This weekend, it wasn’t just League of Legends that enjoyed a masterful tournament final. Honor of King’s biggest event, the King Pro League, enjoyed a grand final stage that broke records and made history. In China, an astonishing 62,196 esports fans descended upon the National Stadium, surpassing the esports spectator record set in 2016 by almost 20,000 people.
The record of around 45,000 spectators was previously secured by PES 2016 UEFA Euro, an event held in Paris. Honor of Kings has decimated that record, and even ahead of the event taking place, there were signs that it would do just that.
The King Pro League Smashes Records
Honor of Kings now holds the Guinness World Record for the largest live audience ever in attendance at an esports match. In the grand final of the recent King Pro League in China, 61,196 fans watched the action unfold, proving unequivocally that mobile esports is extremely powerful.
This triumph is important for a few reasons.
Firstly, it’s proving that the accessibility and diversity of mobile games are drawing in a stunning audience. Honor of Kings boasts 260 million monthly users, playing across a network that covers 200+ countries. It’s a massively popular game in China, which is where the majority of the game’s market resides.
That’s an indicator of how it was so successful at China’s National Stadium.
Further, mobile gaming is coming up and becoming a more international concept. It has done drastically well in Asian markets but is quickly expanding across LATAM and Africa. While Europe and North America are typically focused more on PC-based esports titles, it’s only a matter of time before the mobile boom hits those regions too.
This redefinition of esports spectatorship has set a new bar for mobile esports.
Did you watch the Pro League Finals? Let me know what you thought of the tournament on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that T1 won another League Worlds
Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
More from Grant Taylor-Hill
