Valve’s Counter-Strike 2 esports scene was by far the most lucrative in the entire industry for 2026. With a whopping $32.37 million total prize pool for the year it comfortably outpaced other titles. What made it all possible was the effort of not just Valve and its flagship Majors but of other big name organizers such as ESL and BLAST to name a few. The monumental prize pool was dominated by European squad Team Vitality and French superstar AWPer Mathieu ‘ZywoOo’ Herbaut as they wracked up a phenomenal nine trophies and two Majors.
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The consistent stream of tournaments and prizes for the Counter-Strike 2 scene helps makes it the most lucrative and competitive compared to other titles such as Dota 2 and League of Legends. Valve’s other title in Dota 2 has fallen on much harder times. Dota 2’s prize pools were synonymous with historical and record breaking in just a few years past but changes to the pro Circuit and cuts in the crowdfunding of the prize pool lead to its decline which still stood at a respectable .
On the flipside, Riot’s League of Legends still sees very consistent viewer count across Twitch and other streaming platforms. Also Riot has always been more all about player stabilities with stricter rules on salaries and the franchise system. So while Riot’s prize pools are on the lesser side of the spectrum, both the League of Legends and VALORANT scene will still definitely be booming in the years to come due to sheer stability.
For the mobile side of esports such as Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and Honor of Kings, the ecosystem is still anchored on the Southeast Asian side of things so its prize pools is also on the lower side in the international scale. But in terms of viewership mobile games still see alot of viewership with Mobile Legends: Bang Bang seeing peak three million viewers during the 2025 Esports World Cup.
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