Competitive gaming’s best eSports teams are taking the world by storm!
Over the last dozen or so years, eSports has rapidly grown in relevance and popularity. Today, hundreds of teams from around the world are vying for the coveted prestige of being known as the best players in the industry. And hey, it certainly doesn’t hurt that the other reward for such high level play is often a cash prize in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
But who exactly are these teams? The teams that are rocking the scene and bringing eSports to entirely new levels of awesome?
In this article, we list 15 of the best eSports teams, and talk a little about everything from their background to the games they play. Let’s start with entry # 15:
15. Most Valuable Player
From South Korea comes Most Valuable Player. Also known as MVP or Team MVP, the team was recognized by the Korea StarCraft II Association as an official team on December 15, 2010.
MVP has partnered up with other teams, such as American team compLexity Gaming in 2011 to form coL.MVP, and Meet Your Makers in 2012 to form MYM.MVP.
In 2013, MVP left eSports Federation, then joined Korean e-Sports Association (KeSPA) in 2014 to participate in the Proleague.
As one of the best eSports teams around, MVP has seen action in more than 250 tournaments and amassed nearly $2 million in earnings. MVP was the ultimate victor in the following championships: 2013’s Acer TeamStory Cup Season 1, 2013 IGN Pro Team League Season 1, and 2011 Global StarCraft II Team League Champions Season 1.
Among MVP’s best players are DongRaeGu, March, Genius, and QO. Its current roster includes Blaze, DeParture, horror, and Aphrodite, who sits at # 10 on our list of 11 Gamer Girls Who Are Captivating Male Gamers Worldwide.
Games MVP competes in:
- Dota 2
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
14. Samsung Galaxy
Originally known as Samsung Galaxy KHAN, South Korea’s Samsung Galaxy Pro-Game Team is a team of professional League of Legends and StarCraft II players. Samsung also used to sponsor sister teams Samsung Blue and Samsung White.
Samsung is one of eSport’s top-earning teams, winning over $2 million in prize money from over 220 tournaments. StarCraft is Samsung’s game of choice, with around 158 StarCraft II and 57 StarCraft: Brood War competitions under its belt. It produced particularly excellent Protoss players, such as active member Stork and retired member JangBi.
As a member of KeSPA, Samsung participates in the ProLeague. In many tournaments, Samsung usually finds itself among the top 10 best contenders. In the 2014 Season World Championship, however, Samsung White won first place and took home the whopping $1 million cash prize. Similarly, Samsung Blue won the grand finals in the HOT6iX Champions Spring 2014 tourney. Samsung Galaxy itself emerged the champion in the SK Telecom LTE-A LoL Masters 2014 event.
Samsung is among the best eSports teams right now, whose top players include DanDy, Looper, Mata, and the aforementioned Stork and JangBi.
Games Samsung Galaxy competes in:
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
- StarCraft: Brood War
13. SK Gaming
SK Gaming has been around since 1997, making it one of the world’s oldest eSports organizations. So far, it has participated in over 420 tournaments.
Schroet Kommando, as it was originally named, entered the European eSports scene as a small cadre of Quake players. As the team grew, it would expand to play other games, such as Counter-Strike and Warcraft III. It would also be one of the first eSports organizations to form a team composed entirely of women.
SK Gaming joined the League of Legends craze in September 2010, and was the first runner-up at the 2010 World Cyber Games. It would go on to place first in the ESL Major Series Season VIII and ESL Pro Series Germany Summer 2011.
SK Gaming often places in the top 3 of major tournaments, which should explain how it’s managed to amass a fortune of over $2.3 million in cash prizes. Its current roster includes Svenskeren, fredy122, and Fox, while former members include Wickd, FORG1VEN, and Nyph. Definitely one of the best eSports teams in the industry.
Games SK Gaming competes in:
- Counter-Strike
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- DotA
- Dota 2
- FPS Duel
- Hearthstone
- Heroes of the Storm
- League of Legends
- Smite
- StarCraft II
- Warcraft III
- World of Warcraft
12. Alliance
Hailing from Sweden is Alliance, a team that was founded in April 2013 with the purpose of supporting and promoting European and Scandinavian eSports. Since then, it has accumulated over $2 million in prize money and played in more than 100 competitions.
After its formation, Alliance absorbed the Dota 2 team No Tidehunter and emerged victorious in The International 2013 tourney, taking home the $1,437,190 cash prize. The team would go on to place first in many premier Dota 2 tournaments, including Dota 2 Champions League Season 1 and DreamHack Bucharest 2014.
