Worlds 2024 Knockout Stage opening improves viewership by over 50% compared to 2023

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The knockout stage of the 2024 World Championship has begun, with a Chinese derby kicking off the first of four quarterfinals at the League of Legends World Championship. Undefeated group stage leader LNG Esports faced Weibo Gaming, who had just barely made it to playoffs with a 3-2 record, for the first quarterfinal. In a shock result, Weibo Gaming managed to defeat LNG 3-1 and drive viewership upwards.

Coming into the match, LNG Esports were the clear favourites among fans, with many expecting Weibo Gaming to be eliminated in the first round. One of Weibo Gaming’s newest players, Tarzan, played for LNG Esports last year. The storyline of Tarzan facing the team he left last year in the first round of playoffs was exciting for a global selection of fans, all of whom cheered on the game live. 

The first match of the Worlds 2024 knockout opened to 50% more viewers than last year’s opening game, with viewership settling at 1.39M Average Viewers for the entire best-of-five match. Peak Viewership also managed to reach 1.86M Peak Viewers, not including Chinese livestreaming platforms.

Although this match was highly popular, especially for a quarterfinal match, it was not the most popular Chinese derby in Worlds history. Back in Worlds 2020, Suning Gaming faced Top Esports in the semifinals of the knockout stage and reached 2.48M Peak Viewers. Other matches at events like Worlds 2023 and 2019 have also reached over 2M concurrent viewers, but viewership for Worlds 2024 will likely continue to climb as the knockout stage ramps up.

Viewership increased for Worlds 2024 across most of the game’s major audiences. English-language streams covering an international audience of fans grew by 14% compared to last year, but Asia was really where the viewership growth occurred. While Korean viewership enjoyed strong growth, Vietnamese and Chinese-language audiences were a step ahead, as two of the fastest-growing audiences for the Worlds series. Vietnamese League of Legends audiences continue to impress time after time, and it is currently close behind Korean, although Korean peaks will likely reach much higher when T1, Gen.G, and Hanwha Life play. 

Viewership for Worlds 2024 continues to build and build, and it looks as if the tournament will once again break esports viewership records and set the bar even higher. Viewership for esports matches in League of Legends is closely followed for competitive games, but also by loyal fans of specific organizations. With teams like T1 remaining in the knockout stage, viewership will likely soon climb much higher.