Top esports events of the upcoming week – October 5-11 2020
Despite its rapid increase in popularity in recent years, it was not until this year when the esports competitive scene took off. That is in most part due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which in one way or another harmed any forms of sports entertainment while leaving the esports scene relatively unharmed.
While esports had its fair share of hurdles to jump over with the cancellation of several high-profile LAN events such as the first Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major Championship, Dota2’s The International, as well as League of Legends’ Mid-Season Invitational, many organizers decided that the show must go on(line) which delivers us with a plethora of esports action to look forward to in October.
League of Legends World Championship Main Event (3.10 – 31.10 2020)
With the conclusion of the Play-In stage this Wednesday, everything is set for the League of Legends World Championship to properly begin. Featuring only the best 22 teams from all corners of the world, the LoL Worlds will mark not only one of the biggest esports events of the year, but also one of the biggest events in all of entertainment.
Last year, over 100 million people watched LoL teams competing at the 2019 World Championship, which exceeded the viewership of 2019 Super Bowl (98.2 million). According to the viewership numbers of regional leagues, this year’s Worlds is projected to set a new milestone, which would solidify LoL as the most popular esports title in the world.
All the spotlight at 2020 Worlds will be on the Chinese League of Legends Pro League (LPL) squads, who have brought home the Summoner’s Cup in both of the last two iterations of the tournament, effectively ending the dominance of Korean squads who terrorized the international stage ever since 2013. Even though the field is incredibly stacked, the bookmakers seem to agree there are only a few teams that are above all others.
Heading into the tournament, the main favorites to go the distance are Top Esports (CN), JD Gaming (CN) and DAMWON Gaming (KR), who have emerged as some of the strongest teams in their respective regions. While the esports betting odds suggest the three Asian juggernauts are by far three of the best teams in the field, the history has taught us the European squads should never be underestimated, especially with two former finalists Fnatic (2018) and G2 Esports (2019) in the field.
The North American League of Legends Championship Series (LCS) will have three representatives on the main stage and while LCS squads are known for their lack of international success, Team SoloMid, Team Liquid and FlyQuest have traveled to China to impress, and we can be sure we won’t be disappointed.
Watch live: lolesports.com
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive: ESL Pro League Season 12
While not nearly as renowned as the LoL World Championship, the 12th season of the ESL Pro League is undeniably one of the biggest CS:GO tournaments of the year. Even though the COVID-19 spoiled the plans of hosting the event on LAN, the organizers opted for an interesting solution that split the competition into four separate divisions – North America, Europe, South America, Oceania and Asia – allowing the competition to continue on a regional level.
As it stands now, two of the tournaments already concluded with FURIA taking home the title of ESL Pro League NA champions along with $77,500, while BOOM Esports reigned supreme in the South American region which earned them their fifth trophy of the year and $12,500 in tournament winnings.
The European division is already in the playoffs, with the grand finals set to take place on Sunday, October 4. Meanwhile, the Oceanic and Asian divisions of ESL Pro League are scheduled to end only on Tuesday, October 6, when we will see TYLOO take on the winner of ViCi Gaming vs Beyond Esports for the title of Asian champions, while Renegades will duke it out against either ORDER or AVANT Gaming for the Oceanic title.
Watch live: https://www.twitch.tv/esl_csgo
Overwatch League – Season 3 Playoffs (8.10 – 10.10 2020)
Rivaling the League of Legends’ World Championship for the viewership numbers will be the Overwatch League, which will enter the final stage of the competition next week. The action will begin on Thursday, October 8 with the semi-finals and conclude with the grand finals two days later, on Saturday, October 10.
Due to the format changes, ushered in by the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Overwatch League will feature only four teams in the playoffs, including the reigning champions San Francisco Shock, the Philadelphia Fusion, Seoul Dynasty and the current Asian champions Shanghai Dragons.
The playoffs will begin with a clash between the San Francisco Schock and Seoul Dynasty, followed by the long-awaited spectacle between Philadelphia Fusion and Shanghai Dragons. The games will be played online, beginning at 13:00 CEST (4:00 am PDT/20:00 KST).
Watch live: youtube.com/overwatchleague
AfreecaTV Starleague Season 10 (6.9 – 15.11 2020)
While StarCraft is not nearly as popular as in its earlier days, its Asian competitive scene is still very much alive with a plethora of tournaments taking place throughout the year. One of the biggest competitions in the SCII scene, however, is the AfreecaTV Starleague (ASL) which features only the best Korean StarCraft players who duke it out for the eternal glory that comes with winning the prestigious event.
The 10th iteration of ASL has begun at the start of September, but for anyone tuning in late, you did not miss a thing. In fact, the most exciting part of the competition will not begin until Tuesday, October 6, with the opening fixtures of Round of 16, where we will see the top 16 players from the group stage compete for one of eight tickets leading into the playoffs.
The field is comprised of more than a few SCII legends including Kim “Soulkey” Min Chul, Jo “hero” Il Jang, Season 9 champion Kim “ZerO” Myung Woon, 2019 Korea StarCraft League Season 4 champion Lee “Light” Jae Ho, Park “Soma” Sang Hyun, as well as a four-time ASL champion Lee “Flash” Young Ho
Watch live: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCK5eBtuoj_HkdXKHNmBLAXg
Alternative: http://bj.afreecatv.com/aslenglish
Dota2 ESL One Germany 2020 (5.10 – 1.11 2020)
Despite the cancellation of The International 2020, Dota2 competitive scene is anything but at a standstill. This Monday, October 5, the Dota2 fans will be in for a treat as 16 of the best European and CIS squads begin their journey through the $400,000 tournament Dota2 ESL One Germany 2020, which will mark one of the most stacked Dota2 events of the year.
Attending the event are some of the biggest names in the scene, including the back-to-back TI champions OG, the current strongest EU roster Team Secret, the former Team Liquid roster playing under Team Nigma, as well as other household names in Natus Vincere, Alliance, Team Liquid, Ninjas in Pyjamas and HellRaisers.
The action will begin with a 16-team group stage featuring a modified Swiss-system format, where teams stop playing after three wins or three losses. The first stage of the competition will run until Friday, October 23 at which point the top eight teams will duke it out in the playoffs.
Watch live: https://www.twitch.tv/esl_dota2
We will continue with our coverage of the League of Legends World Championship with betting previews and predictions once the tournament resumes on Saturday, October 3. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook or subscribe to our newsletter so you don’t miss our posts!
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