Earlier this year, Chinese team Wings became the 2016 winners of the DOTA 2 International. This win also earned Wings a place in the Guinness World Record book, as they landed the biggest pay-out ever awarded by an eSports tournament.

Forbes magazine covered the event and during some post-tournament interviews, Wings acknowledged the magnitude of their record breaking tournament win;
It was our dream. The recognition of Guinness World Records is an extraordinary encouragement to us as it could introduce us to more people, and introduce eSports to more people.”

The has always been one of the most prominent and profitable tournaments on the eSports calendar, but this year, the Prize pot on offer was truly astronomical. The finalists were all playing for a share of a $20.7 million pool – with the winners, Wings taking home just over $9.1 million.

Thanks to increased popularity, coverage and sponsorship, the prize pots put on offer by eSports tournaments has increased at an alarming rate over the past decade. Whilst League of Legends may still be the most-played game by professional gamers and Counter Strike: Global Offensive continues to attract new fans, DOTA 2is where pro-gamers can earn the big bucks.

Originally just a Warcraft III mod, the first installment of Death of the Ancients was so successful, Valve decided to release a new and improved sequel, which has gone on to rival League of Legends as the world’s most popular MOBA game.

In fact, a recent info-graphic used both ‘total prize money’ and ‘biggest single payday’ as criteria to determine the top ten most successful eSports players. And thanks to the huge prize pots in DOTA 2 tournaments, it came as no surprise that eight of the players on the info-graphic specialized in the game.

The prize money put up for grabs by eSports tournaments is only going to increase as the popularity of the industry continues to grow. Simply from an earnings stand point – eSports can already rival many of the world’s more traditional sports. Thanks to games like DOTA 2, becoming an eSports professional is now a lucrative and realistic goal for anyone with a passion and talent for gaming.

( image courtesy of pcgamesn.com )