The Riyadh Masters 2023 In Retrospect

The Riyadh Masters 2023 has concluded with Team Spirit taking home their lion's share of the massive 15 million USD prize pool. Their underdog story saw them go through all the favourites to emerge victorious as the unlikely champions. It seems that the higher the prize pool, the higher the anticipation, as there is more on the line to lose. Compared to Valve’s Majors throughout the year, The Riyadh Masters 2023 has more viewers even though it is hosted by ESL One. Despite technical difficulties resulting in match delays, the tournament is overall a massive success.

The Drafts 

Despite getting nerfs, heroes like Timbersaw, Broodmother and Morphling were still the most contested heroes at the tournament. With a 40.32% win rate, Timbersaw got picked 62 times. It was banned 129 times. Morphling had 34 picks with a win rate of 52.94%, and it got banned in 80 matches. However, the most stand-out hero at the tournament was Snapfire. Snapfire got contested nearly every series due to its versatility.

Although mainly played as a support in the group stages, Snap got played as the tournament progressed. The hero gave perfect crowd control in the late-game team fights, and it also scales well being a hero of the Universal attribute. Snapfire got drafted in 90 matches with a 53.33% win rate. The hero got banned in 108 matches.

Another hero that is crawling its way back into the meta is Storm Spirit. At the Riyadh Masters, it got picked in 67 matches. The hero has a 53.73% win rate. Dark Seer was the most popular offlaner at the tournament. It got contested in 169 series and has a 49.15% win rate. As a support hero, Rubick was the most contested. It was contested 173 times with a 48.67% win rate.

The Viewership

Valve should take a page or two out of ESL One’s playbook for The International 2023, as ESL One has cracked the code on how to attract more viewers. Even though the tournament received criticism for being in Saudi Arabia, the viewership shadowed Valve’s Majors' viewership. At its peak, The Riyadh Masters 2023 had 587 891 viewers.

During its 148 hours and 50 minutes of airtime, it boasted an average of 201 967 viewers. The viewership increase could be because the tournament includes many talents that fans love mixed with the new upcoming talents in the field. The highest viewership of Valve’s Majors was at The Berlin Major, which had 507 620 viewers during its peak.

The only tier 1 tournament left for the year is The International 2023. With ESL One proving they can host a tier 1 tournament and with all the eyes on Ti2, will Valve step up their game for the most prestigious tournament of the year?

Featured Image Source: Twitter/@Gamers8GG