In December 2013, Alliance formed a League of Legends team after picking up top players from other eSports organizations such as Evil Geniuses and Lemondogs. Rebranded as Elements, the team would also meet with success several times.
But Alliance isn’t limited to just these two games; it also has members who participate in fighting game tournaments, with member Armada focusing on Super Smash Bros.
The team’s ace players include Loda, Armada, EGM, and Akke.
Games Alliance competes in:
- Dota 2
- FIFA
- Fighting games
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
11. Vici Gaming
Based in Shanghai, China, professional eSports organization Vici Gaming is among the best eSports teams in the world.
Vici Gaming was created on October 21, 2012. At the time, most of its members had little to no professional gaming experience. After a rough start and several roster changes, the team finally met success when they took first place at the EMS One Fall Season Finals event in Poland. This would also mark Vici Gaming as the first Chinese team to ever achieve victory on European soil.
The group would meet success at many other times, rarely falling below the top 5 in most competitions. Other notable accomplishments include winning first place in the following tourneys: i-league 2014, ESL One New York 2014, The Summit 2, and StarLadder Star Series Season 12. Vici Gaming holds Sina Cup 2 and RaidCall EMS One Fall titles.
Vici Gaming has earned over $4.3 million despite competing in only 50 tournaments. It has teams competing in popular competitive games such as FIFA and Hearthstone. Vici Gaming participates in the League of Legends Pro League. Its best players include Fenrir, fy, Super, and iceiceice.
Games Vici Gaming competes in:
- Dota 2
- FIFA
- Hearthstone
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
10. Invictus Gaming
This Chinese organization is among the best eSports teams in the world, competing in games ranging from League of Legends to Hearthstone.
Invictus Gaming was founded by Wang Si-Cong (the son of one of China’s richest men, Dalian Wanda Group chairman Wang Jianlin) by acquiring the team Catastrophic Cruel Memory (CCM) for $6 million. The team had divisions for League of Legends, DotA, and StarCraft II.
The pride of the Chinese eSports scene, Invictus Gaming, or iG, has since then won the top spot in a variety of high tier tournaments. For instance, its Dota 2 division achieved first place in The International 2012. Then there are the World Cyber Games 2012, G-League 2012 Season 2, IEM Season VIII – Singapore, Major All Stars Dota 2 Tournament, and ECL Spring 2015.
In 2014, Invictus Gaming invited Korean players RooKie and KaKAO to join the team.
Having competed in over 200 tournaments, Invictus Gaming has earned more than $3.6 million in cash. Ferrari_430, ChuaN, Faith, and YYF, number among its ace players.
Games Invictus Gaming competes in:
- CrossFire
- DotA
- Dota 2
- Hearthstone
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
9. Natus Vincere
Natus Vincere is Latin for “born to win,” which is appropriate, given this Ukrainian team’s penchant for kicking serious butt in any tournament they enter.
Also known as Na’Vi, this eSports organization was created in 2009 after team KerchNet collapsed. Back then, their sole focus was on Counter-Strike. In 2010, however, the DotA section was born. They now also compete in League of Legends and Heroes of the Storm tourneys, among others.
Since their inception, Na’Vi has been crowned champion in a great number of tournaments. After emerging victorious in Dreamhack Winter 2010, they broke SK Gaming’s record by winning $220,000 in a year. Other high profile events they aced include The International 2011 (where they won the grand prize of $1 million), The International 2012, The International 2013, Alienware Cup 2013, and more. Na’Vi’s Counter-Strike team is credited as the first ever to win three major tourneys (Electronic Sports World Cup, World Cyber Games 2010, and Intel Extreme Masters) in a single year.
Na’Vi acquired a women’s team in 2013. A North American team was also formed, but this was disbanded in December 2014.
Na’Vi has competed in more than 220 tournaments and earned an amount of money just shy of $4 million. Na’Vi has been home to many legendary players, including markeloff, who was named by HLTV.org as the best Counter-Strike player, Starix (4th best Counter-Strike player), Edward (5th place) and Zeus (19th). Other stars include Dendi, XBOCT, and Puppey.
Games Natus Vincere competes in:
- Counter-Strike
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- Dota 2
- Hearthstone
- Heroes of the Storm
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
8. Edward Gaming
Chinese professional eSports organization Edward Gaming (EDG) was formed after a number of players left World Elite in early 2014 to build a new squad.
EDG’s first foray into the competitive League of Legends scene was in September 2013. In 2014, EDG took first place in the International eSports Tournament. That same year, it would continue to come out as champion in a string of tourneys, such as the 2014 LPL Summer Regular Season, 2014 Season China Regional Finals, and X Championship Season 1.
