There is no denying that the esports scene is becoming more and more popular. However, out of the 20 games with a competitive scene, not all are equal in popularity. That’s why we would like to guide you through the most widespread esports and maybe you’ll find the one that suits you best.
The most popular or the best esports?
In order to make things simpler for you, we will provide you with a list of the top three esports titles that are played and watched by millions. Keep in mind that this list will be completely based on statistics and viewership. We could talk about “the best” esports but quality is often such a subjective term that we’d rather let you see for yourselves.
- CS:GO
- League of Legends
- Fortnite
CS:GO
We all know that Counter-Strike has been around for a while now. However, prior games such as Counter-Strike 1.6 and Source have not been that successful. Truth be told, the esports scene was not that stacked back then, but it is a different story now.
With over $94 million handed out in prize pool money, CS:GO hosted over 5,000 tournaments worldwide.
Let’s talk facts. There are two Majors played every year and these events always attract a lot of viewers. The ELEAGUE CS:GO Major in 2018 held a record with over 1.3 million concurrent viewers. Back then, breaking the one-million mark was something to be proud of.
League of Legends
In the early days, League of Legends was not that popular. Even though this MOBA had a lot of players (mainly because of its free-to-play model), it simply did not come close to Dota 2.
However, ever since a revamp in both gameplay and the esports format, LoL became a fan-favorite. After beating CS:GO by setting a new record of 1.8 million peak viewers back in 2018, Riot Games took things one step further as they set an all-time record in viewership.
A total of 3,9 million concurrent viewers tuned in to watch the League of Legends World Championship in 2019. All in all, a total of $74 million were dished out over 2,400 tournaments and we can rightfully say that League of Legends is one of the most popular esports titles there is.
Fortnite
Even though this Battle Royale game is losing player count, the esports side of things are looking good. This game was able to beat both Dota 2 and CS:GO when it comes to viewership.
However, both Dota 2 and CS:GO will be here in a couple of years, while there is a huge question mark above Fortnite as an esport.
A total of 530 Fortnite tournaments have been played so far. It is important to mention that the prize pools in these events are off the charts, with over $85 million handed out.
When it comes to peak viewership, Fortnite is doing an excellent job. However, we believe that this is just a temporary result. By far the most popular event took place in 2019. The Fortnite World Cup Finals reached a peak of 2,9 million concurrent viewers as they doubled on Dota 2’s The International 2019.
The main question we should ask ourselves is: does Fortnite really belong to the list of most popular esports? We believe that Battle Royale games just need a solid esports format in order to remain at the top.
Are you already an esports fan? Keep a close eye on our LoL and CS:GO sections and keep coming back to EarlyGame to learn everything about the world of competitive gaming.
