The Evolution Championship Series (Evo) is one of the most iconic event series in fighting game esports. Having been a cornerstone of the FGC for decades and continuing to expand. The 2024 edition was a milestone event, attracting a record-breaking 10,240 players, with over half competing in the Street Fighter 6 tournament.
Held from July 19 to 21 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, Evo 2024 featured eight tournaments. Each with a $30,000 prize pool, except for Tekken, which had $46,510, and Street Fighter 6, which boasted $52,790 in prizes. The event also hosted numerous community showcases for less popular esports titles, providing a comprehensive overview of the main eight tournaments’ viewership data.
As Evo’s global influence grows, it was announced that the series will expand to Europe in 2025, with the inaugural event in France, and then to Singapore in 2026, joining Evo Japan as the Asian representative. Evo 2024’s eight tournaments collectively garnered 6.88 million hours watched over more than 154 hours of live streaming during the three-day event. While this represents a 10.5% decrease from 2023’s record-breaking viewership, Evo 2023 had been the most-watched event in the series, marking a 48% increase from 2022.
Street Fighter 6
Street Fighter 6 was the most-watched tournament at Evo 2024, generating 3.66 million hours watched, which accounted for 53% of the total viewership. Although its peak viewership of 403.7K didn’t surpass last year’s record, it still became the second-most popular fighting game event ever and the top one of 2024. Tekken 8 was the only other tournament to surpass 1 million hours watched, while Guilty Gear saw a decline, reaching only 590.3K hours watched.
Street Fighter 6 led in peak concurrent viewership, with the match between Momochi and EndingWalker reaching 403.7K peak viewers, making it the most-watched match of the event. Community casters like ren_kisaragi_ and Maximilian_DOOD played a significant role in boosting viewership, especially among Japanese and English-speaking audiences.
Punk’s victory in the Street Fighter 6 finals against BigBird was a highlight, securing him a spot in Capcom Cup 11. Tekken 8 also saw increased popularity, particularly in its grand finals between ArslanAsh and ATIF, which attracted 275.6K peak viewers. Guilty Gear, although less popular than last year, still drew significant attention, especially during Nitro’s grand final victory over tatuma.
Other notable tournaments included Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike. Which reached 137.9K peak viewers, and Mortal Kombat 1, which saw a slight decline compared to last year but remained the most-watched Mortal Kombat event of 2024. Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising stood out for its unique viewership pattern, with its Season 2 Reveal Trailer event surpassing the grand finals in popularity. The King of Fighters XV continued its decline. Under Night In-Birth II had the lowest viewership, though it was the most popular tournament for the game since 2019.
In Summary
In summary, while Evo 2024 saw a slight dip in viewership compared to 2023, it remains a growing force in the esports world as it continues to expand globally. Future editions of Evo in France and Singapore will be closely watched, and historical viewership data for all Evo events is available for further exploration.
