Esports World Cup for PUBG amasses 89% more Average Viewers than last year

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The PUBG: Battlegrounds event at the Esports World Cup 2025 concluded on August 16, with the home teams' performance helping it perform much better than last year's edition. It also ended as the most popular event during Week 6 of this annual multi-disciplinary series held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

PUBG: Battlegrounds competition brought together the world's top 24 sides in the Middle East to battle it out for a prize pool of $2 million. With only a handful of tournaments left, it also took on added significance for the teams looking to clinch the covered Club Championship (or finish on the podium).

  Twisted Minds kept its slim Club Championship dreams alive with a win in the PUBG event (Image via EWC)   

After five days of crates looted and intense firefights, Twisted Minds emerged as the champion, outlasting Gen.G by seven points. The high level of competition was further proven by the fact that just three points separated the second-placed side from Team Falcons in third.

  Esports World Cup 2025 for PUBG– basic viewership stats and most popular matches   

The Esports World Cup 2025 for PUBG outdid the inaugural edition in 2024 across the board. It drew in 145% more live viewers at peak while also almost doubling the watch time after notching 2.5 million Hours Watched (HW) across an airtime of almost 26 hours.

This year's iteration also drew in 89% more viewers on average than in 2024. The 98,324 Average Viewers (AV) it hit also made it one of 2025's most consistently watched PUBG: Battlegrounds events.

When looking at PUBG: Battlegrounds events this year, the EWC 2025 offering ended as the fourth-most popular tournament. It also made the top three for the best competitions by watch time, helping maintain the game's momentum after a record-breaking PUBG Nations Cup 2025.

  Viewership comparison of the two PUBG events at the Esports World Cup   

A large reason for this uptick in viewership for the PUBG: Battlegrounds event this year was the performance of the home teams. Both Twisted Minds and Team Falcons finished on the podium, sending a boisterous crowd into a frenzy while also enhancing their Club Championship chances.

The amazing performance of these two sides helped Arabic viewership enjoy a massive jump in its watch time compared to 2024. The language saw a tenfold rise, with its peak concurrent viewership also improving by over 16.5%.

  Most-watched PUBG tournaments of 2025 (as of August 18)   

Other crucial languages like English, Thai, and Korean also saw surges in their year-on-year watch times. Gen.G and Freecs finishing in the top five was a major reason for the Korean language's increase. Meanwhile, Thai fans were glued to Theerathon Five's matches, as the relatively new esports organization achieved one of its best finishes (12th) at the top level of PUBG: Battlegrounds esports.

Moreover, a lot more channels also covered the EWC 2025 x PUBG, with this number rising to over 100 from 77 in 2024.

  Most popular PUBG tournaments of 2025 (as of August 18)   

In terms of completed events at the EWC 2025, the PUBG: Battlegrounds competition is now the 12th most popular one. It did beat other shooter tournaments like Apex Legends, Overwatch, and Rainbow Six, although its overall watch time was much lower than these competitors.

With just a week of action left, the hunt for the lucrative Club Championship title has taken its latest turn yet. Thanks to its PUBG: Battlegrounds podium place, Team Falcons secured just enough points to reclaim the top spot.

Twisted Minds also kept its podium hopes alive after grabbing the full 1,000 points on offer, sitting in tied fourth with Virtus.pro. Gen.G Esports also collected 750 points, solidifying their grip on sixth place.

The final week of action will see events in Street Fighter 6, CrossFire, and Counter-Strike, and there's all to play for. Team Falcons, with a slender 500-point lead over Team Liquid, will have to be at its best to ensure the org makes it back-to-back Club Championship triumphs at the Esports World Cup.