First Stand 2026 earned 35% more viewers for its grand finals between Bilibili and G2

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The second edition of the First Stand tournament has concluded, and by almost every measure it was a resounding success for League of Legends esports. First Stand 2026 marked serious growth over last year’s inaugural edition, and with Bilibili Gaming lifting the trophy in São Paulo, Brazil, peak viewership grew by almost 400,000 viewers compared to 2025. Esports Charts presents the initial viewership results of the First Stand 2026, with more advanced and in-depth analyses coming in the following days. 

How many viewers watched the First Stand 2026 grand finals?

Excitement for the First Stand 2026 reached its peak during the grand final, where Bilibili Gaming and G2 Esports drew over 1,500,000 Peak Viewers. The finals only managed to slightly outperform the lower bracket final, where Gen.G was eliminated by G2 in a match that shocked many: for Gen.G’s elimination from the First Stand, over 1,460,000 concurrent viewers tuned in.

G2 Esports arrived in São Paulo carrying the weight of European League of Legends history on their shoulders — and, for a long stretch of this tournament, looked like they might finally lift it. The last time Europe won an international League of Legends event was in 2019, when G2 defeated Team Liquid to claim the MSI title. In the years that followed, success at international tournaments has proven elusive for EMEA. Karmine Corp finally broke the grand finals drought for EMEA at the First Stand 2025, and now, G2 has made their first appearance in an international final in over 2,300 days — since their historic run to the Worlds 2019 Grand Final.

The finals delivered an intense series, with G2 taking Game 1 before Bilibili Gaming responded with authority. The top-seed from the LPL managed to reverse sweep G2, taking home the First Stand 2026 trophy with a 3-1 victory. BLG’s Top laner Chen "Bin" Zebin was named Finals MVP for his decisive performances throughout both the knockout stage and the Grand Final, while Park "Viper" Do-hyeon became the first player to win First Stand twice, having claimed the inaugural title in 2025 with Hanwha Life Esports.

While unfortunate for G2, many LoL esports fans from around the world tuned in. Specifically, English-language viewership proved especially potent during the grand finals, with British co-streamer Marc "Caedrel" Lamont receiving over 243,000 Peak Viewers on his co-stream. 

How does First Stand 2026 viewership compare to last year?

Compared to last year, the First Stand 2026 increased its viewership across various crucial metrics. Firstly, the decision to expand the tournament to best-of-five matches in the groups helped to extend tournament broadcasting duration, which had a significant effect on the total Hours Watched. On top of this, both peak and average concurrent viewership increased for 2026. 

The choice of São Paulo as the host city also played a meaningful role. Brazilian-language viewership spiked dramatically thanks to this and LOUD's participation, with the hometown crowd engaging intensely during their matches. Vietnamese and English-speaking audiences also recorded notable gains compared to 2025, especially during the playoffs stage where the final matches attracted a much wider, more international audience than last year. 

Not every demographic trended upward, however. Korean-language viewership landed below last year’s figures, where it was the most popular language group for the inaugural First Stand. The absence of T1 — a primary global viewership driver — had a negative effect on the language’s performance, and neither Gen.G nor BNK FearX managed to match the audience numbers generated by Hanwha Life Esports last year.

With the format still being refined, First Stand appears set to continue growing as the League of Legends season's opening international milestone.