The Marvel Rivals Invitational 2025 EMEA crowned Virtus.pro (VP) as its champions, taking home a $40,000 (~£31,058) prize.

The Russian esports organisation triumphed 4-2 over Team OG (OG) in the grand finals, cementing its name in the Marvel Rivals Invitational 2025 EMEA esports scene.

While Sentinels was making the rounds in the NA scene, VP came out on top overseas across two stages of the Marvel Rivals Invitational 2025 EMEA.

Virtus.pro was able to pull through in the Swiss Stage, which took place between February 28th to March 2nd, 2025 before competing in the double elimination bracket held between March 7th to March 9th, 2025.

The organisation proudly announced its win on X, saying that ‘confident play brings the team victory in the tournament and $40,000!’

In the livestream of the match, both VP and OG were able to claw victory from Fnatic before facing off in the highly anticipated Grand Finals.

The initial games began as a tug of war struggle between VP and OG, with neither side giving way as the match went on. Despite a valiant effort from OG, VP proved to be the stronger team in the end, showcasing its best performance in the Marvel Rivals Invitational 2025 EMEA.

The tournament MVP was Finnbjörn ‘Finnsi‘ Jónasson, VP’s Vanguard player who supported his team as Dr. Strange and Magneto during Marvel Rivals Invitational 2025 EMEA.

Andreas ‘Nevix‘ Karlsson, Swedish Vanguard player for VP, said: “Eventually, you’re going to get some competition, you’re going to get challenged and you just got to lock in, be calm, stay focused, and I think that’s what we did today.”

These were the end placements of all esports organisations in Marvel Rivals Invitational 2025 EMEA.

Recent reports have shown that the esports scene in 2025 has already been booming in viewership and prize pools.

It shows that while some games have wasted no time in hosting events, other’s have steadily declined in both commitments and viewer engagement.

According to Esports Charts, several games are already hosting events watched around the world and awarding millions in prizes.

To probably no one’s surprise, League of Legends (LoL) once again tops the charts in terms of peak viewership for esports games in 2025. On February 13th the game saw nearly 2m viewers at one point during the LCK Cup 2025.

In second place we have VALORANT, with peak viewership of over 1.3m during this year’s Masters Bangkok Grand Finals. Despite having fewer ongoing tournaments than LoL, it has offered a richer prize pool overall at $750,000 so far.

Counter Strike 2 (CS) is the last of the big three, with the highest number of ongoing tournaments at 10. As result, it has accumulated a staggering $3.7 million in total prize pool money. The highest prize pools were awarded at both PGL Cluj-Napoca and IEM Katowice 2025 at $1.25 million each.

Within Esports Chart’s top 10 esports games of 2025, three of them are classified to be on mobile platforms.

Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, a 5v5 MOBA on iOS and Android that recently launched in China, ranks fourth, surpassing Apex Legends, Fortnite, and Dota 2.

Its Snapdragon Pro Series Season 6 APAC challenge finals attracted a peak viewership of over one million. 2024 was also successful with 167 tournaments, including the $3m EWC X MLBB Mid-Season Cup.

Another notable mobile game to highlight is Honor of Kings, another 5v5 MOBA game. Though not as successful as LoL, it boasts a larger total prize pool of over $300,000. With 85 tournaments in 2024, 2025 could prove to be even bigger.

Beyond the top 10, there are a few surprise titles that have not seen as much activity so far this year.

Marvel Rivals, the latest hero shooter craze, has topped Overwatch 2 in prize pool and viewership in 2025 so far.

Where Overwatch has offered $65,000 and has a 147,000 peak viewership, Marvel Rivals has given away $200,000 and over 175,000 peak views.

Other noteworthy titles ranked between 20-11 include Call of Duty, Rocket League, Street Fighter and Free Fire.

Though with this year’s Esports World Cup introducing several games in its catalogue this year, a resurgence in viewers may be on the horizon for several of these games.

Pro players in the Overwatch 2 esports scene are debating the return of 6v6 formats following the Classic experimental event.

