What Is The Highest Esports Prize Pool?

The highest esports prize pool ever recorded was for The International 2017, a Dota 2 tournament, which had a prize pool of over $24 million.

Introduction

In recent years, the prize pools for esports events have been increasing at an exponential rate. The top prize pools in esports are now rivaling, and in some cases even surpassing, those of traditional sporting events such as the Super Bowl, Wimbledon and the World Series.

So what is the highest esports prize pool?

As of 2019, the highest recorded prize pool for an esports event is $34 million, which was awarded at The International 2019, a annual Dota 2 tournament organized by Valve Corporation. This 1st place prize eclipses the previous record of $30 million, which was set at The International 2018.

With such large sums of money on offer, it is no surprise that professional gaming is now a multi-million dollar industry with many of the top players earning salaries comparable to those of traditional athletes.

The International

The International is an annual esports tournament for the video game Dota 2, hosted by the game’s developer, Valve. The first tournament took place in Cologne, Germany in 2011, and has been held annually since then. The prize pool for the most recent edition of The International exceeded $34 million, making it the largest prize pool for any single esports event in history.

The Dota 2 Major Championships

The Dota 2 Major Championships (formerly known as The International) is an annual eSports tournament hosted by Valve Corporation, the game’s developer. The tournament consists of eighteen teams; twelve from China, two from Europe, two from North America, one from South America, and one from Southeast Asia. The prize pool for the 2019 tournament was over US$34 million, making it the largest ever for an eSports event.

The League of Legends World Championship

The League of Legends World Championship is the annual professional League of Legends world championship tournament hosted by developer Riot Games. It is the culmination of a yearlong season that starts with regional qualifiers around the world in various online and offline competitions. The top teams from each region then advance to a play-in stage, followed by the main event.

The Overwatch World Cup

The Overwatch World Cup is an international tournament organized by Blizzard Entertainment for the video game Overwatch. The inaugural edition of the tournament took place at BlizzCon 2016 in Anaheim, California, in November 2016, and featured a US$300,000 prize pool.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the International is the largest esports prize pool of all time. With a prize pool of over $34 million, it beats out the second place event by nearly $10 million.