The team would experience roster changes to accommodate Korean players PawN and Deft.
2015 would see them grabbing top spot in the Mid-Season Invitational and LPL Summer Split.
EDG is currently regarded as the premier League of Legends team in China. Because the team is barely a year old, it has only participated in 40 tournaments, and won prize money amounting to just less than a $1 million. Its best players include Koro1, ClearLove, and former members U and Fzzf.
Games Edward Gaming competes in:
- Hearthstone
- Heroes of the Storm
- League of Legends
7. Virtus.pro
This Russian professional eSports organization has been in existence since November 1, 2003. It was initially a Counter-Strike team, but grew to include divisions dedicated to games such as Need for Speed and DotA.
In fact, Virtus.pro is most well-known for its DotA division, which many once considered the best in all of eSports. The team is usually associated with Vigoss, a legendary DotA player.
Virtus.pro announced its StarCraft II division in 2011. In 2014, however, this division would come to an end so that the organization could focus on League of Legends.
On September 5, 2012, the organization added its first women’s team.
Virtus.pro has participated in more than 180 tournaments. Taking first place in several events, such as Esportal Dota 2 League, MSI Beat IT 2014, and The Defense 3, Virtus.pro is one of the best eSports teams in the scene. The team has earned over $2.5 million. Its current roster includes GoD, Illidan, DkPhobos, fng, and Lil, while notable former players include LighTofHeaveN, NT, ARS-ART, and of course, Vigoss.
Games Virtus.Pro competes in:
- Counter-Strike
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- DotA
- Dota 2
- Need for Speed
- StarCraft II
6. Fnatic
Fnatic is a group composed of players from different parts of the world, who compete in a wide array of games, including fighting games, first person shooters, and MOBAs.
This global organization of professional eSports athletes first entered the League of Legends scene in March 14, 2011, after the acquisition of team myRevenge’s players. Fnatic performed shockingly well in its inaugural competitions, and eventually defeated against All authority to win the Riot Season 1 Championship.
Fnatic has not slowed down since then, and for all its accomplishments, grabbed the eSports Team of the Year Award in 2006 and 2009. Its most recent victories include taking first place in prestigious events such as DreamHack Winter 2012, Thor Open 2012, MLG T.K.O Europe, BTS Southeast Asia # 1, and 2015 EU LCS Summer Playoffs.
In 2012, Fnatic obtained a Professional Gaming House in South Korea’s Seoul – the first foreign eSports group to do so.
As one of the best eSports teams in existence, Fnatic has won nearly $3.4 million in cash prizes, and competed in over 510 tournaments. Its top players include flusha, xPeke, Cyanide, and YellOwStaR.
Games Fnatic competes in:
- Battlefield 4
- Call of Duty
- Counter-Strike
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- Dota 2
- Fighting games
- FPS Duel
- Halo
- Hearthstone
- Heroes of the Storm
- League of Legends
- ShootMania
- Smite
- StarCraft II
- Warcraft III
5. LGD Gaming
Chinese gaming organization LGD Gaming focuses on Dota 2 and League of Legends.
LGD Gaming was born in 2009, when it sponsored a DotA team called For The Dream. Its Dota 2 division has since risen in the competitive gaming rankings. As title holders of the G-1 Champions League, Dota 2 League Season 4, and Asia 2012, LGD Gaming has now reached a point where it is regarded as one of the best eSports teams in Asia and the world.
Its League of Legends division is nothing to scoff at, either, placing first in the Tencent Games Arena Grand Prix Winter 2013 and the 2015 LPL Summer Playoffs.
While LGD Gaming’s League of Legends team roster is mostly made up of Chinese athletes, it did invite South Korean players such as imp and top laners Flame and Acorn.
LGD Gaming has participated in only around 60 tournaments, but has already amassed a fortune of $4 million. Top players include Yao, Sylar, and xiao8.
Games LGD Gaming competes in:
- Dota 2
- League of Legends
4. Team Secret
When it comes to Dota 2, Team Secret is among the best eSports teams in the world, and particularly in Europe.
This young group was born when members of Fnatic, Alliance, and Natus Vincere left their teams to form a new one. The team has seen several roster changes since then, but it remains dedicated to being the strongest Dota 2 contender.
What’s amazing is that while Team Secret has competed in just over a dozen tournaments, it already boasts $1.8 million in winnings. They took first place in events such as Dota Pit League Season 2, The Summit 3, ESL One Frankfurt 2015, and the 2015 Red Bull Battle Grounds: Dota 2.
