Esports Tournaments With The Highest Prize Pools

Eyes on the prize. Who would have thought you could win a million dollars while playing?

Indeed, the Esports world has come a long way, seeing the changes from tournament structures up to its prize pool. As the popularity of the game rises, its community grows as well, becoming the talk of the town. Among the popular ones in the gaming scene is the Dota community. 

With its outstanding base, their tournament series managed to accumulate some of the largest prize pools in Esports history. Today, we see more players rewarded in tournaments to give them a fair share for their effort and determination. With that said, let’s see which Esports tournaments have the highest prize pools.  

1. The International 10 (Dota 2): $40 million

2021 is a remarkable year, especially for the Dota 2 Esports community. Valve’s annual Dota 2 championship tournament raked in an astonishing $40 million prize pool. Take note that it is just for a season. Definitely, the prize is enough to send a player into retirement after winning the championship. 

However, this prize pool is a result of Valve’s maximizing crowdfunding in esports. Through Compendium, the fans directly contribute to the prize with their in-game purchases. The TI10 hailed Team Spirit as title champions to earn an outrageous sum. 

2. The International 9 (Dota 2): $34.3 million

It can’t be argued that The International is currently the biggest tournament in Esports history. Aside from their record-breaking TI10, Valve already holds the record in 2019 with their spectacular prize pool. This world’s tournament generated a massive $34.4 million, with the help of its community, to solidify its dominance in the prize pool records. 

3. Fortnite World Cup Finals 2019: $30.4 million

Another popular game with a huge community earns a spot on the list. Epic Game’s biggest title, Fortnite, also has one of the heftiest prize pools. In its inaugural Fortnite World Cup in 2019, they offered an amazing $30.4 million prize pool to award winners of Solo and Duo events. The 16-year-old Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf famously won the $3 million of Fortnite’s World Cup solo finals. 

4. The International 8 (Dota 2): $25.5 million

Records after records and records. Dota 2’s annual championship tournament is in another league, holding many of the spots in the ranks. Their 2018 iteration of the tournament saw an overwhelming $25.5 million prize pool. 

5. Riyadh Masters 2023 (Dota 2): $15 million

It is not only Valve’s championship tournament that awards the Dota 2 players handsomely. The growing interest in esports in the Middle East region is reflected in the Saudi Arabian Dota 2 Tournament, which distributes a $15 million prize pool. Team Spirit gets a conclusive finals win against Team Liquid to add to their vault. 

6. Honor of Kings International Championship 2022: $10 million

The mobile gaming scene catches up with the large prize pool of PC gaming to level up the competition. Honor of Kings International Championship 2022, a MOBA tournament, brought the top 16 teams to Shenzhen to fight for the championship. These teams earned a shot to win the $10 million prize pool of the tournament. 

7. PUBG Global Invitational.S 2021: $7.1 million

The battle royale esports made history with the first event of the 2021 PUBG season. As played in Incheon, South Korea, the tournament gathered a $7.1 million prize pool, and Susquehanna Soniqs took home the victory. Along with the trophy and pride is the whopping $1,296,189 to make a brilliant feat. 

8. League of Legends World Championship 2018: $6.4 million

One of the most renowned game titles in the world, League of Legends, has something to brag about as well. In their 2018 League of Legends World Championship, they gained $6.4 million to mark history in their esports community. This prize pool was made possible by Riot Games’ crowdfunding initiatives.

9. Call of Duty League Championship 2020: $4.6 million

The COVID-19 pandemic may have affected how the tournament played out. However, it did not stop the league from offering a valuable amount in its prize pool. The champions, The Dallas Empire, took home $1.5 million as they displayed a dominant performance in the grand finals.

10. Overwatch League 2019 Playoffs: $3.5 million

The Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia witnessed the growth of the prize pool for Overwatch. The Overwatch League 2019 Playoffs serve as the second for the series, where the prize pool increased to $3.5 million. This season hailed the San Francisco Shock as they took down the Vancouver Titans to earn a large sum from the prize pool. 

Conclusion

The small bets in the past have astonishingly grown to tournaments with huge and amazing prizes. Certainly, the gaming industry has really been immensely popular among the crowd, regardless of age. Aside from this, there are also innovations in the prize pool models that let tournaments break their records one after another. 

Today, esports is gaining recognition and acknowledgement among the sports community with its inclusion in the Olympics. As it enters a new era, these tournaments are expected to continuously expand their influence and prosper.