With the original mode eyeing a comeback in quickplay and ranked in Season 15, is it time for the esports scene to follow suit?

The discourse surrounding Overwatch 6v6 has lingered since the sequel originally swapped to a 5v5 format to a mixed reception.

As the game grapples with balance issues, especially for solo tanks, players have long considered whether returning to 6v6 could fix many of its current problems.

In a post on X, popular streamer Samito said: “If Overwatch 1 was 5v5 role lock it never would have won GOTY or been loved for this long.

“6v6 has the special sauce, big moments, unique hero identity and skill expression via gameplay loop that no other game has touched in 8 years. Overwatch 2 will never be peak in 5v5.”

In a Directors Take blog post Overwatch 2 game director, Aaron Keller, shared how the Season 14 6v6 limited-time run accounted for nearly 10% of total community play time.

Keller said: “There’s definitely a demand for a mode with this team size, but it’s still uncertain how large that demand is. We’re going to run a mini-competitive season of 6v6 starting midseason 15.

“It’s still a little early to say what 6v6’s place is in Overwatch with a decent amount of people playing it, I think that it’s probably here to stay in some form, but so far, we’re not ready to swap the core format of the game.”

The original format has been gaining traction in the core player base, so much so that the esports scene has been brought into question.

It’s an interesting turn of events given how back in 2023, when Overwatch 2 first launched, several pros voiced their preference for 5v5.

On X William ‘Crimzo‘ Hernandez, former Overwatch pro player, said: “People were initially worried about the swap but I feel like after months of scrims, plus two betas, it’s a no-brainer that 5v5 was the correct approach.”

With 6v6 back in play, pros across all levels are loving it, and they’re pushing Blizzard to take it even further.

In a post on X Spacestation Gaming Xander ‘Hawk‘ Domecq said: “6v6 today reminded me how challenging Overwatch once was. The game is so much more mentally stimulating. Every role is incredibly powerful.”

Overwatch 2 esports has had a rough journey in the last few years, with both highs and lows including the closure of Overwatch League. As such, many pros are apprehensive about whether 6v6 will revitalise the scene or serve as the final nail in the coffin.

The return of 6v6 has sparked major excitement in the hero shooter scene, but not everyone’s ready to rush it into Overwatch 2 esports just yet.

It’s not a change that can happen overnight, at least not before this year’s Esports World Cup. It will take some time for teams to adapt to this format again.

Not only would Overwatch Champions Series partner teams have to find a sixth player, but it would also demand countless hours of practice. With 6v6, things such as team comps, strategies, and communication would necessitate review.

With double tanks, matches will see more damage mitigation and more CC, something pro players will have to plan around.

The 6v6 format, once limited to arcade mode, is making its competitive debut midway through Season 15, offering a clearer picture of what high-level 6v6 play in Overwatch 2 will truly look like.

Weibo Gaming has entered Rainbow Six: Siege (R6) esports with its first R6 roster, featuring former Bleed Esports and Elevate players.

The Chinese esports organisation also announced a partnership with R6 developer Ubisoft, securing an Affiliate Team spot in the Asia Division of the game’s Asia Pacific League.

An announcement from March 8th on Weibo’s official X (formerly Twitter) account confirmed former Bleed Esports members Aldi ‘Hovenherst’ Firmansyah and Wu ‘Reeps96’ Weichen have signed as active players, then Patrick ‘MentalistC’ Fan will be taking the roles of Manager and Assistant Coach for the new lineup.

“The past five months have been one hell of a struggle, but I am glad we finally found a new home, along with some new talents,” shared Mentalist C on X after Weibo’s announcement. “For me personally, it’s time to take a step back and let the young guns cook while [meepeY] and I guide them the best we can from the background…”

Following the non-payment accusations against Bleed Esports, Hovenherst, Weichen and MentalistC had departed the organisation to compete for TEAM JOEL, an R6 team without organisational support. As part of Weibo’s first R6 roster, the trio is now reunited with former Bleed Esports teammate Taylor ‘Terdsta’ Ching.

