eSports
REVEALED: Top eSports players set to earn $3.2 million in 2019
Are you looking to be the next Most Valuable Player? A new tool could be what you need to become the next eSports title-holder.
How To Become An eSports Champion uses detailed market data from the last 20 years to predict the average winnings for the next five years, including the exact amount players, teams and countries are likely to win, as well as how much games, genres and events will pay out.
Via a bespoke algorithm that monitors trends, the tool feeds historical data on earnings and tournament payouts through a recurrent neural network to unveil what’s really worth playing in 2019 and beyond.
Player earnings: Projected earnings from 2018 to 2019
Player |
Highest earnings 2018 ($) |
Predicted highest earnings 2019 ($) |
Percentage change |
1st |
2,290,632 |
3,293,996 |
43.8% |
2nd |
2,282,717 |
3,273,849 |
43.4% |
3rd |
2,280,217 |
3,178,682 |
39.4% |
4th |
2,249,842 |
3,106,845 |
38.1% |
5th |
2,249,136 |
2,996,415 |
33.2% |
2018 proved to be a successful year for the top five highest-earning eSports players, who took home an average of $2,270,509 in tournament winnings.
Dota2 Player Jesse Vainikka, known as JerAx, was the highest earner in 2018, pocketing $2,290,632.
2019 appears to be a particularly profitable year, with the top-earner predicted to pocket $3,292,966 in winnings.
In fact, the average winnings of the top five players are set to rise 39.6% from $2,270,509 in 2018 to $3,169,957 in 2019.
Team earnings: Projected earnings from 2018 to 2019
Team |
Highest earnings 2018 ($) |
Predicted highest earnings 2019 ($) |
Percentage change |
1st |
11,465,456 |
17,930,804 |
56.4% |
2nd |
6,959,312 |
7,542,920 |
8.4% |
3rd |
5,362,637 |
7,091,574 |
32.2% |
4th |
4,183,271 |
6,854,611 |
63.9% |
5th |
3,957,915 |
6,449,381 |
62.9% |
2018 saw the top five highest-earning teams earn an average of $6,385,718 from tournaments. Team OG proved to be the most successful team, netting a staggering $11,465,456.
Meanwhile, 2019 looks to build upon this staggering sum even more, with the top team tipped to take home a hefty $17,930,804.
Teams will be preparing for upcoming clashes in 2019, particularly with team earnings set to increase by 43.7% to $9,173,858 in 2019.
Country earnings: Projected earnings from 2018 to 2019
Country |
Highest earnings 2018 ($) |
Predicted highest earnings 2019 ($) |
Percentage change |
1st |
28,202,681 |
45,750,768 |
62.2% |
2nd |
16,196,204 |
34,369,132 |
112.2% |
3rd |
13,662,922 |
27,563,430 |
101.7% |
4th |
10,455,654 |
11,989,372 |
14.7% |
5th |
7,315,113 |
9,715,199 |
32.8% |
In 2018, the United States earned the most from eSports, winning $28,202,681. However, in 2019 it’s China that’s predicted to make the most money – $45,750,768 to be precise.
2018 saw the most talented countries take home an average of $15,166,515. In 2019, a predicted increase of 70.6% suggests that the top-earning countries will earn an estimated $25,877,580.
Highest paying games: Projected winnings from 2018 to 2019
Game |
Highest earnings 2018 ($) |
Predicted highest earnings 2019 ($) |
Percentage change |
1st |
41,395,452 |
42,932,232 |
3.7% |
2nd |
22,620,367 |
14,889,274 |
-34.2% |
3rd |
20,074,787 |
12,458,714 |
-37.9% |
4th |
14,448,877 |
4,507,453 |
-68.8% |
5th |
7,054,681 |
4,068,943 |
-42.3% |
Dota 2 has further cemented its popularity as the highest-paying game in 2018. In the last year, Dota 2 awarded $41,395,452 in prize winnings. Predictions forecast Dota 2 as the highest-paying game for the next five years!
Through 2018, the five leading game titles paid an average of $21,118,833 to winners. However, an average predicted percentage change of -25.3% suggests that this figure will fall to $15,771,323 in 2019 among the games placed 2nd to 5th as Dota 2 continues to dominate.
Highest paying genres from 2018 to 2019
Genre |
Highest earnings 2018 ($) |
Predicted highest earnings 2019 ($) |
Percentage change |
1st |
70,936,085 |
83,768,792 |
18.1% |
2nd |
61,209,681 |
30,749,112 |
-49.8% |
3rd |
6,190,134 |
6,072,446 |
-2.0% |
4th |
5,376,839 |
5,027,990 |
-6.5% |
5th |
4,977,551 |
1,813,499 |
-63.7% |
2018 has revealed the multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) as the highest-paying genre, as $70,936,085 was paid out to top teams.