Its current roster includes Puppey, EternaLEnVy, MiSeRy, w33, and pieliedie.
Games Team Secret competes in:
- Dota 2
3. Cloud9
When financial troubles left Quantic Gaming’s League of Legends team without a sponsor, the players began competing under the name Team NomNom – the group that would eventually call themselves Cloud9.
While North American eSports organization Cloud9 is fairly young, it’s done exceptionally well in tournaments. It has attained the coveted first place in many events, such as the 2013 MLG Winter Championship and the 2014 NA LCS Spring Playoffs. In the 2015 Season North America Regional Finals, Cloud9 defeated Team Liquid to snatch the top spot.
After acquiring The Walking Zed’s roster, Cloud9 founded North American Challenger team Cloud9 Tempest in January 2014. Tempest would proceed to win first place in League One North American Cup Weeks 1 to 9.
Cloud9 has teams in several games, from League of Legends to Super Smash Bros.
Founding members Nientonsoh, Yazuki, and Wild Turtle have since left the team, but LemonNation and Hai are still active, playing alongside newcomers such as top players Balls, Meteos, and Sneaky. They have collected more than $2.5 million in prize money, and have played over 210 tournaments. One of the best eSports teams in existence!
Games Cloud9 competes in:
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
- Dota 2
- Fighting games
- Halo
- Hearthstone
- Heroes of the Storm
- League of Legends
- ShootMania
- Smite
2. Evil Geniuses
Based in San Francisco, California, Evil Geniuses (EG) is one of the oldest eSports organizations in the world, having been founded by Alexander Garfield in 1999. Then, it was a Canadian Counter-Strike team. It would also become highly regarded as having one of the greatest Quake clans in the final years of the 90s.
EG obtained a Dota team in 2008 and started competing in StarCraft: Brood War competitions in 2009. In 2010, it would expand to form a StarCraft II division, and even enter the fighting game scene with the addition of Justin Wong, Ricki Ortiz, and others in its roster.
Now, EG is among the biggest eSports organizations in North America, and has the best Dota 2 team in the Americas.
EG has been keeping its teams busy, competing in over 470 events, spread across a variety of games ranging from Halo to Warcraft III. All the effort hasn’t gone to waste. For years, EG has been taking first place in a number of major tournaments, such as the AVerMedia Dota 2 Cup in 2012, BigPoint Battle in 2013, World eSports Championships (in China) and StarLadder Season 10 in 2014, and Dota 2 Asia Championships 2015 and The International 2015. To date, the organization has amassed a fortune amounting to more than $11 million.
UNiVeRsE, ppd, Fear, and SumaiL number among its top players.
Games Evil Geniuses competes in:
- Call of Duty
- Counter-Strike
- Dota 2
- Fighting games
- FPS Duel
- Halo
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
- Warcraft III
- World of Warcraft
1. SK Telecom T1
SK Telecom T1 (SKT T1) is the eSports organization of SK Telecom, a South Korean telecommunications company. The team focuses on League of Legends, StarCraft II, and StarCraft: Brood War.
It was founded in 2002 by Lim “BoxeR” Yo-Hwan, whom many consider as the best eSports player alive, and has been home to other legends such as Choi “iloveoov” Yun Sung, Kim “Bisu” Taek-Young and Jung “Fantasy” Myung-Hoon.
To many eSports enthusiasts, SKT T1 is the world’s greatest League of Legends team, and for good reason; between 2003 and 2015, it has been crowned the champion in a host of tourneys, including the OGN Champions Finals, Season 3 World Championship. Most recently, it took the top spot in the 2015 LCK Spring Playoffs, LOL Championship Summer Season 2015, and SK Telecom Proleague 2015.
SKT T1 has earned over $3 million from more than 157 tournaments. Its current roster includes stars such as MaRin, Faker, and bengi. One of the best eSports teams in the world!
Games SK Telecom T1 competes in:
- League of Legends
- StarCraft II
- StarCraft: Brood War
Do you agree with our list of the 15 best eSports teams in the world? Who are your favorite eSports teams? Share your opinions with us in the comments section below!
And if you’re hungry for more eSports, check out the following articles!
How to Become a Pro Gamer in Less Than 2 Years
Esports: 11 Interesting Facts about the Rapidly Growing Industry
10 Most Popular Esports Games in 2015
10 Countries where Esports is Growing Massively
11 Gamer Girls Who Are Captivating Male Gamers Worldwide