They are joined by Yunos ‘SpeakEasy’ Mohamed and Razaan ‘Ape’ Adiprakasa, who won the Asia League 2024 – Stage 2 Grand Final against Bleed last year with their former organisation Elevate. R6 veteran and former coach for Rogue, KOI and Wildcard, Matthew ‘meepeY’ Sharples, will support the team as its Head Coach.

Founded in 2021, Chinese esports organisation Weibo Gaming is primarily known for its activity in League of Legends (LoL). Its LoL roster has consistently ranked highly within the LPL, the game’s Chinese league. Moreover, Weibo placed 2nd and 3rd at the LoL World Championships in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

Most recently, the organisation signed Street Fighter 6 champion Saul Leonardo ‘MenaRD’ Mena II ahead of the Capcom Cup 11.

Although R6’s 2024/25 season concluded last month with the Six Invitational 2025 in Boston, U.S., Weibo Gaming will most likely compete in Ubisoft’s Asia League next season.

After a tough run at Kickoff and Masters Bangkok, VALORANT teams are now gearing up for VCT Americas 2025 Stage 1. The event will have Masters Toronto qualification and a total of 11 Championship Points on stake, along with a massive prize pool.

VCT Americas 2025 Stage 1 will take place from March 22nd to May 4th in front of a live audience at Riot Games Arena in Los Angeles, featuring 12 teams battling for the trophy.

The participating teams will be divided into two groups—Alpha and Omega, where they will compete in a round-robin format for a spot in the playoffs.

At the end of the Group Stage, the top four teams from each group will advance to the double-elimination playoffs. The first seed will get a direct bye to the second round, while the fourth seed will start in the lower bracket.

The Group Stage of VCT Americas 2025 Stage 1 will run from March 22nd to April 20th, followed by the Playoffs from April 25th to May 5th. Check out the daily schedule below:

Tickets will go live on March 10th at 12 PM PT / 3 PM ET / 5 PM BRT. However, keep in mind that matches on April 5th, 6th, 19th, and 20th will be played in another studio without a live audience.

Fans unable to attend in person will be able to catch all the action live on the official VCT Americas Twitch and YouTube channels or tune into their favorite creator’s watch party for their valuable insights and reactions.

VCT Pacific Stage 1 will be extra spicy, with T1 entering the event as VALORANT Masters Bangkok champions. DRX will be aiming for another Pacific trophy, while PRX is back with redemption on its mind after an early exit in Kickoff.

To improve their performances and results, several VCT Pacific teams will be making roster changes before the transfer window closes. Below, we’ve compiled all the latest moves ahead of VCT Pacific Stage 1.

Most teams are sticking with their rosters for VCT Pacific Stage 1, with the exception of Paper Rex and TALON.

Paper Rex, after missing their first-ever Masters event, has responded by signing Patrick ‘PatMen’ Mendoza from NAOS Esports as 6th player on a contract running until 2027.

“As VALORANT reaches its 5th year, it’s no surprise that the VCT circuit is more competitive than ever, and we must energise and reinvigorate ourselves,” said Paper Rex Chief Gaming Officer (CGO) Harley ‘dsn’ Örwall. 

“An injection of new blood with young eyes brings fresh perspectives to our game. Adding PatMen to the PRX family allows us to widen our experiments with a greater breadth of playstyles.” 

Here is the roster going into Stage 1:

TALON has signed Tanate ‘killua’ Teerasawad from FULL SENSE and promoted Anupong ‘thyy’ Preamsak from the TALON Academy roster, both on contracts lasting until 2027. They replaced Peter “Governor” No and Joseph “ban” Oh in the team.

Here is TALON’s full roster:

VCT Pacific Stage 1 kicks off on March 22nd and fans will be able to catch the action live on VCT Pacific’s official Twitch and YouTube channel.

Sentinels came out victorious at Marvel Rivals Fight Night #1, defeating Intergalactic in the single elimination bracket.

This marks a strong debut for the team as they take home their first champion title in the Marvel Rivals esports scene.

Marvel Rivals Fight Night is an invite-only series where the best competitive teams from well-known organisations compete in a winner-take-all stake.