2019 will be a less profitable year for eSports champions specialising in MOBAs, first-person shooters, sports, card games and strategy games. The average payouts are set to change by -25.3% from $29,738,058 in 2018 to 25,486,368 in 2019.
Highest paying events from 2018 to 2019
Event |
Highest earnings 2018 ($) |
Predicted highest earnings 2019 ($) |
Percentage change |
1st |
25,532,177 |
46,779,332 |
83.2% |
2nd |
9,985,500 |
11,265,746 |
12.8% |
3rd |
8,038,350 |
7,178,802 |
-10.7% |
4th |
6,450,000 |
6,830,911 |
5.9% |
5th |
3,921,000 |
6,749,588 |
72.1% |
The International 2018 was the highest-paying tournament last year, with winners receiving $25,532,177. In 2019, the same tournament is forecasted to pay out a whopping $46,779,332 – an increase of 83.2%.
In 2019, tournaments will pay 46.1% more than the previous year, with payouts set to rise from $10,785,405 to $15,760,876.
To find out what’s really worth playing in 2019, visit: https://www.esports-champions.com/
- Historical data sourced from Esports Earnings.
- All data correct as of 21 January 2019.
- All percentages have been rounded to one decimal place.
- The creators of this piece take no responsibility for any money won or lost by betting, investing or partaking in eSports – this is simply a data-intensive guide.
Source: blueclaw.co.uk
eSports
Everything you need to know ahead of ESL Pro League Season 19
The ESL Pro League (EPL) returns to St. Julian’s, Malta, for Season 19 on April 23 – May 12, 2024. The world’s biggest Counter-Strike league will see teams from around the world arrive on-site for three weeks of non-stop action, and only one team will emerge victorious as Champions.
Here is all you need to know about ESL Pro League Season 19
The 19th Season of the ESL Pro League will see the 32 best Counter-Strike teams compete for a total prize pool of $750,000, a win in the race to secure Intel® Grand Slam V, and a spot at IEM Cologne 2024. Commencing on April 23, contenders from around the globe will face off in Malta for a spot in the Playoffs. There, the six best teams will compete live in front of an intimate live audience at the InterContinental Malta on May 10 – 12, 2024.
Starting with the upcoming season, EPL will see some improvements to its schedule. While the number of teams and the tournament structure remain the same compared to recent seasons, the duration of the tournament has been adjusted to three weeks instead of five. To accommodate this change, two groups will be played simultaneously during the Group Stage, resulting in a more intense story for fans to follow.
Schedule and Format
Group Stage (April 23 – May 5):
- Four groups of eight teams will compete in separate triple-elimination brackets
- All matches are best-of-three
- The top four teams from each group will advance to the Playoffs
- Group Stage winners advance to the Quarterfinals
- The Group Stage runner-ups advance to the Round of 12
- The Group Stage third and fourth-place teams advance to the Round of 16
Playoffs (May 7 – 12):
- The top sixteen teams will compete in a single-elimination bracket
- All matches will be best-of-three, excluding the Grand Final which will be best-of-five
- The third and fourth Quarterfinals, as well as both Semifinals and the Grand Final will be played out live on stage in front of an audience
Teams Attending
- Astralis (Partner Team)
- BIG (Partner Team)
- Complexity (Partner Team)
- ENCE (Partner Team)
- FaZe Clan (Partner Team)
- Fnatic (Partner Team)
- FURIA (Partner Team)
- G2 Esports (Partner Team)
- HEROIC (Partner Team)
- MOUZ (Partner Team)
- Natus Vincere (Partner Team)
- Ninjas in Pyjamas (Partner Team)
- Team Liquid (Partner Team)
- Team Vitality (Partner Team)
- Monte (ESL Challenger Jönköping winner)
- Virtus.pro (ESL Challenger Atlanta winner)
- SAW (ESL World Ranking)
- Team Falcons (ESL World Ranking)
- GamerLegion (ESL World Ranking)
- BetBoom Team (ESL World Ranking)
- Eternal Fire (ESL World Ranking)
- 3DMAX (ECL S46 Europe winner)
- FORZE (ECL S46 Europe runner-up)
- M80 (ECL S46 North America winner)
- BOSS (ECL S46 North America runner-up)
- The MongolZ (ECL S46 Asia-Pacific winner)
- TYLOO (ECL S46 Asia-Pacific runner-up)
- Imperial Esports (South American Qualifier winners)
- Sharks Esports (South American Qualifier winners)
- Pera Esports (European Conference winner)
- Bad News Kangaroos (Oceanic Qualifier winner)
- FlyQuest (ANZ Champs winner)
Prize Money (USD)
TOTAL | $750,000 |
1st | $170,000 |
2nd | $80,000 |
3rd-4th | $45,000 |
5th-8th | $32,000 |
9th-12th | $23,500 |
13th-16th | $17,500 |
17th-20th | $12,000 |
21st-28th | $7,000 |
29th-32nd | $3,500 |
Broadcast Talent
- Hosts
- “Tres “stunna” Saranthus
- Freya “Freya” Spiers
- A Stream
- Jason “moses” O’Toole
- Janko “YNk” Paunović
- Mathieu “Maniac” Quiquerez
- Harry “Harry” Russell
- Hugo “Hugo” Byron
- Henry “Henry” Greer
- Chad “SPUNJ” Burchill
- Alex “Machine” Richardson
- B Stream
- Neo “Ne0kai” Caine
- Harvey “Skriv” Rodgers
- Lucy “LucyLuce” Eastwood
- Brandon “BDog” Rawlings
- Travis “Trav” Landaw Mott
Where to Watch
The live broadcast will be available on FACEIT Watch, ESL FACEIT Group’s premier esports viewing platform created by esports fans for esports fans and open for all.
