The Biggest eSports Tournaments to Watch This Year

The professional eSports scene continues to grow as new gamers enter competitions or tune in to watch. The tournaments include massive prizes and global viewership. Each player must have a high skill level in their respective games to participate. There are many must-watch events each year.

How to Decide Which Tournaments to Watch

If you are an avid gamer but have not yet gotten into watching eSports tournaments, there are a few ways to choose which one to start with.

• Choose a competition featuring a game you play: Many events feature a single game or multiple games. Popular games are easy to find in tournaments, but there are also tournaments for less popular ones.
• Watch ones your favorite players participate in: If you watch gamers stream on Twitch or follow the social media of a popular eSports player, then you can choose tournaments they are participating in.
• Pick a tournament based on the style of gameplay: Many different styles of games exist, like first-person shooters or story-oriented playthroughs. You can base your choice on which competition has your favorite style.
• Follow the popularity: You can also choose the most popular ones. It will help you quickly see the highest-ranking players and the most popular games.

The eSports World Cup

The eSports World Cup is a widely popular tournament. It takes place in Saudi Arabia from July to August. The event is hosted by the eSports World Cup Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to growing the world of eSports. It features a cross-games format, meaning players play multiple games throughout the tournament. There are around 2,000 players from over 100 countries, 200 participating clubs, 25 tournaments and 24 different games.

Some popular games include League of Legends, Dota 2 and Counter-Strike 2. The top teams compete for a prize pool of over $75 million. The eSports World Cup (EWC) Festival has live music, creator studios, retro arcades, cosplay spaces, anime cafes and many other exciting perks. 

League of Legends World Championship

The League of Legends World Championship is another popular global eSports tournament. League of Legends is a Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), or a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA), depending on who you ask. The tournament rotates between six countries each year. Hosted by developer Riot Games, the event began in 2011. It takes teams a year to qualify for this culminating test of their skills.

Millions of people watch this tournament every year. 19 teams from multiple countries participate, so players tend to have a sense of national pride. The Summoners Cup Trophy is awarded to the championship’s winner. It weighs 22 pounds and comes with a multi-million-dollar prize.

Valorant Champions

Valorant Champions is another tournament organized by Riot Games. They developed the tactical first-person shooter game Valorant, which the event centers on. The championship began in 2020 and is the final destination of the Valorant Champions Tour, a series of international competitive eSports tournaments. The tour is separated into three events. The first two are the Masters. Qualifiers advance to the Champions finals. The Masters is in February and March, and the next one is in June. The championship is in September and October.

The goal is to win each event in the series, both the Masters and the Champions, and go on to the final. The players are split into three international regions, including the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and the Pacific. Each region has its own league of 30 teams, which must qualify for the Masters and Champions.

The International

The International centers on the game, Dota 2. The developer, Valve, hosts it. 16 teams of professional eSports players qualify each year. The tournament is famous for its crowdfunded prize pool, as the community contributes by purchasing Compendiums and Battle Passes in the game. The event starts in September and lasts about four days. It concludes the entire Dota 2 eSports season. The prize money is usually extreme, making for an intense and compelling storyline. 

How to Get Involved as a Viewer

To engage more with the eSports tournament scene, you can dive into the community. You can follow the prominent gamers on social media. One good example is Lee Sanghyeok, better known as Faker. He is a South Korean League of Legends player who some people believe is the best. You can also watch analyst desks. They use game data to advise teams and players. If you’re interested in the technical side, this is a good option.

These tournaments can help you understand the meta behind different games and the best strategy to win. The top players in the world have tons of tips and tricks that make gameplay quicker, smoother and winnable. You may get better at playing the game as you watch professionals do it. Live commentary offers critiques and tips to help you improve.

What is Ahead for the eSports World?

Many new technologies and upcoming games are going to shift the eSports world. Mobile eSports is becoming popular, with some countries already hosting competitive games with impressive prizes. Mobile gaming requires a unique skill set and a smaller screen, which are remarkably different from those of personal computer (PC) or console gaming.

AI analytics are changing the way coaches instruct players, since they can provide valuable data that informs strategies. It is also faster than a coach continuously poring over information. AI may also change the commentary on events. It can perform shoutcasting, eliminating the need for human announcers.

Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) are transforming eSports and gaming. Players can become more immersed in the fictional world, adding a tougher physical element to professional gameplay. You are likely to see more VR and AR-centric games at these tournaments in the future.

The Rise of Professional eSports

Competitive gaming’s rise to fame shows no signs of stopping. More viewers are excited about tournaments and lots of teams and professional players are joining the fun. As eSports expands, it becomes more accessible to interested fans. Stay involved throughout this year’s exciting competitive events.