The North American esports organisation only recently announced its line-up for future leagues in Marvel Rivals, with Fight Night allowing fans to see the new team in action.

Sentinels won a decisive victory over Intergalactic in the Grand Final, with a 4-1 win in Marvel Rivals Fight Night North America.

The organisation announced its victory on X with the caption: “Sentinels are Rivals Fight Night Champions, ain’t that fantastic.”

Sentinels was awarded $1,000 for securing first place, with second awarded to Intergalactic and third to Extinction.

The North America finals were broadcast shortly after Europe concluded, where Virtus.Pro was able to secure a 4-0 victory against Team Peps.

After a neck-and-neck struggle between the two teams, Sentinels was able to dominate in the later half of the series.

Throughout the series, all eyes were on Anthony ‘SuperGomez‘ Gomez, a Columbian Duelist player for Sentinels, who terrorised Intergalactic with his Star-Lord plays. He was also awarded match MVP.

Connor ‘Avast’ Prince, a commentator for Marvel Rivals Fight Night #1 North America, said: “They’re showing their strength, showing how flexible they are, and showing just the breadth of their comps.

“They played triple Vanguard, they played double Duelist, they ended the series on triple Strategist… I mean everything under the sun that you could imagine. All the picks you could imagine came out here for Sentinels, and it showed that everyone excelled in their roles.”

ATOX has been disqualified and banned from PGL Counter-Strike events amid an investigation from the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC).

As a result, the Mongolian esports organisation is unable to play in the Asian closed qualifier for the upcoming PGL Bucharest tournament.

PGL confirmed ATOX had received a ban on March 6th, 2025, citing a ‘provisional suspension from ESIC’ as the reason behind the decision. The tournament organiser is a member of ESIC alongside other event organisers such as BLAST.

In addition to PGL, ATOX is also banned from competing at the BLAST Open Lisbon tournament due to the suspension.

ESIC is yet to share the exact reasoning behind the suspension, but it is rumoured that ATOX is under investigation for suspected match-fixing while competing in Season 20 of the ESL Pro League.

“ESIC internally stated that the investigation may last for several weeks,” revealed Chinese Counter-Strike 2 commentator Yunqing ‘Searph‘ Hu in a social media post.

“The organiser of the next competition for this team said that they have learned about the ongoing investigation and are ready to prepare a plan for the team to be banned at any time,” he added.

ESIC aims to ensure that integrity within the esports industry is maintained and has an impressive track record of taking action against those committing actions that compromise integrity.

In March, the Commission has issued a three-year ban against Ukrainian Counter-Strike player Ilya ‘Ganginho‘ Chernychenko after he was in violation of betting and corruption regulations.

With details on the ESIC investigation still unknown, it’s unclear how long ATOX will be unable to compete in tournaments operated by members of the Commission.

Depending on the severity of the offence, it could be several years before the organisation returns to the top level of Counter-Strike esports.

For now, ATOX won’t be competing in PGL or BLAST tournaments for the foreseeable future.

Disguised, the esports organisation owned by content creator Jeremy ‘Disguised Toast‘ Wang, has unveiled its Mecha BREAK roster.

The organisation is one of the first in the world to expand into the PvP mech shooter title developed by Amazing Seasun Games.

The Disguised Mecha BREAK roster was revealed on March 6th, 2025, on the organisation’s X account. The six-man roster includes professional Overwatch player Dante ‘Danteh’ Cruz, known for his time competing for San Fransisco Shock and the Houston Outlaws.

Disguised’s Mecha BREAK roster is as follows:

In addition to unveiling the Disguised Mecha BREAK roster, the organisation announced it will be competing in the game’s pre-launch invitational event taking place from March 13th to 16th.

Disguised and nine other teams from China, North America and Japan will compete in the event. The rest of the participating teams haven’t been revealed.

Amazing Seasun Games has already confirmed Mecha BREAK will host an annual esports event once the full game launches. The developer has yet to share details on the prize pool, format and how teams can qualify.

