Long standing card game Magic: The Gathering enters a pro league with $10 million purse

E-sports are steadily gathering a popular fan following from all around the globe. While most critics argue that they are not sports, to begin with, the numbers tell a completely different story. The most popular video games, or e-sports as they are called professionally, reward millions of dollars to winners of professional leagues. DOTA 2, one of the most popular video games has rewarded almost $25 million through various gaming leagues since the past few years. Another game to get its own professional league is the long-standing card game called Magic: the Gathering. When people hear about card games paying millions of dollars to winners, most people immediately picture poker or blackjack. This game is nothing like either of the two.

This decision was announced at this year’s Game Awards and it will feature a new league called the Magic Pro League. Thirty-two of the world’s top players of Magic: The Gathering will be inducted into this league, with each player receiving a $75,000 contract. The players will be competing in a series of weekly matches to work their way towards the grand prize. Production studios and designers have been increasingly promoting their games in an effort to bolster popularity and sales, along with the added motivation of hefty prizes to encourage more people to take up gaming.

Professional gaming was primarily restricted to South Korea and China. However, this decade has seen a rapid surge in its popularity and each year sees increasingly higher sums of money being awarded to players.