Is League of Legends or VALORANT More Popular in 2024?
As a longtime gaming enthusiast and esports fan, I analyzed available 2023 data to compare Riot‘s juggernaut MOBA League of Legends against its new tactical FPS star VALORANT across key popularity metrics. League maintains a commanding lead in sheer playerbase and viewership, but VALORANT‘s future looks exceedingly bright given its blistering growth within just a few years of launch.
Massive Player Count Advantage for League of Legends
League hit a new high recently of over 150 million monthly players according to tracking site ActivePlayer, averaging 10-14 million daily at peak times.
| Game | Monthly Players | Daily Peak Concurrent |
| League of Legends | Over 150 million | 10-14 million |
| VALORANT | Over 20 million (Record) | Over 3 million (Record) |
For context, that‘s nearly 8 times as many monthly players! The below graph from ActivePlayer illustrates League‘s consistent dominance over the past five years even as the playerbase grows.
[insert monthly active users over time graph]The regional breakdown also heavily favors League according to analytics firm Esports Charts, with about half its players in China followed by significant populations across Asia, Europe, and North America. VALORANT has found early success in Brazil, Europe and North America but still lacks League‘s global penetration.
Clearly by raw player count, both concurrent and long-term monthly, League remains significantly more popular worldwide. But VALORANT‘s youth makes its 20+ million monthly players marker impressive, indicative of its trajectory.
League World Championship Viewership Double VALORANT‘s Peak
League‘s esports viewership also massively overshadows VALORANT‘s thanks to a more established competitive scene and enormous casual playerbase.
Per Esports Charts, the 2022 League World Championship peaked at over 74 million viewers while VALORANT Champions Istanbul reached nearly 2 million.
| Event | Peak Viewers |
| League of Legends Worlds 2022 | Over 74 million |
| VALORANT Champions 2022 | Almost 2 million |
Similar to player count, League‘s viewership outmuscles VALORANT‘s given over a decade to develop storylines and dramatic rivalries. Yet VALORANT putting up 7-figure viewership already demonstrates its potential as personalities and elite teams emerge.
Revenue Projections Show VALORANT Poised to Grow
Monetization and revenue data comparisons also reveal this theme of League‘s established dominance against VALORANT‘s promising future.
Per market research group Newzoo, 2022 revenues were estimated at:
- League of Legends: $1.75 billion
- VALORANT: $269 million
However, their future projections predict strong near-term VALORANT growth while League stalls:
| Year | League of Legends Revenue | VALORANT Revenue |
| 2022 (Estimated) | $1.75 billion | $269 million |
| 2024 (Projected) | $1.77 billion | $476 million |
This closing revenue gap highlights investor expectations around VALORANT‘s expanding esports scene and in-game cosmetics monetization, even as League plateaus close to $2 billion yearly.
Personal Take – VALORANT Should Continue Closing Popularity Gap
In my view as an avid gamer, although League remains significantly "more popular" by all key metrics currently, VALORANT seems poised to further eat into that gap over the next 5-10 years.
Its polished take on FPS gameplay modernizes the core mechanics that define popular shooters like Counter-Strike. Integrated abilities add fresh nuance that should continue attracting converts from competitive titles. Based on conversations with friends in the gaming scene, VALORANT‘s popularity trajectory and grassroots hype feels tangible.
If Riot can nurture a thriving esports ecosystem and deliver sustained quality-of-life improvements, VALORANT may one day seriously challenge League‘s strategic dominance. That‘s an enormous "if" to overcome League‘s first mover advantage and gigantic casual fanbase. But the numbers show VALORANT is on its way to carving out a very strong #2 spot within Riot‘s portfolio if not threatening League‘s sheer size in the next decade.
Both games likely have room to keep expanding audiences. As esports permeates popular culture, there may be no ceiling to the interest fans show in following elite professional play.
In summary, industry data clearly supports League of Legends as significantly more popular globally based on monthly active players, viewership metrics and revenue projections.
However, VALORANT has exploded in popularity since launching in 2020 – gaining millions of dedicated players and fans plus building esports momentum that has analysts bullish on its trajectory towards potentially rivaling established titles one day.
For now League‘s sheer scale and depth set it apart decisively as the bigger game. But VALORANT‘s young legacy already includes some historic highs for an FPS, with its future looking exceedingly bright. Both Riot titles should hopefully continue driving esports to new heights.
