Heroes of the Storm is a game with so much potential that its creator, Blizzard Entertainment, sabotaged it. It is quite unfortunate that it was the first game to show the path Blizzard was about to take when they decided to cancel esports for their MOBA in 2019. Despite having no official sponsorship from the developers, Heroes of the Storm still has a community that loves to compete in their favorite game! Unfortunately, comparing the best HOTS tournaments to some other popular esports titles out there is something that you should not expect, as all of the tournaments are organized by people who love the game.
Best HOTS Tournaments: The Event You Should Definitely Know About
It would be quite nice to see Blizzard jump back into the fray and revive Heroes of the Storm tournaments with any kind of support, but if that happens, only time will tell. Here are the best Heroes of the Storm betting events to look out for.
1. Community Clash League
Despite being one of the best HOTS tournaments, the prize pool for this event is not as big as one might think, as it was $33,600 + 60% of the user’s donations ($4,422) for the event in 2022. The Community Clash League has been around since 2019, and it has been growing each year, which shows just how passionate the community behind Heroes of the Storm tournaments really is. It is also important to note that this event is exclusive to the Americas.
The tournament features eight teams, and it has two stages:
- Round Robin Group Stage: where matches are played Bo5, and the top 3 are sent to Stage Two Playoffs, while the rest is sent to Stage One Playoffs.
- Playoffs: Stage One Playoffs winner gets a position in Stage Two Playoffs, which continue with Bo5 until Grand Finals that are played Bo7.
What makes this event truly special is the effort put into it by the organizers, as the project truly displays the passion that they have for the game, just like the players who play it. The same can be said for the Broadcast talent and the Community Clash League betting scene, even if it is not as big as Heroes Global Championship betting was back before Blizzard gave up on Heroes of the Storm tournaments.
2. Masters Clash Championship
While one of the best HOTS tournaments is exclusive to the Americas, Masters Clash Championship is exclusive to Europe. The prize pool for this event is fixed at €12,000 ($12,878), which is still enough to make it the second biggest among all Heroes of the Storm tournaments out there.
Being one of the biggest esports events for Heroes of the Storm in Europe since it was established in 2019, Masters Clash Championship also features eight teams. The format is split into three stages:
- Double Round Robin Group Stage: where all matches are Bo2. The top 3 teams qualify for the Finale, while others must fight their way through the Gauntlet, where their seeding is based on their performance in the Group stage.
- Gauntlet: where all the matches are played Bo5, and it is a stepladder tournament stage of the tournament.
- Finale: all matches except the semi-finals and the Grand Finals are Bo5. The semi-finals are Bo3, and Grand Finals are Bo7.
While the European tournament is not nearly as big as the one in the Americas, the passion behind it is just as big, from the number of sponsors for the event, the players participating, the broadcasters hyping up the games for the event, and the Heroes of the Storm betting scene makes Master Clash Championship one of the best HOTS tournaments out there.
Heroes of the Storm Tournaments: Smaller Events
Defrost Miami LAN
After covering the two major events for each region, we are moving down to some smaller events, at least when it comes to the prize pool. Defrost Miami is an Americas-focused tournament that had a prize pool of $5,359 in 2022, and it too hosts its venue for eight teams to compete for a part of it.
While it is only a two-day event, it is packed with a lot of action, where the tournament is made out of a double-elimination bracket. All matches up to Winner’s and Loser’s finals are Bo3, and then they are Bo5. Grand Finals have even more games, as they are played Bo7.
X-Cup
Europe also has a smaller event, called the X-Cup, where the last prize pool was €4,000 ($4,446). This tournament, too, has eight teams participating in the final event, but there are various qualifiers for the final event, so the interest is much bigger than one might think. The format for this tournament is also double-elimination, but matches up to Grand Finals are Bo5, and the event’s last match is once again Bo7.
Heroes of the Storm League: REVIVAL
AfreecaTV, a name you might have heard being responsible for some other tournaments, is the one that hosts the Asia-exclusive HOTS league, which has been around since 2015. The prize pool was ₩5,000,000 (~ $4,149) in 2022, but it is split across four teams, as that is how many participate in the main event. The tournament is double elimination, with games up to Loser’s Finals being Bo3, when they become Bo5.
