CS: GO Major Breaks eSports Viewership Records

Written by Brandon Hofer on April 12, 2016

News: Activision has revealed that the recent CS: GO Major set new viewership records beginning on March 30 and going until April 3.

Activision Blizzard Media Networks has revealed that Major League Gaming’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major Championship (CS: GO Major) set new viewership records during its March 30 through April 3 broadcast from Columbus, Ohio. Audiences generated 71 million video views which resulted in the following:

Audiences watched a record-breaking 45 million hours of the live broadcast

Audiences set a new record of 1.6 million concurrent viewers across OTT, web, mobile and in-game streaming during this year’s event

This breaks the previously reported CS: GO Major record of 34 million hours viewed and 1.3 million concurrent viewers set at the 2015 CS: GO Major in Cologne, Germany.

"Last year, more than 225 million people watched competitive gaming, and the passion, engagement and size of this audience only continues to grow," said Mike Sepso, Senior Vice President of Activision Blizzard Media Networks and Major League Gaming (MLG) co-founder. "As this year's CS:GO Major numbers show, Activision Blizzard Media Networks' commitment to broadcasting premium content and creating incredible events is resonating with players and fans around the world."

This year's CS:GO Major was the first held in North America, with the world's best CS:GO teams competing for a $1 million prize pool. The historic competition, held at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, drew a sold-out crowd of over 10,000 fans for each of the three final days of live competition. The Columbus event concluded on April 3 and peaked with a record 1.6 million concurrent viewers as the Luminosity Gaming team claimed top honors and the majority of the prize pool. Overall, MLG produced 68 hours of premium content broadcast in 15 languages during the event.

Did you watch the CS: GO Major? If so, what did you think?