The eSports community is growing, and there are no signs of it stopping. As people sought entertainment and interaction under strict travel restrictions and lockdowns, many have picked up gaming as a hobby. The stage for competitive video gaming has since expanded as audiences grew and gaming became a profitable income stream. By 2024, the number of eSports enthusiasts is predicted to reach a total of 577.8 million.
We have previously written about the incredible growth of eSports, but these events have been slowed by COVID limiting large public events and imposing travel restrictions. The COVID-19 pandemic saw the major success of live streaming platforms, which led to the increased reach of various eSports. However, most in-person events were canceled for two years, much to the dismay of fans and professional players worldwide.
Now that the pandemic is easing, more major tournaments and conventions are announcing the return of physical events. Some have adapted a hybrid program setup so fans unable to attend in-person can still enjoy the live competitions and announcements.
All year round, regional matches and leagues lead up to the decisive championships. With grand titles and lucrative prize pools at stake, professional teams give their all to win and entertain their fans.
There are now dozens of major eSports events around the world, often with substantial prize pools. Whilst many of these events are still to announce dates or locations, in this post, we examine some of the most popular events expected to occur during 2023.
16 eSports Events to Look Forward to in 2023:
- 1. Apex Legends Global Series Year 3
- 2. The International 2023
- 3. Valorant Champions Tour 2023
- 4. League of Legends Worlds Championships 2023
- 5. Taipei Game Show 2023
- 6. TEKKEN World Tour Finals
- 7. Intel Extreme Masters 2023
- 8. EVO Japan 2023
- 9. DreamHack 2023
- 10. BLAST.tv Major 2023
- 11. CS:GO BLAST Premier: 2023
- 12. EsportsTravel Summit 2023
- 13. Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) 2023
- 14. IESF 15th World Esports Championships
- 15. Esports Universe Summit 2023
- 16. Global Esports Games 2023
16 eSports Events to Look Forward to in 2023:
Venue: Online and In-Person Dates: 2022 (Preseason Qualifiers, Pro League Split 1, Challenger Circuit #1); January 2023 (Pro League Split 2 Qualifiers); Winter 2023 (Split 1 Playoffs); March-May 2023 (Split 2 Pro League, Challenger Circuit #2); Spring 2023 (Split 2 Playoffs); June 2023 (Last Chance Qualifiers); Summer 2023 (ALGS Championship) Following up on the major success of last year’s Apex Legends tournament, Electronic Arts (EA) set up preparations for the Apex Legends Global Series (AGLS) Year 3 with a preseason Split 1 in late 2022. Split 2 and the rest of the tournament’s stages continue in 2023. In addition to announcing competition schedules, EA also announced that AGLS Year 3 would follow an updated pro league for regular season matches. Every region’s Pro League can enter thirty (30) teams for maximum high-level competition and qualification chances. AGLS Year 3 hosts three in-person competitions. The total prize pool for this tournament is priced at $5,000,000. Venue: To be announced Dates: Winter Major – December 11-22, 2022 Spring Major – March 13-22 Summer Major – May 15-24 The International – TBA (was October in 2022) The International 2023 concludes the year-long Dota Pro Circuit (DPC). This is the twelfth run of the tournament, earning the nickname ‘The International 12’. It will be the culmination of a year’s competitive play on the Dota Pro Circuit. Each DPC Season consists of three Tours, Winter, Spring, and Summer. A single Tour contains one Regional League and one Major tournament. These Tours offer competing teams the opportunity to earn DPC points, the most reliable path for consistent teams to secure invitations to The International. Each Regional League functions as a round-robin tournament, offering winning teams a path to competing in that Season’s Major. The Majors play out as elimination-style tournaments. Once all three Tours are complete, the final road to The International begins. The top 12 teams earning the most DPC points during the Tours are guaranteed spots at The International. The team that triumphs at The International become Dota 2 World Champions. This event brings together DOTA 2 players around the world to compete; the game’s developer, Valve, hosts it. The International tournament consists of the top 12 teams. The tournament prize pool is crowdfunded via a battle pass system within the game. Keep your eyes peeled for further announcements on The International. Venues: Berlin, Germany; Seoul, South Korea; Los Angeles, California, USA Dates: January 2023 – September 2023 (subject to