Age of Empires esports hits two-year high viewership at Red Bull Wololo event

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Team shooters, battle royales, and MOBA titles dominate viewer interest in modern esports. However, the RTS genre also has its standout representatives. Recently, the Red Bull Wololo series, featuring a tournament for Age of Empires II, achieved impressive viewership, becoming the second-most-popular event in the history of the game.

The Red Bull Wololo tournament series began in 2020 and has been held regularly in various European countries. In 2024, the competition took place in Castle of Almodóvar, Spain. The series includes tournaments for different versions of Age of Empires: the retro version of the original game mainly attracts esports players from Vietnam, while Age of Empires II is regarded as the classic international esports version and draws the most attention from the community. The more modern Age of Empires IV has become a popular choice for many former professional players from StarCraft and Warcraft.

Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado Age of Empires II ran from October 3 to 6. Eight players competed for the title, including champions from Wololo: Legacy and Wololo V: Enthrone, qualifier winners, and top-ranked players. In the final match, two representatives from GamerLegion faced off: Norwegian player TheViper and Canadian player Hera. Hera was virtually unstoppable throughout both the group stage and playoffs, ultimately defeating TheViper 5-1 in the title match.

Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado Age of Empires II has become the most popular Age of Empires tournament in the past two years and the second most popular in the game's history. The grand final between Hera and TheViper peaked at 85,800 concurrent viewers, just behind Red Bull Wololo: Legacy 2022 Age of Empires I, which reached 113,600 concurrent viewers.

When comparing Red Bull Wololo: El Reinado Age of Empires II to the previous tournament in the series, peak viewership increased by 12%. This growth was driven by a rise in the number of unique channels and a boost in peak viewership on Spanish and German broadcasts. Additionally, peak viewership on YouTube saw a remarkable increase of nearly 50%.

Most popular tournaments in Age of Empires

The Age of Empires II esports scene is incredibly diverse and often more thrilling than many other titles. For instance, in the Hidden Cup tournament series, qualified players keep their identities hidden until the end and don’t know who they’re competing against in each match. Commentators and viewers are also left in the dark, allowing organizers to maintain suspense all the way to the finals. There’s also the popular World Desert Championship, featuring 3v3 team battles, and the Warlords series, where organizers select different DLCs for each tournament that impact game balance. Uniquely, the King of the Desert series has all matches played on a single map.

All of these series, like Red Bull Wololo, are highly popular with audiences in Europe. In Asia, however, players still prefer the original Age of Empires I, there are tournament series that attract many Vietnamese and Chinese viewers. Notable examples include the AOE League Cup and AoE Việt Trung, which feature both individual and team matches. In terms of viewership, these series are comparable to those for Age of Empires II.