The Second Edition of the First Stand tournament has come to a close, and it was a resounding success for League of Legends esports by nearly every measure. First Stand 2026 showed significant growth compared to the previous year’s inaugural edition, with Bilibili Gaming emerging victorious in São Paulo, Brazil. The peak viewership saw an increase of almost 400,000 viewers from 2025. Esports Charts is here to present the initial viewership results of First Stand 2026, with more detailed analyses to follow in the upcoming days.
How many viewers watched the Grand Finals of First Stand 2026?
The excitement surrounding First Stand 2026 reached its peak during the grand finals, where Bilibili Gaming and G2 Esports captivated over 1,500,000 Peak Viewers. The finals managed to surpass the lower bracket final, where Gen.G was defeated by G2 in a match that took many by surprise: over 1,460,000 concurrent viewers tuned in to witness Gen.G’s exit from First Stand.
G2 Esports arrived in São Paulo with the weight of European League of Legends history on their shoulders — and for a significant portion of this tournament, it seemed like they might overcome it. The last time Europe secured an international League of Legends victory was in 2019, when G2 triumphed over Team Liquid to claim the MSI title. Since then, achieving success at international tournaments has been a challenge for EMEA. Karmine Corp ended the grand finals dry spell for EMEA at First Stand 2025, and now, G2 has made their first appearance in an international final in over 2,300 days — since their memorable journey to the Worlds 2019 Grand Final.
The finals delivered a thrilling series, with G2 taking Game 1 before Bilibili Gaming responded strongly. The top-seed from the LPL managed to reverse sweep G2, securing the First Stand 2026 trophy with a 3-1 victory. BLG’s Top laner Chen “Bin” Zebin was honored as Finals MVP for his impactful performances throughout both the knockout stage and the Grand Final, while Park “Viper” Do-hyeon became the first player to win First Stand twice, having claimed the inaugural title in 2025 with Hanwha Life Esports.
Despite the disappointment for G2, LoL esports fans from across the globe tuned in. Particularly, English-language viewership stood out during the grand finals, with British co-streamer Marc “Caedrel” Lamont attracting over 243,000 Peak Viewers on his co-stream.
How does the viewership of First Stand 2026 compare to the previous year?
In comparison to last year, First Stand 2026 saw an increase in viewership across various key metrics. Introducing best-of-five matches in the groups extended the tournament broadcasting duration, significantly impacting the total Hours Watched. Additionally, both peak and average concurrent viewership rose for 2026.
Viewership statistics for First Stand 2026 may undergo changes in the following days as we refine and verify our data.
The choice of São Paulo as the host city also played a significant role. Brazilian-language viewership saw a substantial increase due to this and LOUD‘s participation, with the local audience showing great enthusiasm during their matches. Vietnamese and English-speaking audiences also experienced notable growth compared to 2025, particularly during the playoffs stage where the final matches attracted a much broader, more international audience than the previous year.
However, not all demographics showed an upward trend. Korean-language viewership fell below last year’s numbers, where it was the most popular language group for the inaugural First Stand. The absence of T1 — a major global viewership driver — had a negative impact on the language’s performance, and neither Gen.G nor BNK FearX managed to match the audience numbers generated by Hanwha Life Esports last year.
With the format still evolving, First Stand seems poised to continue growing as the opening international milestone of the League of Legends season.