24.7 million.
The International brings together the strongest 18 Dota 2 teams in the world and lasts for around 10 days. During this time, the best bookmakers will shower you with a wide variety of esports betting odds that you can take advantage of. You can bet on anything that you could think of: the event’s winning team, individual matches, individual games within each match, specific in-game events and statistics, and so on. This truly is a tournament worth watching and betting on if you’re an esports or a Dota 2 fan, as the spectacle is absolutely off the scale.
The League of Legends World Championship, also known as Worlds, is the most watched esports event in the industry, thanks to its high production value and also the fact that LoL has the largest player base of any esport: 100+ million.
Worlds brings together 24 teams and offers a prize pool of around $4-6 million. The event takes place once per year, in autumn, and lasts for around 7 weeks. During this time, the bookmakers will offer you plenty of opportunities to bet on your favorite teams.
Being another MOBA game, just like Dota 2, the types of betting markets are very similar. The main difference has to do with the types of in-game events that you can bet on. So for example, instead of betting on the team to kill the first Roshan, you’re betting on the first team to kill Baron. Instead of predicting the team to destroy the first Barracks, you’re predicting the team to destroy the first Inhibitor. And so on. In 2017, Worlds had a prize pool of $4.17 million and was won by Samsung Galaxy.
Mid-Season Invitational is another hugely popular League of Legends tournament, bringing together 14 teams. Each of these teams is the Spring Split champion of its respective region, making the competition a top-level event that draws the attention of the entire LoL scene.
Needless to say, this is another esports tournament that’s fully covered by the best bookmakers, who will offer you a wide array of esports betting markets.
In 2018, MSI took place between May 3rd – 20th, had a prize pool of $1.37 million, and was won by Royal Never Give Up.
Unlike the first 3 esports events mentioned on this list, the Overwatch League is, as its name suggests, a league instead of a mere tournament. It takes place between the beginning of January and the end of July, providing plenty of opportunities for anyone with an interest in Overwatch betting.
In its inaugural season (2018), the Overwatch League brought together a total of 12 teams and took place in North America. It consisted of 4 stages (regular season) and a playoffs stage, featuring more than 250 matches in total.
The great thing about betting on the Overwatch League is that you get to learn the teams and how they play, and you can then take advantage of that knowledge to better predict future results.
And finally, we have the ELEAGUE Major, which is more or less a World Championship for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO). ELEAGUE is a great tournament organizer within the CS:GO professional scene, and this event offers all the spectacle and betting opportunities that you can handle.
The ELEAGUE Major brings together 24 teams and takes place in 3 stages over a period of two and a half weeks. In 2018, the event took place in Atlanta and Boston (US), offered a prize pool of $1 million, and was won by Cloud9.
Whether you are a casual player or a die-hard esports fan, betting on esports tournaments can greatly enhance your event viewing experience. It can also provide you with an opportunity to put your esports knowledge to use in order to make money.
