THE BEGINNING OF ESPORTS & COMPETETIVE GAMING
Esports has for long been a growing phenomenon. The seed was planted back in 1972 when a couple of University Students got together to compete in the legendary game Spacewar where the Grand Prize was a years subscription to the Rolling Stones Magazine. Pretty laughable when comparing it to Dota 2, The Internationals which exceeded $25,000,000 in Prize Pool, 2018.
In the 1990’s – eSport took a swing from local competitions and went online. With the launch of Warcraft (1994), Quake (1996), and Counter-Strike (1999) the foundation was set for what today entertains millions of people throughout various gaming categories like MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) & FPS (First-person Shooter)
WARCRAFT – THE LEGENDARY GAMING SERIES
Warcraft: Orcs & Humans (1994) is the first game in a legendary series which laid the path for the remarkable World of Warcraft. This was one of the first real-time strategy games and the story continued throughout 6 game releases when Blizzard ended the series with ‘The Frozen Throne’ (2003) expansion on the Battle.net platform. Shortly after its release, custom maps and modifications became widely available online and the game mode ‘DotA Allstars’ (2004) raised in popularity.
Little did the world know this genre would develop to become one of the most dominant eSport genres and the concept behind some of the worlds most popular online games like League of Legends, Smite, Heroes of the Storm and Heroes of Newerth.
THE RISE OF DOTA – MOBA ESPORTS
‘DotA Allstars’ was eventually outdated and replaced with major titles like League of Legends (2009) and Heroes of Newerth (2010). Nearly 10 years after the original release of Dota, Valve took the lead in developing and releasing Dota 2 which quickly became a huge success and professional gamers flocked to be the first ones to play. A competitive scene emerged immediately as Dota 2 premiered with a huge tournament of the game.
16 teams were invited to compete for the largest prize pool that had ever been recorded at the time, over $1,500 000. Dota 2 runs a yearly championship called ‘The Internationals” which is one of the largest eSport tournaments in the world.
YEAR |
WINNING TEAM |
PRIZE MONEY |
2018 |
OG |
$11,190,158 |
2017 |
Team Liquid |
$10,862,683 |
2016 |
Wings Gaming |
$9,139,002 |
2015 |
Evil Geniuses |
$6,616,014 |
2014 |
Newbee |
$5,028,308 |
2013 |
Alliance |
$1,437,190 |
2012 |
Invictus Gaming |
$1,000,000 |
2011 |
Natus Vincere |
$1,000,000 |
MOBA – MULTIPLAYER ONLINE BATTLE ARENA
MOBA offers players a distinctive style of gaming. Titles in this series include; League of Legends, Dota 2 and Heroes of the Storm. This form of gaming offers a different approach than FPS. No matter how many times the battles are waged, the games always seem fresh and exciting.
The MOBA game style is heavily strategic and based on planning and intelligence, rather than brute force. Bettors need to predict which team will emerge unscathed and triumphant in battle on a 5v5 map with 3 lanes running through it. Defeat your opponent’s champions and break their homestead to acquire victory.
LEAGUE OF LEGENDS – THE ESPORT GIANT
League of Legends (LoL) is another favorite, having paid out over US$30 million in tournament prizes. League of Legends is an engaging Multiplayer Online Battle Arena game full of excitement and action. Multiple teams and players compete against one another in battle, at major world events, tournaments, and competitions. An incredible 1749 such tournaments have been held.
League of Legends surely is one of the most popular and engaging games taking the eSports world by storm and gives Dota 2 some truly tough competition. Unleashed in 2009, League of Legends soon became the Holy Grail of competitive and skillful gaming. The major annual League of Legends tournament is the World Championship, which is hosted by games developer; Riot Games.
The last edition of the LoL World Championship managed to attract 57.6 million viewers overall, with peak viewers the previous year reaching almost 15 million. League of Legends is arguably one of the most popular MOBA games.
FPS – FIRST-PERSON SHOOTER ESPORT
The FPS category of competitive online gaming is one of the largest and most popular genres due to its fast-pace and action-packed gameplay. The games are based on the player controlling a character through a first-person perspective involving one or multiple weapons with the objective to eliminate the opposing team. Setting the solo career modes aside, it’s safe to say that all competitive games involve a group formation of 5 vs 5 with the action taking place on a time-limited map.
Dominating the FPS category in the global eSport scene is Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) with an impressive viewership count.
Channel |
Watch Time |
Peak Viewers |
Average Viewers |
ESL_CSGO |
36,487,949 hours |
558,083 |
4,336 |
FACEIT TV |
36,091,495 hours |
487,237 |
42,585 |
DreamHackCS |
13,719,686 hours |
203,933 |
1,733 |
Starladder5 |
16,120,001 hours |
185,035 |
9,470 |
CSRuHub |
16,927,406 hours |
172,407 |
13,812 |
QUAKE, FIRST PERSON SHOOTER – A NEW DAWN OF ESPORTS
Quake was launched in 1996 by GT Interactive and grew to be one of the prime FPS games in competitive gaming. The first iconic tournament took place 1997, well known as the “Red Annihilation” which had over 2,000 participants. A vast population of the early eSport community from all over the world considers this to be the first real eSport tournament.