change) One of the most anticipated events in the eSports community is the Valorant Champions Tour (VCT). Just recently, Riot Games announced that a whole new VCT is coming up in 2023, and fans and professional teams alike can welcome the coming year with high hopes. VCT 2023 introduces more leagues, global events, and partnerships. For instance, challenger events take place side by side with other tournaments for players to level up and reach Ascension tournaments. To top it all off, casual players can join in the competitive experience of VCT 2023 with an all-new competitive in-game experience. This bridges the gap between VCT and the in-game progress of every player, regardless of their expertise or playstyle. Venue: South Korea Dates: To be confirmed The World Championship 2023 is back for its 13th iteration with a tournament in South Korea. This competition is the pinnacle of the League of Legends competition, and 2023 will be no exception. However, there is a significant change to the format this year. The season began with a two-day Season 2023 Kickoff event on January 10-11, with players from nine leagues participating. There are three stages to the League of Legends Worlds Championships: Eight lesser-ranked teams begin in the play-ins, with the best two advancing to the next stage. This second stage is completely reworked for 2023, with 16 teams playing up to five rounds of matches in a Swiss format where teams with the same win-loss record compete against each other until they achieve 3 wins or 3 losses. Once the Swiss round is complete, eight teams advance to the Knockout Stage, a best-of-5, single-elimination bracket. This plays out across Quarterfinals, Semifinals, and the Final until they can crown a World Champion. Venue: Taipei, Taiwan Date: February 2-5, 2023 With travel restrictions easing, the Asia Pacific Game Summit (APGS) is looking forward to the return of the 2023 Taipei Game Show as an in-person convention. The 2023 Taipei Game Show will be held at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center Hall 1. It will feature a B2B zone, where game developers, publishers, advertisers, and vendors gather to discuss partnerships and broaden the game dev ecosystem. Keynote speakers from the local and international scene of game development will also be invited. The B2C zone, on the other hand, is an expo featuring a diverse range of games from mobile to console. Fans can engage in game demos or even test out virtual reality (VR) games. Venue: Amsterdam, Netherlands Dates: February 4-5, 2023 Amsterdam sets the stage for the grand TEKKEN World Tour Finals in February 2023. 24 players from 16 regions across the globe will fight their way to win the Championship title and their share of the $100,000 prize pool. Qualifier matches will determine the first 21 players to take their slots in the Global finals. A last chance qualifier between 3rd place winners in North America, Western European Union, and Japan regional matches will take the remaining 3 slots in the finals. Venues: Katowice, Poland; Brazil; Dallas; Cologne Dates: Katowice 2023 & Katowice SC2 2023 – Feb 10-12 Brazil 2023 – Apr 17-23 Dallas 2023 – Jun 2-4 Cologne 2023 – Aug 4-6 Fall 2023 (Venue TBA) – Oct 16-22 Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) splits its tournaments around the world. These are Electronic Sports League (ESL) sanctioned events, sponsored by Intel, currently hosting events in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and StarCraft II. 2023 is its 17th season. Venue: Tokyo, Japan Date: March 31, 2023 – April 2, 2023 EVO Japan returns stronger than ever this 2023 as a physical eSports convention. EVO Japan 2023 will feature game titles TEKKEN 8, The King of Fighters XV, Guilty Gear Strive, and Street Fighter V. Fans and players can engage in intense competition in Tokyo Big Sight, a renowned convention center. EVO Japan 2023 is bound to be a historical event in eSports, as it will be taking place in Japan, the homeland of competitive fighting games. Venues: San Diego CA USA; Melbourne Australia; Makuhari, Chiba, Japan; Dallas TX USA; Hannover, Germany (Jun & Dec); Jönköping, Sweden (Summer & Winter); Valencia, Spain (July & December); Hyderabad, India; Atlanta GA USA Dates: Various from April to December 2023 DreamHack 2023 spans the Globe and brings competitions, expos, and musical performances. Bring your computer and join fellow players in games like StarCraft II Masters and Magic: The Gathering. Players can also sign up for professional competitions for a range of games such as Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Tekken 7, and Street Fighter V. Connect, compete and win at DreamHack. DreamHack creates an arena where you can come to