Today Major League Gaming released the viewer count for last weekend’s MLG Orlando event, and I must say it’s pretty impressive. On top of the 15,000 fan who attended in person, there were 181,000 “unique concurrent online viewers” who watched live stream online. This broke the previous record of 138,000 concurrent viewers set by MLG Raleigh by 43,000 viewers.
Sundance DiGiovanni, CEO of Major League Gaming stated: “The record-breaking viewership of our live broadcasts this year is truly elevating the global presence of eSports, placing MLG viewing in the same ballpark as traditional TV viewing numbers. The support of our community is undeniable and fans can expect more high-quality streaming, intense matchups and 2012 season announcements during our 2011 Pro Circuit Championship live from Providence, Rhode Island on November 18-20.”
What I find so impressive about these numbers is that every MLG event absolutely crushes the previous one in terms of viewer count. This type of growth is just what eSports needs to help it become more mainstream. One only assume that the 2011 Pro Circuit Championship at Providence, Rhode Island will continue to show the same type of viewer growth. To help make this prediction a reality, help spread the word about MLG and eSports by telling your friends and posting on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. If we all pitch in, hopefully we will be able to look at 2011 as the year that eSports took over the West.