Esports keeps on growing year after year, despite the disruptions of the pandemic and the chaos worldwide. The biggest esports events of 2022 will be some of the most hyped video game tournaments in the history of space!
Here is a comprehensive list of some of the biggest events out there.
The biggest esports tournaments of the year
League of Legends Worlds 2022
League is one of the biggest esports games. No tournament is more important than League of Legends Worlds. It is the most prestigious, most popular tournament in the gaming world, with companies like Louis Vuitton and Mercedes-Benz lining up to sponsor it all.
Not much has been confirmed about Worlds 2022 so far. Still, you can bet your bottom dollar it will take place at some point: the events usually take place between late September and early November, and there’s little reason to expect it to be any different this year around.
It remains to be seen whether surprise winners EDward Gaming can hold on to their title and claim the lion’s share of the $2.25 million prize pool.
The International 2022
Though Dota 2 esports isn’t quite what it used to be (and Valve seems to keep making weird decisions after weird decisions), TI is still a unique phenomenon in the world of gaming competition. The single biggest event in esports offers up eye-popping amounts of money that can change a life.
Thanks to community contributions, the International esports tournament had an over $40 million prize pool last year, a record in the industry. Team Spirit’s shock victory was one of the biggest gaming surprises of the year.
The 2021-2022 DPC season will again conclude in the form of The International, featuring 20 teams instead of the usual 18 this time due to the re-introduction of a wildcard LAN qualifier to determine the final spots the prestigious event. Not much else is known about the event at this time.
PGL Antwerp CS:GO Major
Counter-Strike is one of the most popular esports games in the world. CS:GO Majors are the biggest events in the scene. They are the tournaments co-sponsored by Valve. Winning them guarantees that your team will be remembered as one of the best teams of all time. It was recently revealed that PGL would get to host back-to-back CS:GO Majors, taking one of the most popular esports tournaments to Antwerp, Belgium, this time around.
It will be the first CS:GO Major of the year between May 9 and May 22. A whopping $1 million will be on the line. Unlike past Major esports tournaments, no team will get a direct invite to this one: everyone will have to qualify through Regional Major Ranking events instead.
We know little about the second CS:GO Major of the year at this time. The very fact that we’re getting two such events this year is already pretty damn awesome. Both Majors were canceled in 2020 because of the pandemic, and only one of the events could be held in 2021. OF COURSE, the PGL Stockholm Major was won by Natus Vincere, granting s1mple that elusive trophy after so many years.
Valorant Champions 2022
Riot Games put an incredible amount of effort into Valorant esports. They seem to be bearing fruit, too: the game is now seen as a major player in the space, especially with Valve’s many contentious decisions about the CS:GO ecosystem.
Valorant is basically the lovechild of CS:GO and Overwatch, a team-based class-shooter with eerily similar objectives to the Counter-Strike formula. Add Riot’s extreme micromanagement and talent to the mix, and you’ve got a strong contender in the FPS genre.
Last year, the Valorant Champions decider event saw Acend take the crown, becoming the first team in Valorant history to become world champions. The competitive hierarchy of Valorant is very similar to League’s, with a season of regional leagues culminating in a massive tournament for all the marbles. Whether it will become the pinnacle of online gaming tournaments and video game competitions as a whole remains to be seen.
FIDE Candidates Tournament 2022
Chess as an esport? It’s pretty much reality by now, with Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura casually pulling 10 000+ viewers on his Twitch streams and all the big chess tournaments getting regular popular live coverage. This means that the most important chess events in the world warrant a mention on the list of the biggest esports events of the year.
The Candidates Tournament determines the challenger of the world champion every two years. The calendar has been jumbled somewhat by the pandemic, so there’s no off-year this time around. There’s added intrigue around the prestigious tournament this time around.
Magnus Carlsen, the world champ, has stated that he’s not interested in defending his title again unless Alireza Firouzja wins the Candidates. Whether he’d follow through on this in shocking fashion is a huge question and another reason to follow the event in Madrid between June 16 and July 7.
RLCS 2021-22 – World Championship
The emergence of Rocket League as a popular esports was inevitable. It’s a game about rocket-powered cars playing football! It’s just the perfect fit for a casual gaming audience. The action is easy to follow, the rules are straightforward, and the players are highly skilled—a super combo.
The Rocket League events keep growing in prize pools and interest every year, and this year is no exception. The conclusion to the second season of 2021 has spilled into the new year, with fans having to wait until July 22-31 to crown the eventual champion.
The event will take place somewhere in North America. Its location has not been confirmed yet. The prize pool is just over $2 million dollars, with sixteen teams from all around the world fighting it out for the glory and the big bucks.
How to bet on esports
As esports continues to grow over time and rival traditional sports in popularity and impact, it was only natural to see safe, reliable, and fun esports betting options emerge in the digital space.
If betting on esports is something you’re interested in, there are a myriad of possibilities all around the world. The most popular sportsbooks and safest betting sites include BetUS, Bovada, MyBookie, and Betway.
Wrapping It Up
There have never been more exciting online gaming tournaments competing for our attention. These events are some of the biggest esports has ever had to offer as a whole, and it will be awesome to follow who the eventual winners will be.
Now you know what the main esports tournaments are! Whether you’re cheering on your favorites as a viewer or tossing a few bucks on the expected winners as a punter, the biggest esports events of 2022 are sure to be spectacular experiences for players and fans alike.
