League of Legends is the largest MOBA. No, that’s not a vague wish or speculation, I already compared LoL to Dota 2 and it is simply massive. ESPN had excellent feedback when they aired Dota 2’s International, and now they’re hoping for the same with League of Legends.
ESPN is broadcasting the finals live – of course, thanks to them taking place in South Korea this might mean that the intended American audience missing out, but at least it’s getting a broadcast.
ESPN and Riot Games have agreed to distribute the League of Legends World Championship final between Samsung White and Star Horn Royal Club live from South Korea on ESPN3 on Sunday, Oct. 19 at 2:30 a.m. (late Saturday at 11:30 p.m. PT). ESPN will also integrate video highlights from the competition across its digital platforms. The World Championship will be taking place in front of a sold-out audience of 40,000 fans at the Seoul World Cup Stadium. Imagine Dragons will also be performing live with their hit new song “Warriors.”
This is yet another major step forward for eSports, particularly after ESPN CEO claimed that eSports wasn’t a real sport. It seems that no matter what he personally thinks, his network will broadcast an activity if it will bring in the eyeballs. Of course it’s just a bid to make money, but as long as it works, I suppose it’s a win-win situation – eSports gets more attention and ESPN gets to benefit from it.
Would you watch finals like these on network sports channels if it were broadcast locally? Or were eSports made to be watched on twitch?
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Last Updated: October 17, 2014
Admiral Chief 0
October 17, 2014 at 09:13
Awesome news, I’m glad about the exposure!
Kikmi
October 17, 2014 at 10:20
Thats epic. Nicely