Wherever you are in the world, getting involved with gaming is fun and gives you something to fill your spare time. In the middle of this global pandemic, there has been a lot of getaways for people around the world. From online gaming, to social media influencing. While many like to play classic slots at Virgin online casino, millions of people now love to watch eSports and see their favorite teams compete in the planet’s biggest online or offline events. It is thought that eSports generated $1bn in revenue during 2019 and has over 400 million fans.
In a recent report by Newzoo, esports and gaming industry was valued at $160 billion in 2020. The primary reason behind this success is the professional teams who keep fans entertained while competing in top eSports games. Over the years, this has seen teams emerge as top dogs and make lots of money!
But who are the best and most successful eSports teams ever?
Team Liquid
Whether you are new to eSports or have been following it for a while, you will probably have heard of the famed Team Liquid. They could quite easily claim to be THE most successful eSports team around, and few would argue. They have been in the game for 20 years now after being formed in 2000 by Victor Goosens. Over that time, they have been one of the most successful teams on the scene and have put out teams in pretty much every major eSport game or tournament.
They started as a team competing in StarCraft and StarCraft 2 before branching out into leagues for classic games like League of Legends and Dota 2. With estimates for total eSports winnings as a team of almost $35m and still going strong today, Team Liquid is massive.
Evil Geniuses
Of course, Team Liquid is not the only eSports group on the block – and they are not the oldest! As unbelievable as it may seem, the Evil Geniuses team was formed in 1999 originally, so they just pip them to the post. Based in San Francisco, they have gone on to become a very successful team in their own right and give Team Liquid a real run for their money.
They started out competing as a Counter Strike: Global Offensive squad but now show up in a vast array of competitions for games like World of Warcraft and Call of Duty. They have got some talented players in their ranks for fans to follow, including Sumail Hassan and Peter Dager. Overall, this team has scooped almost $25m in winnings to date from 841 events.
Fnatic
This is a team which also has a great history of success in eSports and is well-known to many fans. Its significant achievement has been in League of Legends, where the team has won multiple events over the years. They are also widely respected for fielding powerful CS:GO teams around the world. Their CS:GO team, for example, claimed back to back majors with victories in the ESL One: Katowice 2015 and ESL One: Cologne 2015 events.
They have also scooped the eSports team of the year in both 2006 and 2009 while having over one million loyal fans on social media. When you also factor in that they were the first team to win three major events in eSports history, it is clear to see why they rate so highly. Based in London, they have amassed around $15m in winnings to date and can name eSports legends like f0rest (Patrik Lindberg) as previous team members.
OG
With around $30m in total prize money from 81 events so far, OG is a name that has exploded onto the eSports scene lately. Dota 2 is where they have tasted a lot of success, but they also compete in Super Smash Bros and CS:GO as well. N0tail and JerAx are their star names right now, and they have picked up a lot of followers since forming in 2015. Based mainly on Europe, they also have big-name backing to help in terms of Red Bull sponsorship. Although they have not been going long, their outstanding success to date has already put them up there with the best eSports teams ever. Perhaps their most well-known triumphs to date were wins in the 2018 and 2019 International Dota 2 events.
eSports has come a long way
Since first starting, it is fair to say that eSports has come a long way. It is seen not only in the mainstream media attention it gets but also in the hugely successful teams and players who are part of the sport. The above are some of the best teams ever to compete in eSports, and all are still going strong. With new events and leagues coming into play all the time, it will be exciting to see if they can carry on in this vein in the future.