The successor Quake 3 was specifically designed for eSport and multiple tournaments continued being held. We still remember some of the most legendary Canadian Quake players, would you still be betting on your home team?
TOP CANADIAN QUAKE PLAYER RANKING |
PRIZE MONEY |
PLAYER COUNTRY |
id_ |
$10,446.67 |
Canada |
griffin |
$2,300.00 |
Canada |
sparks |
$1,856.25 |
Canada |
HALF-LIFE – BEGINNING OF THE FPS EVOLUTION
2 years after the success of Quake, Half-Life (1998) came to life as one of the most popular first-person shooter (FPS) games in history. With over 50 “Game of the Year” awards for its smooth gaming experience, graphics, and outstanding gameplay. By 2004, Half-Life had sold more than 8 million hard copies of the game. It’s safe to say that this was the beginning of something revolutionary.
Similar to Warcraft, the developers started to modify maps and game modes. A simple game mode based on Counter-Terrorists defeating Terrorists by freeing hostages or defusing bombs. Rings a bell? This is how what was soon to become the biggest game in FPS eSport came to life.
COUNTER-STRIKE – AT THE FOREFRONT OF ESPORT
Counter-Strike, 1.3, 1.5, 1.6, Condition Zero, Counter-Strike Source, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. These titles were the results of 11 years of community support and are today called a classic First Person Shooter and it is, without doubt, the biggest eSport title to date. Two teams face off on a time restricted map with the objectives to either eliminate your opponents or have the bomb planted and detonated, while the opposing team is trying to defuse it.
The eSport scene surrounding Counter-Strike grew rapidly and from 2012 there have been some pretty impressive tournaments arranged. ESL One and DreamHack are two of the largest tournaments in the ‘Majors’ league and teams are competing for prize pools exceeding $1,000,000. Canada has long been a part of the eSport evolution with star players such as Shroud, Steel, Semphis, Android and bl00dsh0t. These players have made some serious money playing competitive Counter-Strike.
Canada even has a national CS:GO eSport team which participated in the World Championships 2015 and 2016 with great success in the qualifiers. There is no wonder that eSport betting has grown to become so popular. Major Tournaments have been recorded with over a million and a half of live viewers, most of the tournaments are available to watch live on Twitch.tv. Similar to betting on your favorite football game, eSport brings fantastic entertainment to the table and star players are becoming the new role models for our younger generations.
BETTING ON CS:GO ONLINE FROM CANADA
It’s simple, fast and secure to bet on CS:GO from Canada. The trend has emerged out of traditional online sports betting and as the popularity skyrocketed, the operators have adjusted and are now publishing more content than ever before. We’ve seen the variety of odds flourish and you can bet on anything from Minor to Major CS Leagues in real-time, or several days in advance of the playoffs.
Betting on eSports is not even half as exciting if you’re not watching the game and cheering for your team in real time. However, broadcasting eSport leagues are just as simple as streaming it from home, making competitive Counter-Strike widely available to be viewed live on Twitch as you bet on one of your trusted eSport betting sites.
Knowing where to bet on CS:GO as a first-timer may seem trickier than it is, although its availability is increasing. We have spent hours of testing our recommended services and their related eSport deposit bonuses, odds and customer service. Betting on eSport is all about fun and as a group of frequent eSport bettors, we have extracted our favorite services that deliver the absolute best value and the most trusted services for Canadian players to bet on CS:GO.
eSPORT BETTING CANADA TOP 10 LIST
eSports betting is provided only by the best online betting companies. The casinos on this top ten list offer Canadians wagering options on several of the most popular games available including; CS: GO (Counter-Strike), LOL (League of Legends), DOTA 2 (Defense of the Ancients), COD (Call of Duty) and Overwatch just to mention a few. Wagering on FPS (First Person Shooter) & MOBA’s (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) games is an absolute novel experience only blossoming with the surge in popularity of eSports streaming and tournaments. Shooters & MOBA’s are extremely exciting to bet on as they are unpredictable and can create significant winnings.
The eSports providers on this list deserve to be here due to several crucial factors. We have delved deeply into each one here to test the essential features and the safety and security it provides. More importantly, we check out that it is fully compatible with and beneficial to Canadians. These eSports providers offer the best and most beneficial bonuses, which have the most favourable terms and no hidden conditions. The eSports providers on this list offer the best odds and selection of odds. Everything else has been checked out. From the banking options to the level and times of the customer support service, taking in experience and reputation.
eSports Betting FAQs
You can bet on esports at all the best betting sites. Check out our list of recommended eSports betting sites exclusive to Canadian players. You can find great odds, big bonuses and you can place a bet in C$.
You can bet on all sorts of leagues, tournaments, and events. Some of the most popular games are: League of Legends, Dota 2, Counter Strike, Fortnite, Counter-Strike, Hearthstone, Overwatch, Apex Legends, Call of Duty.
Our advice for Canadian gambling fans is to get familiar with the teams and players along with their strengths and weaknesses. We also recommend to compare odds across sites listed above in our recommended eSports betting sites list.
eSports Betting FAQs