Pro GeoGuessr is only getting bigger as the 2024 World Cup sported a $100,000 prize pool across its competition and tripled its viewers from last year’s iteration.
When you think of upcoming esports, GeoGuessr likely doesn’t come to mind straight away, considering it’s a game solely based on deducing where you are in random locations on Google Maps.
However, with the conclusion of its 2024 World Cup event, it may not be as crazy a thought moving forward. As a game, it already has its personalities with big-name fans like Ludwig, and seeing insanely good players like Rainbolt test their skills is endlessly entertaining.
Not only does it have its current fans, but it’s clearly growing, as this year’s iteration sported its biggest prize pool yet across the competition and garnered hundreds of thousands of viewers.
Blinky. The GeoGuessr World Champion 2024. pic.twitter.com/5eclrGJHQc
— GeoGuessr (@geoguessr) September 14, 2024
Announced at the start of 2024, GeoGuessr put up a $100,000 prize pool across the World Cup’s qualifiers and the main event, eventually culminating in a final LAN tournament with a $50,000 pot.
Not only that, any subscriptions viewers gave through Twitch were also added to the pot. Additionally, there were in-game cosmetics that were used as crowdfunding, with the winner taking it all.
Viewership was also on the rise. On the last day of September 14, during the Grand Finals match between Blinky and MK, the broadcast hit a whopping 254,918 concurrent viewers, according to Esports Charts.
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For context, 2023’s iteration peaked at 71,252 concurrent viewers, meaning GeoGuessr more than tripled its viewer count in just one year, even rivaling the numbers of games like Overwatch 2.
Sure it may not be bringing in the numbers of top-tier esports like Valorant or Counter-Strike just yet, but for a game of its size and niche, it certainly shows promise.
“Oh wow. What a night. We had over 200,000 concurrent viewers watching the finals,” the GeoGuessr X (formerly Twitter) account tweeted. “We are so grateful to all of you who tuned in. Thank you so much.”
Blinky eventually took home the 2024 World Cup trophy in a very close Grand Final in 3-2 fashion, with MK threatening a reverse sweep in the series.
So if you aren’t clued into the world of competitive GeoGuessr, there’s no better time than now to get into it.