E-sports are becoming bigger and bigger with each passing year. They are not only recognized as an official group of sports by the Olympic Committee, but they are also, very profitable, provided you and your team are skilled enough. Here are some of the highest prize pools in e-sports.
The International 2019
The International has been growing steadily, as has its prize pool. In fact, on esportsearnings.com, the first five places for the highest-earning tournament go to the various incarnations of The International, with the latest one in 2019 bringing the unbelievable amount of $34,330,069.00. The tournament in DotA 2 brought OG $15,620,181.00 for first prize, Team Liquid $4,462,908.00 for second place, and PSG.LGD $3,089,706.00. Even the teams in the last place got at least $85,825.00 as a recognition of their skills. The country that earned the most money from the tournament is Finland, with its three players bringing home about $6,265,237.40 in total.
The 2019 Fortnite World Cup Finals
There were two tournaments in the Fortnite World Cup – Solo and Duo with 100 players competing in each. This is particularly impressive, considering the fact that it is the first Fortnite tournament of this scale. Bugha, psalm, and EpikWhale came out from the solo tournament with $3,000,000.00, $1,800,000.00, and $1,200,000.00, respectively. They are all Americans. In terms of two-member teams, Cooler Esport took home $3,000,000.00, whereas Lazarus got $2,250,000.00 and 100 Thieves $1,800,000.00. This event was definitely one of the highlights in the e-sports community.
The 2018 League of Legends World Championship
Though the LoL community has been a bit quiet in 2019, 2018 was not a year to be forgotten. The League of Legends World Championship finals were in Incheon, South Korea. The prize pool was $6,450,000.00. Invictus gaming won the championship and took 2,418,750.00. Fnatic was in second place with $870,750.00, and Cloud 9 and G2 Esports, third and fourth place, respectively, have taken $451,500.00 each.
A Few Facts
The game most played in the tournaments with the highest prize pool is, without a doubt, DotA 2. What’s also interesting is the fact that, among the top 100 tournaments on the list, there isn’t a single one that is worth less than a million dollars.
As the relationship between China and Hong Kong gets more and more strained, athletes, teams, and leagues in sports and e-sports are put in a very awkward position of either protecting their business interests, which in itself is an arduous task filled with land mines everywhere, or proclaiming their political opinion on the subject and losing revenue.
Many of these competitors and companies have valuable deals in China, so the e-sports community is hit hard regarding their tournaments and sponsorships. Blizzard is one of the video game giants that is under fire, so there is no telling if their games are going to reach the esportsearning’s Top 100 list.