The Top 5 Popular Games for Esports Betting

Up to a couple of years ago, sports betting was reserved for traditional games like football, basketball, tennis, and others. Most people didn’t even consider the option to place a wager on computer games, but the rapid rise of e-sports changed that.

Betting on the likes of Dota II, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and other popular titles attracts millions of people. The industry is growing all the time which is a good reason to take a look at the most popular games in the esports world.

We will focus solely on the top 5 titles in this article, but you can find more on esports betting here.

Dota II

The undisputed leader in the esports world in 2019 is Dota II. The game is the most popular MOBA title out there and pretty much all betting sites cover the mainstream tournaments.

If you wonder how big Dota II exactly is, look no further than the 2019 International. The competition is considered to be the unofficial world championship and it gathered a prize pool of over $30 million this year. That’s more than the biggest events in many traditional sports award. Furthermore, the tournament attracted a ton of bettors.

It’s interesting to note that Dota II was released in 2013, but is still going strong. All signs point to the fact that the game will be among the preferred options for many gamblers in 2020 as well.

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

No one with at least decent knowledge about the gaming world will be surprised to see CS:GO on this list. The franchise is among the most successful in the history of computer games, mostly because of the simple, but compelling gameplay.

There are tons of events every single year and 2019 saw thousands of tournaments. Many of them are available for betting, so you can find options to bet on Counter-Strike: Global Offensive almost on a daily basis.

Fortnite

Fortnite was released in 2017 and became one of the biggest names in the industry almost instantly. The unique gameplay attracted tons of players from all over the globe. It was natural to soon see various tournaments with huge prize pools and professional teams.

Two years later, Fortnite is still one of the leading games in the esports industry and a preferred choice for many bettors. You can enjoy a lot of coverage, as most betting sites offer wagers on Fortnite.

It’s interesting if the title will be able to withstand a strong challenge from Apex Legends, a newcomer in the battle royale genre that smashed a bunch of records. The early indications are that Fortnite should keep his position as the leader in the niche, but 2020 will tell us more about that.

League of Legends

Another MOBA game earned a place on the list, this time League of Legends. Most fans of the genre criticize LOL because they consider it too user-friendly, but that does work in the favor of the game.

It has millions of fans from all over the globe and there are plenty of exciting tournaments with huge prize pools. LOL can’t compare with Dota II in that aspect, but it’s still one of the titles that attract tons of betting action.

StarCraft II

All of the games so far require teams, but it’s time for the first individual e-sport on our list. StarCraft II is a legend in the genre and the longevity of the game is simply stunning. It was released way back in 2010, but you can still find plenty of people who enjoy StarCraft II.

Naturally, there are many tournaments with cool prize pools and a lot of betting sites offer them to the public.

Honorable Mentions

There are a couple of games that deserve an honorable mention. They either came close to the titles discussed so far or have the potential to break into the top 5 in the near future. Here they are:

• Hearthstone: Blizzard’s first freemium product is the most popular card game in the world right now. The company is constantly adding new content, so expect more of the same in the near future.
• Heroes of the Storm: another Blizzard project that is close to the top of the e-sports food chamber. Heroes of the Storm is a MOBA game that has built a decent fanbase since its release in 2015.
• Overwatch: this is starting to look like a list of Blizzard games, but we can’t leave Overwatch out of it. The mass shooter features a lot of tournaments every year and you can find plenty of interesting bets.
• Apex Legends: we already mentioned the blockbuster Apex Legends. The title stormed the gaming world, breaking a bunch of records in the process. The competitive scene of Apex Legends is just forming, but don’t be surprised if this game is in top 5 of similar lists for 2010.
• PUBG: PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS or simply PUBG is a legendary title that will never grow old. The game is losing some ground to newer products, but it’s still among the most popular titles out there.