Following the launch of its open beta on February 23rd, the shooter recorded a peak player count of over 300,000, with over 3,500 reviews appearing on its Steam page. Players approve of the fast-paced gameplay and loadout customisation, but its monetisation model has come under scrutiny.

As an esports title, it will be interesting to see how the third-person mech shooter performs when in the hands of top esports players.

With the Mecha BREAK developer supporting its esports efforts, the success of the Pre-Launch Invitational will act as a chance to gather feedback from players and to determine the shooter’s viability as a competitive title.

Winthrop University Esports’ collegiate programme is being criticised by sections of the esports community for its management and student treatment.

The wave of criticism was caused by several posts on X (formerly Twitter) revealing screenshots of a conversation between the programme’s Assistant Director Sheldon Williams and collegiate Overwatch player ‘Toad.’

On March 5^th, the first set of screenshots were shared by esports coach Christian ‘Woods’ Woods with the caption: “Never seen a director refuse to talk with someone before a paid application than subsequently poor shame them for asking for information on the school.

“But considering how many of these staff don’t even pretend to care about their players educations I can’t say I’m surprised.”

As Woods’ post had censored all names, numerous X users encouraged the coach to reveal the identities of the involved individuals as well as the name of the university. Today, Toad posted uncensored screenshots of the conversation between themselves and Winthrop University’s esports programme Assistant Director Sheldon Williams.

Toad competes for Alvernia University Esports, a collegiate Overwatch team that Woods coaches.

After being approached by Williams, Toad showed interest in the university’s collegiate esports programme. However, the student was unable to pay the upfront $50 application fee due to their current financial situation.

Williams then listed the numerous achievements of the university’s collegiate teams, urging Toad to apply before all spots are taken. In return, the student politely inquired about a possible waiver of the application fee.

However, the director insisted on the fee, claiming that ‘College is expensive anywhere’ and that ‘$50 is a drop in the bucket.’

Toad commented on the incident in the caption of their post: “Unacceptable behavior from what is supposed to be a leader in collegiate esports. If we want our competitions to be taken seriously, we need to start acting like professionals. A football coach would never speak to a recruit like this. Remember that YOU reached out to ME.”

The reaction of the collegiate esports community to Toad’s post has been overwhelmingly supportive of the student’s situation. Moreover, several notable esports figures criticised Williams’ behaviour as well as Winthrop University for their choice of staff and player recruitment practices.

“$50 is a drop in a bucket to avoid this kind of PR,” commented NACL caster Matt Samuelson.

Esports personality Ovilee May expressed her critique in a repost: “Breaks my heart to see the state of some collegiate esports programs.

“There were so many fantastic programs ran by people who wholeheartedly cared about seeing college students succeed in both their studies as well as building a career in esports and most are just gone.”

While there has been no official statement from Winthrop University since, Sheldon Williams has publicly apologised to Toad via a post on his X account: “I want to apologize to [Toad]. I understand that this is not the correct way to speak to students/recruits. I promise to be better moving forward.”

Interestingly, Eric ‘Wheats’ Perez, the coach of Winthrop’s Overwatch roster, also reached out under Toad’s post: “Sorry that this is the experience you had with Winthrop Overwatch. Feel free to reach out if you wanna talk about the academy team, although I understand if you are put off.”

Winthrop University’s esports programme was launched in 2019 with Josh Sides, currently the project’s Director, at the helm. Since then, Winthrop Esports has competed in Overwatch, Fortnite, Rocket League and more.

The university’s VALORANT team won the Collegiate Invitational at Dreamhack Atlanta 2024. In the same year, the squad participated in the game’s tier-2 Challengers circuit.

Furthermore, Sides and Winthrop’s Connor Doyle have won a Scholastic Esports Award in the categories Director of the Year (4-YR) and Coach of the Year, respectively.

According to an article by NECC’s Caleb Glube from August 2024, the university’s esports roster is expected to grow from 80 to 120 varsity or club members this year. The article further states: “Sides says the budget he’s working with currently is 10 times more than what it was when he started. That increase in budget allows Sides to recruit nationally and internationally renowned players…”