The knockout stage of the 2024 World Championship has begun, starting with a Chinese derby as the first of four quarterfinals at the League of Legends World Championship. LNG Esports, undefeated in the group stage, faced Weibo Gaming, who narrowly secured a playoff spot with a 3-2 record. In a surprising turn of events, Weibo Gaming upset LNG with a 3-1 victory, leading to a surge in viewership.
LNG Esports entered the match as fan favorites, with many predicting Weibo Gaming’s early exit. Adding to the excitement, Weibo Gaming’s Tarzan, a former LNG player, faced his old team in this high-stakes matchup. The storyline of Tarzan’s showdown against his former teammates captivated fans worldwide, who tuned in to watch the game live.
opening match
The opening match of Worlds 2024 saw a significant 50% increase in viewership compared to last year’s first knockout match, drawing an average of 1.39 million viewers across the entire best-of-five series. Peak viewership reached 1.86 million, not including data from Chinese livestream platforms.
While this quarterfinal attracted substantial attention, it wasn’t the most popular Chinese derby in Worlds history. The 2020 semifinals between Suning Gaming and Top Esports reached 2.48 million peak viewers. Other past matches, such as those from Worlds 2023 and 2019, have also exceeded 2 million concurrent viewers, and viewership for Worlds 2024 is expected to rise as the tournament progresses.
Most major regions saw an uptick in viewership for Worlds 2024. English-language streams grew by 14% compared to last year, but the biggest growth came from Asia. Korean streams experienced solid growth, while Vietnamese and Chinese audiences saw even faster expansion. The Vietnamese League of Legends fanbase continues to show impressive support and is now nearing Korean levels of engagement, although Korean viewership is expected to surge when teams like T1, Gen.G, and Hanwha Life take the stage.
As the tournament continues, viewership for Worlds 2024 is likely to keep climbing, potentially breaking new esports viewership records. With popular teams like T1 still in the running, the numbers are expected to soar even higher as the knockout stage heats up.
