2024 Esports Viewership: A Year of Expanding Horizons
The esports landscape of 2024 demonstrated a fascinating evolution in global competitive gaming viewership, with notable shifts in audience engagement and tournament popularity across multiple gaming titles.
Broadening Competitive Horizons
Unlike the previous year’s concentrated viewership across just three games, 2024 witnessed a more diverse representation of esports titles. Notably, Dota 2 and Valorant emerged as significant contributors, breaking into the top-tier viewership rankings after being absent in 2023.
Standout Tournaments and Milestones
League of Legends World Championship
The League of Legends World Championship reigned supreme, accumulating an impressive 190.9 million hours watched. The tournament particularly saw growth from emerging markets like Vietnam and Brazil, solidifying its global appeal. A near-milestone moment came with its peak concurrent viewership of 6.94 million, just shy of the coveted 7 million mark.
Mobile Esports Dominance
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) continued to demonstrate its massive popularity, particularly in Indonesia. The Mobile Pro League (MPL) Indonesia Season 14 set new viewership records, highlighting the region’s passionate gaming community. The M6 World Championship further underscored the mobile gaming scene’s significant global presence.
Emerging Trends and Observations
The year saw interesting dynamics across different esports titles:
- Counter-Strike’s PGL Copenhagen Major
- Dota 2’s The International
- Valorant Champions 2024
Each of these tournaments brought unique excitement, with Valorant’s Masters Madrid tournament notably gaining traction during Sentinels’ international victory.
Peak Performance Metrics
While total watch time provides one perspective, peak concurrent viewers offered a more concentrated view of tournament excitement. Events like the MLBB M6 World Championship and MPL Indonesia showcased remarkable audience engagement, challenging traditional esports powerhouses.
Looking Forward
As 2024 concluded, League of Legends and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang appeared poised to maintain their viewership dominance. The growing diversity of competitive gaming audiences, particularly in regions like Southeast Asia, suggested an increasingly global and inclusive esports ecosystem.
The year demonstrated that competitive gaming continues to evolve, with expanding audiences, emerging markets, and a broader range of games capturing global attention.