The first esport award was in 1997, when Dennis “Thresh” Fong won a Ferrari 328 after winning the Quake. In 2006, John “Toxjq” Quick received a Rolex at the WSVG Quake 4 championship. Those are their memorable moments. But now, the prize is so big that the players can retire immediately after winning the trophy.
A large part of this number is thanks to the support from crowdfunding (the community contributes money to the prize), when the developers decided to sell more in-game accessories to players to increase the total amount of prize money. Valve, the developer of Dota 2 and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, is currently the company that has adopted this model most successfully. The most prestigious Dota 2 event, The International, has grown its prize pool dramatically over the past 6 years.
Here is a list of the biggest prizes in the esports industry. Since Dota 2 and League of Legends will make up the vast majority of the list in the top 10, we’ve divided them into two categories: Grand Prize Totals per event and Grand Prize Totals in each event. esports history. (all in USD)
Total grand prize of each event
1. The International 7 – $24.6 million
Valve’s annual international Dota 2 tournament has broken the esports prize pool record for 7 years in a row. In 2011 and 2012, the total prize pool reached $1.6 million, but by 2013, the event became the most successful example of a ‘crowfunding’ model in esports history.
The latest tournament, The International 7, totaled $24.6 million, with defending champion Team Liquid taking home $10.8 million.
2. League of Legends World Championship 2016 – $5 million
For the first time in the history of League of Legends, Riot Games allows fans to increase the total prize pool through purchasing in-game items. Initially only $2 million, the total prize pool has grown to $5 million, making this the biggest prize money event in League of Legends.
3. The Dota 2 Asia Championship 2015 – $3 million
The forerunner of the Dota 2 Major circuit, the 2015 Dota 2 Asia Championship had a prize pool of $3,057,000, surpassing Valve Majors’ prize money of just $57,000. Taking place in Shanghai, China, Evil Geniuses was the team to take home the championship trophy after defeating Vici Gaming 3-0, a completely one-sided victory in Dota 2 history.
4. The Dota 2 Valve Majors – $3 million
While the Dota 2 Majors preliminary system has changed dramatically since its launch in November 2015, Valve’s first two tournaments had a prize pool of $3 million each. With this huge amount of prize money, except for The International, this is considered the largest tournament in the Dota 2 circuit competition system. Of all the teams participating in the Majors, OG is considered the most successful – winning 4 out of 6 Dota 2 Majors.
5. The Smite World Championship 2015 – $2.6 million
Smite’s first world tournament gets $1.6 million in prize money after Studio Hi-Rez adopts crowdfunding. Taking place at the Cobb Energy Center in Atlanta, the Cognitive Gaming champions took home $1.3 million, about half of the total prize pool.
6. The Halo World Championship 2016 – $2.5 million
Fully sponsored by Microsoft Studios, the 2016 Halo World Championship has a total prize pool of $2.5 million. The tournament brings together the talented Halo, with the championship and the $1 million prize money belonging to the army of CLG.
7. The Call of Duty World League Championship 2016 – $2 million
Activision decided to double the prize money at the 2016 Call of Duty World League Championship. This tournament has yet to be surpassed by the other events of this game and is the only appearance of Call of Duty on this list.
8. Mid-Season Invitational 2017 – $1.6 million
The third tournament of the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational increased its prize money from the original $250,000 to $1.6 million by selling in-game items.
9. World Electronic Sports Game 2016 – $1.5 million
The first attempt to create a world cup tournament for esports created by Chinese tycoon Alibaba brought in a $1.5 million prize pool each for CS:GO and Dota 2.
10. ELEAGUE Season One – $1.4 million
Turner Sports’ first CS:GO tournament not only featured great matches and a great production team, but it was also one of the biggest prize pools in CS:GO game history.
The biggest prize pool in esports history
1) The International 7 – $24.6 million
2) The International 6 – $20.4 million
3) The International 5 – $18.4 million
4) The International 4 – $10.9 million
5) League of Legends World Finals 2016 – $5 million
6) League of Legends World Championship 2017 – $4.9 million
7) Dota 2 Asia Championship 2015 – $3 million
8) The Dota 2 Majors – $3 million
9) The International 3 – $2.8 million
10) Smite World Championship 2016 – $2.6 million
Source link: 10 tournaments with the biggest prize money in esports
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