Starcraft 2 betting

Starcraft 2 is the sequel of the immensely popular Starcraft: Broodwar which helped popularize esports during the 2000s. It’s arguably the most popular real-time strategy (RTS) game in the world. The game has been around for one decade now but continues to draw interest from esports fans. Large Starcraft 2 tournaments are regularly held in North America and South Korea. Major matches are always available for Starcraft 2 betting in Canadian bookmakers.

Starcraft 2 betting in Canada

In a real-time strategy game, a lot is going on simultaneously during the match. As such, it can be difficult for casual viewers to understand and appreciate what is happening. Because of this level of difficulty, getting into Starcraft 2 betting is more challenging compared to other esports like Rocket League and CSGO. However, there’re millions of Starcraft 2 players around the globe that follows the esports scene. As such, there is an incitement for bookmakers to offer Starcraft 2 odds. With all this being said, Starcraft 2 both looks super cool and is entertaining to watch, especially with professional commentators. So if you’re new to this esport, we suggest that you watch some Starcraft 2 streams with commentators talking about what’s happening.

On a high-level, two players compete against each other in an RTS which requires coordination, multitasking and decision-making skills. Each player controls a faction that collects resources, build structures and raise armies. The armies are then used for battle, and the person who wipes out the other person first wins. Matches are usually played in a best of 3 or best of 5. Common betting markets are Moneyline, Over/Under Maps and Maps Handicap. Most Canadian bookmakers will offer Starcraft 2 betting on large tournaments regularly. When Starcraft 2 was first released in 2010, bookmakers rarely offered odds on esports. All this came to change after the release of SC 2. Starcraft 2 was an immediate success as an esport and as such bookmakers were quick to start offering Starcraft 2 odds.

Starcraft 2 betting sites in Canada

History of Starcraft 2

Back in 2010 when Starcraft 2 was released, the game sold more than 1,5 million copies. Within three months, over 3 million copies had been sold. This is awe-inspiring numbers for a boxed game that people need to purchase to play. What made these sales numbers possible was the popularity of the game’s predecessor Starcraft: Broodwar. Broodwar was released in 1998, and it was immensely popular. That game helped set the standard for modern esports.

Due to the 12-year gap between the two games. A lot of anticipation was built up around the release of Starcraft 2, so when it was released, it was an instant hit. The developers behind Starcraft, Blizzard Entertainment, designed the sequel for esports. They added a built-in competition system where players were divided into seven different categories: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Champions and Grandmaster. The first esports tournament was held months before the release. The tournament was HDH Invitational which was held in North America and had a prize pool of $3450. Following the launch of the game, Starcraft 2 quickly turned into a successful esport and bookmakers started offering Starcraft 2 odds.

Evolution of Starcraft 2 tournaments

As we already mentioned, Starcraft 2 esports was an immediate thing following the release in 2010. Starcraft 2 became the main event in many LAN circuits like DreamHack. The first professional tournaments for Starcraft 2 were organized by Major League Gaming (MLG), Intel Extreme Masters (IEM), DreamHack and of course Global Starcraft 2 League (GSL) in South Korea.

South Korea has always played a huge part in Starcraft esports. The country effectively built an infrastructure and ecosystem for professional esports with Starcraft: Broodwar. The organization behind this esports platform was KeSPA (Korea Esports Association). The KeSPA concept influenced how esports is handled in all other regions of the world. GSL hosted a series of three open tournaments in South Korea which featured a prize pool of $170,000 each. However, due to legal disputes between KeSPA and Blizzard Entertainment, the GSL was short-lived. Other pro circuits in South Korea followed including the massive World Championship Series (WCS). The latest WCS featured a prize pool of $700,000, and the finals were played during BlizzCon in North America.

Popular Starcraft 2 Leagues and Tournaments Today

Starcraft 2 has declined a little in the most recent years. In an effort to revive and blow energy into the Starcraft 2 esports scene, Blizzard introduced Warchests. Warchests is a loot box system for cosmetic items. Chests are dropped, and keys can be bought to open them. 25% of sales related to sales goes towards funding Starcraft 2 esports. Since then, Warchests have successfully helped add funds to the prize pools in Starcraft 2 esports. In relation to the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea, an exhibition tournament was held to help push the relevancy of esports alongside traditional sports.

In 2020, Blizzard partnered up with renowned esports organizers ESL (Electronic Sports League) and DreamHack. The partner contract will be active between 2020 and 2023. International tournaments and leagues will be held regularly and culminate in a global final for the top contestants once per year. From 2020 onwards, for the first time in history, the world finals will not be held at BlizzCon but instead in relation to IEM events. This new tournament system is named ESL Pro Tour. The first ESL Pro Tour, season 2020/21 will be broadcasted and produced by AfreecaTV, DreamHack and ESL and feature a prize pool of over $1,900,000. The global finals are scheduled to take place during IEM Katowice in 2021. You can be sure that bookmakers will offer Starcraft 2 betting on all ESL Pro League tournaments including; IEM, StarLeague, DreamHack Masters, King of Battles, Super Tournament and GSL.

Popular Starcraft 2 players

One of the most popular Starcraft 2 players from Canada is girl gamer Sasha “Scarlett” Hostyn. She’s successfully stayed on top of the Starcraft 2 esports scene since 2012. Her career earnings total almost $400,000. South Korean players have mainly dominated SC2 since its inception in 2010. Most notably Jung “MVP” Jong Hyun, Lee “Life” Seung Hyun, Jang “MC” Min Chul, Park “Rain” Set Yong and Fun “MMA” Seong Won. Outside of South Korea, some of the most popular Starcraft 2 players include Marcus “ThorZaiN” Eklof, Chris “HuK” Loranger and Greg “idrA” Fields. A European player created massive headline news in 2018, Finnish player Joona “Serral” Sotala became the first non-Korean player to the Starcraft 2 World Championship Series. In the process, Serral won $478,538. The following year Serral placed 3rd-4th in the WSC for another $51,000.

Starcraft 2 betting FAQ

Is Starcraft 2 betting easy?

Starcraft 2 betting is easy when it comes to placing bets. The same as with any type of sports betting, you’d have to find and register to a Canadian bookmaker, deposit funds, locate the market you want to bet and place the bet. In terms of making money from Starcraft 2 betting, then no. Starcraft 2 is mainly watched by gamers. Casual viewers and punters may find Starcraft 2 difficult to understand. With that said, Starcraft betting is a great deal of fun together with a good live stream and commentators.

Why is Starcraft 2 esports still popular?

One of the main appeals of Starcraft 2 is the fact that the game is exceptionally well-made. It’s the premiere multiplayer RTS game and still has a large and loyal player base. The longevity of Starcraft can be credited to South Korea, where this esport is bigger than in any other region in the world. With the new funding model for esports prize pools, Blizzard ensured that there are attractive and growing prize pools to attract new professional Starcraft 2 players.

Where can I watch Starcraft 2 streams?

Since Starcraft 2 is huge in South Korea and Asia, the South Korean streaming platform AfreecaTV has excellent coverage of Starcraft 2 esports. You can also find Starcraft 2 streams on Twitch and YouTube Gaming.

Summary

While Starcraft 2 as an esport has declined in recent years, Starcraft 2 betting is regularly available in Canadian sportsbooks. Blizzard Entertainment is doing their best to boost the competitive scene, including putting more money into prize pools and partnering up with experienced tournament organizers. With tournament contract extended to 2023, you can expect to have Starcraft 2 betting available at your fingertips for at least another three years.