Featuring a unique multi-perspective view selector where users can watch their favorite player’s perspective directly next to the main event stream, a live chat, a kill cam, live-generated replays of key moments, a sound mixer, a rewards program, and more, FACEIT Watch revolutionises esports streaming by putting fans in control of their viewing experience.
Fans can also watch the action on the ESL Counter-Strike Twitch and YouTube channels. For those unable to tune in live, all matches will also be available to watch on-demand for free via YouTube.
For more information about ESL Pro League Season 19, and the latest updates on the event, please visit the official website, and follow ESL Counter-Strike on X, Facebook, and Instagram.
Asia
Team ATK Oshun excels at 2024 Online Championships held on 13 April 2024
Mind Sports South Africa’s (MSSA) 2024 Online Championships held on 13 April 2024 showed sterling results.
The championship was yet another chance for many esports athletes to qualify for MSSA’s National Team Trials to be held on 25 May 2024 at which the team will be selected to officially represent South Africa at the African Qualifiers which lead up to IESF’s 16th World Esports Championships to be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in October and November 2024..
All Registered Players who have finished in the top three places, or the top 20% – whichever is greater, are entitled to enter trials.
However, it must be remembered that all players must have a valid passport to participate in the National Team Trials.
It was indeed exciting to watch just how much all the female teams have improved.
Team ATK Oshun (ATK Club Sport) being a female team astounded all with their skill and sportsmanship. The team demolished all ATK Club Sport opposition to ultimately won the premier event overall and qualify for the National Team trials to be held on 25 May 2025.
IESF’s 15th World Championships will be played to the following titles:
- Counter-Strike 2
- Counter-Strike 2 – Female division
- DotA 2
- eFootball
- Mobile Legends, Bang Bang
- Mobile Legends, Bang Bang – Female division
- PUBGM
The high standard of play saw 37 Registered Players from six provinces being awarded Provincial Colours. Only Limpopo, Free State, and Northern Cape did not have Registered Players who did not earn provincial colours.
Title | Name of player/team | Club | Provincial Colours awarded |
Clash Royale – Premier | Johan Coetzee | Middies | Mpumalanga |
Clash Royale – High School | Aryan Maharaj | PR0NHS | |
Counter Strike: 2 | ATK Oshun | ||
Kaylee Ludick | ATK Club Sport | Gauteng | |
Jessica Eleez Greeff | ATK Club Sport | Gauteng | |
Christin Brazier | ATK Club Sport | Gauteng | |
Megan van der Westhuizen | ATK Club Sport | Gauteng | |
Kayhla Rose Calder | ATK Club Sport | Gauteng | |
DotA – Premier | ZAG DOTA 1 | ||
Suhail Khan | ZAG Academy | Gauteng | |
Travis John Waters | ZAG Academy | Western Cape | |
Mark Kilian Lehle | ZAG Academy | Gauteng | |
Mohammad Dhooma | ZAG Academy | Eastern Cape | |
Nicholas Dammert | ZAG Academy | Gauteng | |
eFootball – Premier | Aslam Parker | PES Society | Gauteng |
FIFA 24 – High School | Daiyaan Hendricks | PES Society | Western Cape |
Mobile Legends – Premier
|
Mavericks | ||
Matthew Tatalias | Mavericks | Gauteng | |
Damian Bransby | Mavericks | Western Cape | |
Preshan Pillay | Mavericks | Gauteng | |
Mohammad Azhar Ansari | Mavericks | KwaZulu Natal | |
Taygan Gabriel | Mavericks | KwaZulu Natal | |
Luke Green | Mavericks | Western Cape | |
Mobile Legends – Premier – Female
|
AHG | ||
Je’nielle Cavanagh | PES Society | Western Cape | |
Inez Pringle | PES Society | Western Cape | |
Salma Parker | PES Society | Western Cape | |
Ra’isha Prout | PES Society | Western Cape | |
Fatimah Prout | PES Society | Western Cape | |
Mia Anthony | PES Society | Western Cape | |
PUBGM
|
Team uEnvy | ||
Richard Henry | ZAG Academy | Eastern Cape | |
La-eeq Arendse | ZAG Academy | Western Cape | |
Kyle Dudley | ZAG Academy | Western Cape | |
Clayton Leak | ZAG Academy | Western Cape | |
Rocket League – Premier – 1 v 1 – Premier | Nathan Strange | Hoërskool Klerksdorp | |
Rocket League – Premier – 1 v 1 – High School | Luther Peens | Hoërskool Klerksdorp | |
Street Fightter V – Premier | Marnus van der Merwe | Hoërskool Klerksdorp | North West |
