The most recent edition of the PUBG Nations Cup raised the bar for PUBG Battlegrounds esports, reaching a new peak concurrent viewership record for the first time in seven years — a landmark achievement for the title. The international tournament has grown immensely popular thanks to its widespread appeal to international audiences, reaching over 400 total broadcasters (official & co-streamers) this year; Asian viewers in particular were deeply invested in the tournament, contributing heavily to the new record.
The PUBG Nations Cup 2025 took place in Seoul, South Korea, making it the third edition in a row to take place in the capital city. This year, it was hosted by the Olympic Handball Gymnasium and was bigger than ever before. On top of the base $500,000 prize pool, 25% of all PNC 2025 Skin sales contribute to the pool: currently, the prize pool sits at just under $1,000,000 but can keep growing until August 6.
Six countries made their Nations Cup debut this year, representing parts of Europe and Southeast Asia. These countries – which include France and the Philippines – brought some minor audiences to boost overall viewership of the event, alongside India, which made its return to the Nations Cup after a hiatus.
This edition of the Nations Cup with more teams and a larger prize pool was massively popular, with its viewership starting off modest for its first few matches but quickly growing. All in all, the PUBG Nations Cup 2025 reached just under 6.1M Hours Watched and maintained an average audience of over 273,000 concurrent viewers: more than a third increase compared to last year. However, the event truly shined during its ultimate matches.
During the Final Stage of the PUBG Nations Cup this year, viewership began to rise rapidly and continued to increase day-after-day the entire weekend of July 25-27. The largest proportions of the total Peak Viewers (PV) came from Vietnamese and Korean audiences, which were spread across a range of platforms.
Not only did both Vietnamese and Korean reached new record peaks for PUBG Battlegrounds during the finals — with Vietnamese fans reaching over a half-million concurrent viewership — but both YouTube Live and NimoTV saw new record concurrent viewerships for a PUBG Battlegrounds tournament too. Passionate Vietnamese fans cheering on their national team and local support of Korean esports fans were driving forces behind the ultimate Peak Viewers achievement.
With over 818,000 PV recorded for its grand finals, the tournament not only increased its viewership significantly compared to its previous edition, but became the most popular PUBG Battlegrounds tournament ever. The event eclipsed the PUBG Global Invitational 2018, which previously stood at the forefront of the game for seven years with 757,875 PV. For years, it seemed unlikely another tournament could best this record.
With a driving force of Vietnamese and Korean fans, the PUBG Nations Cup 2025 eclipsed the previous PUBG: Battlegrounds tournament record by over 60,000 concurrent viewers. Viewership rose so suddenly for this tournament, it’s unclear whether future editions of the Nations Cup can replicate this success, or if this new record will stand as the top achievement for years to come.
Detailed Esports data at your fingertips.
Subscribe to & start exploring!
