The Biggest Winners in Esports in 2020: Chess Takes the Top Position As Prices Plummet

The economy of top level esports has been dealt a heavy blow by the events of 2021, and though it is still enjoyed in the online environment, it witnessed a major dip in the previous year. However, this does not in any way suggest that stars of esports are no longer cashing out.

Esports and CSGO betting has seen a huge hit this year due to the current restrictions and circumstances, yet 2021 is sure to see a huge increase in the amount of tournaments that emerge, meaning you can expect to get right back to your favorite CS:GO gambling sites over the course of the year.

It emerged from a study conducted by Unikrn, an esports bookmaker based in Seattle, revealed that there was an 80% drop in the earnings of the top 50 esports players, as it failed from $55 million in 2019 to $11 million in 2020. One of the major reasons for this is that the majority of the games reduced their prize purses, though some did more scaling down than the others.

On the issue of budget cut, the most affected company was Fortnite, as their prize money reduced by up to 90%. In 2020, the firm only presented $7,884,451, against the $71,598,129 of 2019. In the reverse angle, the highest amount of money was delivered by CS: GO, and that is $15.8million, which paid 34 players more than $100,000 each. Up to two third of those in the top 15 earned their money through the Call of Duty cash.

However, in all these, the number one gamer of 2020 also revealed how the pen is almost always stronger than the gun or sword. The world’s highest earner in the overall esports competition of last year is the current chess world champion and Norwegian grandmaster, Magnus Carlsen (A.K.A. DrNykterstein).  For his unequaled Chess24 skill, he went home with an amazing $510,587.

The 30 year old Norwegian has 2882 as his peak classical rating, which is the highest ever in the world of the game. In the top 10 position, Hikaru Nakamura, the 33 year old American grandmaster that took home a little below $325,000 joined him. In the top 50, you will also see some other Chess24 players, staking very strong claims for the pen.

The 33 year old player of the magic; The Gathering Arena from Brazil, PVDDR, captured the highest solo prize for the year, and that is an amazing $300,000 at Magic World Championship XXVI. That gave him the power to stake a strong claim and cement a position in the top 10.

Just as it is expected, the country that earned highest in the world in 2020 was the US, as $21.2 million was shared by 4,291 from the states. The rankings are also made of mostly young players, as the top 50 gamers had an average age of 22.7 years old, while the shortlist was made by 7 teenagers who took home a combined $1.7 million.

According to a spokesperson of Unikrn, many people have the League of Legends, Dota and CS; GO and not necessarily chess in mind when they talk about esports. The circuit has been dominated by Magnus Carlsen, and the fantastic champion has helped in taking the profile of the sports higher.

The esports prize money has been negatively affected by the health crisis, taking it down by 76% from 2019 to 2020. Having said that, it motivates to see that players still make profits from big tournaments all over the world, as the organizers sacrifice a lot to ensure that the fans are presented with the best possible shows.

The top 10 winners of esports in 2020 are:

1) DrNykterstein, 30, from Norway and winner of (Chess24): with $510,587 prize money

2) Clayster, 28, is U.S. based and a Call of Duty player who won: $383,325

3) Crimsix, 27, is based in the U.S. and plays Call of Duty, winning $368,200

4) iLLeY, is 19, and from Canada and he won $358,625 from Call of Duty

5) Shotzzy, 19, is a U.S. based Call of Duty player who has won $351,625

6) Huke, 21, from Saudi Arabia clinched Call of Duty prize, and went home with $347,375

7) Hikaru, from the US won $324,645 from Chess24

8) PVDDR, 33, from Brazil plays Magic: The Gathering Arenaand won $300,000

9) Cellium, who is 20 years, and from the U.S. got $256,550 from Call of Duty)

10) Simp is 19, and from the U.S., and Call of Duty has paid him $250,708