Tekken 8 | Stasch Cloeta | Team PlayBell | Western Cape |
Valorant – Premier
|
TuksValorant | ||
Tapiwanashe Keith Matema | TuksEsports | Gauteng | |
Kyle Halvorsen | TuksEsports | Gauteng | |
Jaden Connor Swarts | TuksEsports | Gauteng | |
Ronald James Tyler Wheeldon | TuksEsports | Gauteng | |
Alejandro Luca Sartini-Kruger | TuksEsports | Gauteng | |
Armand Pierre van der Colf | TuksEsports | Gauteng | |
Sportsmanship Award | Je’nielle Cavanagh | PES Society |
Asia
Maharashtra Government rewards state’s Asian Games 2022 Esports athletes with INR 10 lakhs; marks historic moment for Indian Esports
In a groundbreaking move, the Directorate of Sports and Youth Services of the Government of Maharashtra has rewarded a significant amount of INR 10 lakhs to each Esports athlete of the state who represented India in the Asian Games 2022, held in Hangzhou. This marks a historic moment for Indian Esports, as it is the first time any state has included Esports alongside mainstream sports in prize money rewards for its state players in a major tournament. The recipients of this monetary reward include Darshan Bata, captain of the DOTA 2 team, along with his teammates Krish Gupta, Ketan Goyal, and Shubham Goli, as well as League of Legends athlete Samarth Trivedi.
Expressing his gratitude, Darshan Bata, the captain of the DOTA 2 team who hails from Mumbai, said, “I would like to express my sincere thanks to ESFI and the Maharashtra government for honoring us and recognizing and supporting Esports.”
Esports made its debut as a full-fledged medal event at the Asian Games 2022, where a total of 476 athletes from 30 different countries competed for gold medals across seven titles. India participated in four of these titles, including DOTA 2, EA Sports FC Online, League of Legends, and Street Fighter V: Champion Edition.
“It has been a great experience at Asian games, I am grateful for the support I received from the Maharashtra government and I really appreciate the efforts ESFI has contributed to our journey,” stated Ketan Goyal of Pune who was a part of the DOTA 2 team at the Asian Games 2022.
The talented Indian contingent for the Asian Games was sent by Esports Federation of India (ESFI), who had organized open for all nationwide online qualifiers to select the best and most deserving athletes to compete for the nation at the tournament.
“Really happy to see that Esports is getting recognized and we are being aided by the government. Thank you for the support to Maharashtra Government and a big shoutout to ESFI for giving us this opportunity to represent India in the Asian games,” highlighted Krish Gupta of Pune, a member of the Indian DOTA 2 team.
The League of Legends team, in particular, achieved a historic fifth-place finish at the 19th Asian Games after competing against top-tier teams from around the continent.
“I am really grateful to the Maharashtra government for providing us with the financial support. It is amazing to see Esports being recognized by the Government. A huge shoutout to ESFI for giving us the opportunity and platform to compete at the Asian Games 2022 in Hangzhou,” commented Samarth Trivedi of Thane who played a pivotal part in the country’s performance in League of Legends at the tournament.
Prior to the 19th Asian Games, India had also secured a remarkable bronze medal at the Commonwealth Esports Championships in DOTA 2, showcasing the country’s prowess in video gaming on the international stage.
“Thank you ESFI and team for all you support throughout Asian games 2022. We are really blessed and honored by Maharashtra Government for supporting Esports players and considering Esports in events like Commonwealth and Asian Games,” noted Shubham Goli, a resident of Pune who represented India at both the Commonwealth Esports Championships as well as the Asian Games 2022 in DOTA 2. The latest FICCI-EY report titled ‘#Reinvent: India’s media & entertainment sector is innovating for the future, India is expected to have 20 international teams by 2024.
The Maharashtra government’s recognition and support of Esports signals a significant milestone in the journey towards mainstream acceptance of competitive gaming as a legitimate sport in the country.
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