As 2019 (and the decade) quickly comes to a close, it’s nice to look back on the success that esports has seen over the past decade, and more notably, over the past few years. Each year sees growth throughout the esports scene with 2020 set to bring the industry even more recognition and success.
The industry has seen its fair share of games come and go while some stick it out for the long haul and despite celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, League of Legends has stood the test of time. With its continued growth and dynamic professional scene, League has earned its place as the biggest game in esports.
League of Legends capped off an incredible decade with a handful of wins at the biggest gaming awards events. League took home ‘Game of the Year’ during the Esports Awards in Mid-November. More recently, the game was crowned ‘Esports Game of the Year’ and ‘Best Esports Event’ for Worlds during The Game Awards. League of Legends beat out strong competition that included pop-culture zeitgeist Fortnite, Dota 2, Overwatch which enjoyed solid growth in its second season and the iconic CS:GO scene. Being the oldest game on the list (and winning it all) shows the quality and impact the game has had on the esports industry.
League of Legends tends to have the largest amount of viewers for any of the esports leagues with The Worlds 2019 having it’s biggest turnout yet with almost 4 million viewership peak. The amount of eyes seeing the matches can lead to more sponsors which equates to larger prize pools such as Worlds’ pool being over $2 million. Outside of cultural impact, League of Legends is the biggest esport speaking strictly in numbers (for the time being).
League Legends will have a lot to compete with in 2020. The Overwatch League will be transitioning to their home/away format where teams will host matches in locations around the world throughout the season. Professional Call of Duty will be follow suit with the upcoming Call of Duty League which kicks off in Minnesota on January 24th. CS:GO remains as steady as ever while Fortnite continues to dominate the pop-culture side of the industry. Rocket League is gaining momentum in the scene and feels ready to blow up any moment. It’s not guaranteed that League of Legends will always be the biggest esport around, but given their track record, it’s hard to rule it out for the foreseeable future.
League of Legends isn’t going to slow down anytime soon. The fans are too passionate, the matches too exciting and the history too rich. There is a reason League has stood as the pinnacle of professional esports for a number of years now, cementing itself as not only the biggest esports game in the world, but quite possibly the best. 2020 is going to be a big year for the industry overall and League will still be there, stronger than ever.
