Esports World Cup draws unprecedented viewership, sell-out crowds in first half of opening event
RIYADH: The Esports World Cup, the world's largest esports competition and festival, entered the second half of its competition after attracting unprecedented viewership and live participation for its inaugural event at Boulevard Riyadh City.
The Esports World Cup Foundation, the non-profit organization that organizes the EWC, reported a total of 177.5 million watch hours in the first four weeks, with a number of individual tournaments reaching peak viewership. In addition, a total of $16.5 million was distributed in nine of the 22 overall championships out of a record $60 million prize pool. The event's day-long festival attracted more than one million visitors during the first half of the landmark event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
“After four short weeks, the Esports World Cup has already exceeded our highest expectations,” said Ralf Reichert, CEO of the Esports World Cup Foundation. “When we started this journey, our goal was to leapfrog the esports industry with a historic global event that brings together the best games, players and clubs, reaching fans beyond the core esports enthusiasts while tapping into the 3.4 billion players around the world. I am proud to say that we are well on our way to achieving this goal here in Riyadh with hundreds of millions of viewers at home and over a million visitors on site, breaking not only our expectations but also a lot of esports records from 2024. So far, the EWC has awarded more than $16 million in life-changing prize money, with millions more to come, including the top prize – a $20 million share of the Esports World Cup at the end of August.”
Viewership and social interests
During the first four weeks of the Esports World Cup, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang recorded the highest viewership of the event with nearly 2.4 million concurrent participants, the most of any MLBB tournament in 2024. The game's popularity also extended to the MLBB Women's Invitational at EWC, recording 2.5 million hours watched during the 34-hour total broadcast. With 265,117 peak viewers, it became the fourth most watched event in women's esports history. Mobile games generally exceeded viewership expectations at EWC, with Free Fire attracting more than 441,000 top players.
On PC, two popular online multiplayer battle arenas set high viewership at EWC. With 55 million hours watched, the Dota 2 competition was the most watched tournament for the game this year, while the League of Legends competition was the biggest third-party tournament for the game in a decade, recording 53 million hours watched and 3.4 million peak viewers (including China).
EWC attracted great fan engagement across social media. Its accounts have collectively generated more than one billion views, 270 million social video views and 58 million total social engagements, a testament to the event's resonance within the global esports community and beyond.
Interesting things in attendance
During the first half of EWC, over a million visitors attended the massive on-site experience at Boulevard City in Riyadh. The festival venues alone attracted 289,000 visitors, while more than 60,000 tickets have been sold for the esports competitions so far. Esports events are less than 3,000 tickets away from completely selling out with four weeks and 13 contests still to come. The EWC Day Pass has sold out for the entire tournament, while POWR Villa and Falcons HQ are fully booked until 17 August.
During week 3, EWC hosted international soccer superstars Neymar and Diogo Jota. As avid esports fans, both athletes immersed themselves in the energetic atmosphere surrounding Counter-Strike 2 action.
“Being here at the inaugural World Esports Championship is a really amazing experience,” said Jota. “The organization and scale of this event is really impressive, even more than I expected. I've always believed in the potential of esports, even before starting my own team, and EWC is proof that the scene is rapidly evolving. This level of investment and infrastructure is exactly what esports needs to grow and reach a wider audience. I'm excited to see how EWC continues to evolve and push the boundaries of competitive gaming.”
Interesting facts about the competition
The EWC has already awarded $16.5 million in prize money across nine tournament championships and an additional $450,000 in MVP prizes. More than $44 million in prize money will be awarded over the final four weeks of competition spanning the remaining 13 championships and club championships.
Currently, Team Falcons sits atop the Esports World Cup club standings with 3,500 points, 2,330 more than second place Team Liquid. The Club Championship, an innovative inter-game competition format unique to the EWC with a dedicated prize pool of $20 million, rewards the top 16 clubs based on their overall performance. At the conclusion of the event, the club with the best performance across the 22 gaming championships will be crowned the first Esports World Cup Club Champion.
The first four weeks have brought a series of upsets and dominant performances. In the record-breaking $500,000 Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Women's Invitational, Smart Omega Empress upset tournament favorites Team Vitality to claim the $180,000 top prize. In the Overwatch 2 tournament, Crazy Raccoon dominated the group, winning 15 of the 17 maps played and taking home the trophy and $400,000. And in League of Legends, global superstar Faker led the defending World Champions T1 to a 3-1 victory over Top Esports, adding yet another international accolade to his storied career.
Closing weekend
The biggest weekend in esports history will take place on August 24-25 as the inaugural EWC draws to a close.
The 24th of August sees the 2024 Esports Awards, the most prestigious night in esports, recognizing the best in the industry from all over the world and celebrating clubs, athletes, content creators, games and more. Highlights of the evening will include a Lifetime Mix, a red carpet event, an esports village and the star-studded awards show itself, which last year attracted more than 22 million viewers.
The second two-day New Global Sport Conference will begin on August 24 and will bring together leaders from esports, gaming, business, sports and entertainment to explore “The Future of Fandom”. Leaders from around the world will discuss the impact of fandom on business planning, content, intellectual property and media rights, marketing and community building. The lineup of speakers so far includes: Prince Faisal bin Bandar, Ralf Reichert, Magnus Carlsen, Toshimoto Mitomo, Greg Norman, Maya Rogers, RJ Cutler, Dr. Songyee Yoon, Sir Leonard Blavatnik and Joe Marsh.
The weekend will conclude on August 25, when the first Esports World Cup Club Champion is crowned and will receive their share of the $20 million Club Championship prize pool. The EWC closing ceremony will then welcome clubs, players and fans to come together for a spectacular celebration with fireworks, a light show and live music.
