The biggest winners in esports for March 2025
There are winners and losers in esports, but who were the biggest winners of March 2025? There’s a surprising answer.
When one thinks of “esports” they’ll typically think of some sort of team-based shooter or a MOBA. If they’re a longtime fan, they’ll think of Starcraft: Brood War or Quake. Maybe even an early edition of Street Fighter.
The biggest esports winner of the month reminds competitive gaming fans of this, courtesy of his eye-popping $1 million prize. But who else made the cut?
The highest-earning esports teams and biggest winners of March 2025
March had a pair of major events within the games, with League of Legends’ first international event of 2025 going down alongside Street Fighter 6’s Capcom Cup. But of course, Dota 2 and Counter-Strike were the most active esports titles. Both games had three prominent esports tournaments take place during the month, with major winners emerging from each.
Here are the biggest winners of March 2025 in all of esports:
- Kakeru (Street Fighter 6)
- Team Vitality (Counter-Strike 2)
- Hanwha Life Esports (League of Legends)
- Team Spirit (Dota 2)
- Team Liquid (Dota 2)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9xK6zsfQ6o
Kakeru, Street Fighter 6 ($1 million)
The biggest Street Fighter 6 tournament of the year, at least in terms of payout, wrapped on March 8. The 2025 Capcom Cup closed out the 2024 Capcom Pro Tour, bringing together Street Fighter’s best players to compete for their share of a huge $1.28 million prize pool.
The event featured a head-turning $1 million first-place prize, which was taken home by Japanese player Kakeru after he beat Derek Blaz in the finals. The enormous prize was by far the biggest of Kakeru’s career, and is by far the biggest achievement in his competitive gaming career so far.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czHGFXyIDCc
Team Vitality, Counter-Strike 2 ($250,000)
Team Vitality’s Counter-Strike 2 team didn’t make as much money as the Dota 2 teams on this list, but it’s impossible to deny what the team pulled off. The squad led by star player Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut took home first-place finishes in BLAST Open Spring 2025 and ESL Pro League Season 21.
Alongside the $250,000 in prize pool earnings, the team improved its placements in the BLAST Frequent Flyer circuit and Intel Grand Slam. The kicker is that Vitality is likely to officially overcome Team Spirit as the top Counter-Strike team in the world on most rankings.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LNF0bol5LxM
Hanwha Life Esports, League of Legends ($300,000)
The 2025 League of Legends competitive calendar is a lot bigger than it has been in previous years. Part of that is because of the addition of a new official interleague event; the First Stand Tournament.
The first First Stand Tournament took place this month, with LCK representative Hanwha Life Esports winning the event and its $300,000 top prize. With the likely exception of Kakeru, the HLE roster was likely the top esports earner in March 2025 due to the comparatively high salaries offered in League of Legends.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ySztejCB3pE
Team Spirit, Dota 2 ($350,000)
It was a busy month in Dota 2 with DreamLeague Season 25, PGL Wallachia 3, and Fissure Universe 4 all taking place during the month. The events offered prize pools of $1 million, $1 million, and $500,000, respectively.
Team Spirit officially goes down as the top earner of the month across these three events. The team started March strong by winning DreamLeague Season 25 for $250,000. A fourth-place finish in PGL Wallachia added another $80,000 to their coffers, while a top-six placement in Fissure Universe 4 added another $20,000.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnEY1Efd8Bw
Team Liquid, Dota 2 ($340,000)
This is a slight cheat, as Team Liquid’s Dota 2 squad technically didn’t earn all of that $340,000 in March. $30,000 came from DreamLeague Season 25. The event wrapped in March, but Liquid was eliminated from it in February.
Still, even at $310,000, Team Liquid would’ve made the cut. $300,000 of those earnings came from winning PGL Wallachia 3. The other $10,000 came from finishing top-eight in Fissure Universe 4.
Though it doesn’t have quite as much cash to show for it, Tundra Esports was arguably the best Dota 2 team overall of the month. The European team finished top-six in Fissure Universe 4, and second in PGL Wallachia 3 and DreamLeague 25. That was good for a total of $295,000, just enough to see TL added to our list of the biggest esports winners in March 2025.
Steven Rondina is a true lifelong gamer. His earliest memories are of playing video games, and he has continued playing them throughout his life with no plans to stop any time soon. Steven’s favorite franchises in gaming include Pokemon, Dark Souls, and Counter-Strike. He has previously published with Bleacher Report and other gaming outlets.
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