Media Rights
Broadcast and streaming rights: who holds them, who buys them and where the matches are shown.
How Disney+ Built Its Streaming Partnership With Korean Esports
An explainer on the Disney+ and Korea e-Sports Association partnership: what it streams, how it grew in 2026, and why it matters for Korean esports.
Media RightsLCS Summer 2026 draws its biggest audience in four years
The LCS Summer 2026 grand final peaked at 279,217 viewers, the league's best since 2022, as Team Liquid beat LYON 3-1 near Atlanta; the count comes from Esports Charts' October update.
Media RightsT1 and ONIC led the esports audiences of the third quarter
Esports Charts' quarterly rankings put T1 first among PC esports teams at 57.6 million hours watched and ONIC first on mobile, with the MLBB Mid Season Cup the quarter's most-watched tournament.
Media RightsValorant Champions 2026 groups: a higher peak, about 11.5% fewer hours
Esports Charts counted a 718.3K peak for Paper Rex against G2 Esports in the Champions Shanghai group stage, while hours watched fell about 11.5% and Kick took 7.7% of them.
Media RightsAsian Games MLBB final peaks above 822,600 as Myanmar take gold
Esports Charts counted more than 822,600 peak viewers for the first Asian Games final in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, with Indonesian the leading language and YouTube the main platform.
Media RightsFNCS 2026 Global Championship tops one million viewers on fewer channels
Esports Charts put the Fortnite Global Championship in Antwerp above one million peak viewers, the best for Fortnite in seven years, while hours fell 23.6 percent and channels dropped to 253.
Media RightsLEC Summer 2026 final peaks at 434,973, the league's lowest since 2024
Esports Charts counted 434,973 peak viewers for the LEC Summer 2026 final, 8.13 percent down on 2025, with average viewers 17.9 percent lower and some top co-streamers absent.
Media RightsRLCS 2026 Worlds sets a Rocket League record with 722,347 peak viewers
Esports Charts counted 722,347 peak viewers at the 2026 Rocket League World Championship in Fort Worth, the first Rocket League match above 700,000, and 7.5 million hours watched.
Media RightsMBC keeps the LCK Finals on Korean terrestrial TV through 2027
Riot Games has extended its agreement with MBC for two more LCK Finals on free-to-air television in South Korea. The terms are undisclosed, and streaming stays with Naver and SOOP.
Media RightsMSI 2026 peaks at 2.32 million viewers, more than 32 percent below 2025
T1 against G2 Esports, not the final, drew the largest audience of MSI 2026 in Daejeon, as peak viewers fell more than 32 percent on the record 2025 edition.
Media RightsFrance Televisions puts the Esports World Cup on public TV each night
The Esports Foundation and France Televisions have agreed a media partnership for the Paris edition: a daily program on France 4 and France 2 for seven weeks.
Media RightsRiot adds Kick for LoL, Valorant and TFT broadcasts from MSI 2026
Riot Games said on June 26 that Kick joins its streaming platforms from MSI 2026, with live broadcasts in three games and co-streaming, outside China and Korea.
Media RightsIEM Cologne Major passes Austin as most-watched CS event by hours
Before its semifinals were played, the IEM Cologne Major passed 76.2 million hours watched, a Counter-Strike record, while a vertical TikTok feed set a record of its own.
Media RightsPGL Astana 2026 peaks at 1.16 million, PGL's best outside a Major
Esports Charts put PGL Astana 2026 above 1.16 million peak viewers, with Russian streams close to a record and a Portuguese audience that rose and fell with FURIA.
Media RightsESL adds Kick for CS2 and Dota 2 and moves Challenger League there
ESL announced on April 14 that its Pro Tour in Counter-Strike 2 and Dota 2 is now shown on Kick, beside other platforms, and that the Challenger League moves there alone.
Media RightsESL sets 2026 co-streaming rules: Twitch only, always on, 5% webcam
ESL's Co-Streaming Guidelines 2026 charge no license fee but bind English co-streamers to its feed, its sponsors and a webcam of 5% of the screen during play.
Media RightsDisney+ and KeSPA widen their deal to more Korean esports in 2026
Disney+ will stream Esports Championships Asia in Jinju, the 2026 LoL KeSPA Cup and the Korean national team's warm-up matches before the Asian Games.
Media RightsMasters Santiago Swiss stage draws 8.53 million hours watched
Esports Charts counted more than 8.53 million hours watched in the Masters Santiago Swiss stage, led by NRG against Paper Rex and by French co-streams for Gentle Mates.