They may be relatively new, but there is no use denying that eSports are here to stay. That is not a bad thing, of course, because not only are the games exciting to play and great to watch too, they also offer plenty of betting opportunities at mobile casinos.
Events focusing on the most popular games in a variety of genres are held around the world through the year. Once the domain of a few geeks willing to carry their computers around, they are now held in arenas and stadiums, and are broadcast on major sports channels.
The International
What is arguably the most popular of all genres is also the one that lays claim to not only the biggest event, but also to what is possibly also one of the biggest eSports games globally – the International. Dota2 is one of the most important of the Multiplayer Online Battle Arena games, and is played with 2 teams of 5 players.
Each player must select a character from a choice of more than 100, and both teams must try to destroy the opponents’ ancient structure. The tournament has been held annually since 2011, and is run and hosted by game developers Valve Corporation. The inaugural event offered a prize pool of more than US$1.6 million, a figure that in 2013 soared to almost US$3 million, and then to more than US$10 million in 2014.
Dota Major Championships
Launched by Valve Corporation in 2015, the Dota Major Championships is an expansion on the International. It includes the previously mentioned event, as well as several others. The Dota Major Championships held thus far have all had prize pools of US$3 million or more.
League of Legends World Championships
The inaugural event held in 2011, the League of Legends World Championships are the game’s biggest annual event. The winning team is presented with the coveted Summoner’s Cup and a few million dollars in prize money.
The event attracts participants from North America, Europe, Korea, China, and Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, Brazil and South America, Japan, Turkey, Oceania, and other countries and regions such as New Zealand. There are 4 groups of 4 qualifiers, each of which has a group stage and a knockout stage.
ESL
The Electronic Sports League is one of the largest competition organisers. It offers ranking tournaments for all levels, but the really exciting markets are found among its Pro Leagues, focused on certain games, and the ESL One events.
ESL CSGO is not only one of the league’s biggest game-specific competitions; it also is one of the most popular options offered by eSports betting sites. Focused on Counter Strike: Global Offensive, it was launched in 2016. Teams from various countries play against each other in 2 seasons every year.
Other Popular Options
You can find many more popular eSports games online. Among them are the Intel Extreme Masters tournament series, the Capcom Pro Tour and Cup, Call of Duty World League and Championship, Smite World Championship, StarCraft II World Championship Series, Halo World Championships, and World Electronic Sports Games (WESG).