connect, explore, win, play a part, and be yourself through a gaming lifestyle experience. Their immersive gaming festivals feature everything gaming under one roof and the community is invited to experience LAN parties, top tier, and grassroots eSports, see the best cosplayers and their works, meet their favorite content creators, and enjoy everything from arts, screenings, and live music to the latest games at an expo. Venue: Paris, France Date: May 2023 2023 is a paramount year for France. Paris is set to host its first-ever Counter Strike Major event with the BLAST.tv Major 2023. As one of the biggest esports events in the community, the BLAST.tv Major 2023 precedes other international events hosted by France as well, such as the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympic Games. This will also be the first time the Denmark-based esports media company BLAST organizes a Major tournament. Venue: Various places. Details TBA Dates: Spring Season – Jun 7-11 (Final) Fall Season – Nov 22-26 (Final) World Final – Dec 13-17 BLAST has only just begun releasing information about CS:GO BLAST Premier: 2023, so information is still sketchy at the moment. The group rounds of the Spring and Fall seasons are in-studio events, with each being followed by an online Showdown. All finals are being held in arenas. BLAST Premier is a global circuit of events that deliver elite-level Counter-Strike and world-class entertainment for everyone. Assuming the format remains the same as in 2022, twelve of the world’s best eSports teams compete in the Spring and Fall seasons, whittled down to eight for the World Final. Venue: Toronto, Canada Dates: July 12-14, 2023 The ESportsTravel Summit 2023 is the largest convention of eSports event organizers with a primary focus on travel and tourism. Here, event organizers, sports commission representatives, event suppliers, and hotel chains engage to broaden their knowledge of eSports, its impact on the tourism industry, and the profitability of eSports events. The ESportsTravel Summit 2023 is set to take place in Toronto, Canada. Venues: London Dates: To be confirmed MSI is the second-most- important international League of Legends tournament held each year, after the League of Legends World Championship. 2023 will see the eighth Mid-Season Invitational (excluding the canceled 2020 event). They will be inviting two teams each from the LCK (Korea), LPL (China), LEC (EMEA), and LCS (NA) and one team from CBLOL (Brazil), LLA (LATAM), VCS (Vietnam), PCS (Southeast Asia and Oceania), and LJL (Japan), for a total of 13 teams. One team each from LCK (Korea), LPL (China), LEC (EMEA), and LCS (NA) receive a bye from the first round, along with the second LCK team (who are reigning world champions). The remaining eight teams start with a Play-In Stage, where two groups of four teams each play a best-of-3, double-elimination bracket. These teams are fighting for three places. The Bracket Stage of MSI is a full best-of-5 double elimination bracket. These 14 matches will determine the champion of MSI. Venue: Iași, Romania Date: TBA (probably December 2023) While Indonesia was preparing for the 2022 World Esports Championships in December 2022, the International Esports Federation (IESF) announced that the 15th World Esports Championships will take off at Iași, Romania. 1,200 players will represent over 130 nations in the event. More details are set to be released later this year. Venue: Hong Kong Date: December 1-2, 2023 The Esports Universe Summit 2023 gathers the eSports community for opportunities of learning and to connect with some of the world’s biggest brands, top teams, investors, content creators, and game developers. While not exactly a tournament, the Esports Universe Summit 2023 is an avenue for stakeholders to gather and discuss the future of eSports. Venue: Riyadh Dates: December 2023 A strong advocate for Esports as an innovative means of breaking barriers in sport, the Global Esports Federation hosts the annual Global Esports Games (GEG) every December. GEG 2023 will feature titles such as Dota 2, eFootball, PUBG Mobile, Street Fighter V, and other popular esports games. Global Esports will release more details about the 2023 event closer to the time.1. Apex Legends Global Series Year 3
2. The International 2023
3. Valorant Champions Tour 2023
4. League of Legends Worlds Championships 2023
5. Taipei Game Show 2023
6. TEKKEN World Tour Finals
7. Intel Extreme Masters 2023
8. EVO Japan 2023
9. DreamHack 2023
10. BLAST.tv Major 2023
11. CS:GO BLAST Premier: 2023
12. EsportsTravel Summit 2023
13. Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) 2023
14. IESF 15th World Esports Championships
15. Esports Universe Summit 2023
16. Global Esports Games 2023