The MOBA League of Legends is set to fill a stadium with 45,000 spectators at an event.
The man in charge of eSports at Riot Games is Dustin Beck. He believes that the next World Championship for League of Legends will be even bigger and more popular than the last one. And that’s saying something: The final of the 2013 World Championship took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. This is where the basketball teams of the Lakers and the Clippers usually play. 12,000 spectators watched the professional League of Legends players here. The final attracted 32 million viewers on screens at home, with 8.5 million tuning in at the peak.
32 million watched the last World Championship final
Now, they are upgrading from a basketball arena to the dimensions of a football stadium. Riot has booked the Korean Sangnam Stadium. Here, the semifinals of the 2002 FIFA World Cup were held in South Korea. Germany defeated the host nation 1-0.
When football is played at the Sangnam Stadium, it can accommodate 75,000 people. When the LoL stars are on stage and Riot Games has set up all the equipment and stages, 45,000 spectators can still fit. Dustin Beck is confident that they will fill every available seat. They also aim to boost viewer numbers through streaming. The final will take place on October 19.
