The phenomenal rise of the esports industry, and those industries directly linked to it, has been one of the biggest success stories in recent years. Esports tournaments now regularly attract spectators in their millions, top esports professionals can earn as much as the biggest sporting superstars and achieve similar levels of fame and status.

Malta too has a budding esports scene and what’s particularly evident about the continued rise of esports in Malta is that this will be no flash-in-the-pan momentary success.

Top Esports events in Malta

A number of esports events are taking place here, as Malta aspires to establish itself as a hub for esports in Europe. 

In 2018, we sprang to prominence in FIFA gaming when professional player Kurt Fenech finished in the top four of the FIFA 18 eWorld Cup event, only losing to the eventual champion.

Last year, the event that signaled the start of what was going to be an exciting journey for Esports in Malta was the CS:GO Tournament Eden Arena: Malta Vibes which took place during the summer months of 2020 and had a whooping prize pool of $400,000.

Currently, and arguably the biggest esports event to ever come to our shores, the ESL Pro League Season 13 event is taking place here. With 24 international pro teams, including compLexity Gaming, FunPlus Phoenix, OG, BIG and G2 Esports, battling it out for the $750,000 in prize money.

Unmissable Esports events in 2021

There are many more fantastic esports events happening around the world this year and these include:

  • The International 2021 – The biggest esports event in the world in terms of prize money will be run in Sweden in August 2021 according to organisers Valve.
  • League of Legends World Championships 2021 – The next League of Legends World Championship, the most watched tournament in history, will also take place in August 2021 at a venue yet to be decided.
  • Overwatch League Season 4 – The brand-new Overwatch League season gets underway on 16th April 2021.
  • PGL Major Stockholm 2021 – The top CSGO teams in the world will battle it out for a $2m prize pool in Sweden starting in October 2021.
  • VALORANT Champions – The first VALORANT Champions event starts on 29th November 2021 with 16 of the top teams competing.
  • FIFA eChampions League 2021 – This eight-player tournament kicks off on 28th May 2021 with a total prize pool of $280,000.

Each year, top esports tournament matches can pull in viewers on live streams that number in their millions. Indeed, it is reckoned that nowadays, just as many people tune in to watch top esports events as they do top sporting events such as the Super Bowl, the Champions League Final or any top Tennis tournament final. Indeed, the League of Legends World Championships last year clocked up over 139,000,000 hours watched from start to finish and was the most-watched esports event in history.

The ESL Pro League Season 12 in 2020 saw a peak viewership of 627,605 with its finals match breaking the record as the most-watched online CS:GO match of all time. Top online events like these can shine a beacon on Malta’s potential to become the next esports hub in Europe and the world.

Disclaimer: Play responsibly. Players must be over 18. For help visit https://www.gamcare.org.uk/. 

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