There was a time when eSports was seen as just a fad, a phase that gamers would go through to try and boost what video games were to them. However, it soon turned into a phenomena, one that would spread across the world. And games like League of Legends, Call of Duty, numerous fighting games, Overwatch, and more would help make eSports something that would not go away. And as if proof was needed for this, a recent LOL tournament broke the most-viewed event record.
The finals of the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational were held over the weekend. The final two teams were Team “Never Give Up” from China and and “KingZone Dragon X” from Korea. Team Never Give Up won with an impressive 3-1 victory, and according to Inven Global, over 127 million people watched the finals.
That’s more than 20 million more than the previous record holder, which was at the World League Championships last year in China.
Now, if you’ve noticed, there is a pattern between these two record-setting view sessions, China was a part of both of them. And in the case of the former world record, the event was actually in China. Now, the MSI was not in China but in Europe, but that just goes to prove how much China loves its eSports that it would tune in with such volume to see one of their teams potentially win it all. And, they did, so the viewing was well worth it.
To be fair, not all eSports events get this kind of views, but the notion is still there, eSports is global, and there are countries, like China and Korea, who will dedicate a lot to being successful in it. The US has also proved that eSports still matter to them as the Overwatch League gets great numbers on Twitch.
