Esports in Canada has moved from niche community gatherings to structured and large-scale events that attract international attention. While the country is not always positioned as a global hub on the same level as South Korea or the United States, its tournament ecosystem has grown steadily.
Major cities such as Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver provide large venues, strong internet connectivity and established gaming communities that support both live events and online engagement. Canada’s esports market generated around $111 million in revenue in 2024 and is expected to expand steadily through the rest of the decade. This highlights how quickly the sector is scaling and professionalizing. So let’s take a look at some of the biggest tournaments in Canada.
DreamHack Montreal and festival-style competition
One of the most prominent esports events to take place in Canada has been DreamHack Montreal, part of the global DreamHack festival series that blends competitive gaming with community participation and digital culture. First launched in Canada in 2016, the event helped position Montreal as a stop on the international esports circuit.
Rather than focusing on a single game, DreamHack Montreal functioned as a multi-day gaming festival. It combined professional tournaments, open competitions and large-scale public participation in the same space. Individual events such as Rainbow Six Siege tournaments formed part of wider global competitive circuits, offering prize pools and qualification pathways to major championships.
Typical features included:
- Professional esports tournaments across multiple titles
- Open gaming sessions and competitions with BYOC (bring your own computer) play areas
- Expo spaces, developer showcases and fan activities
Participation was central to the format. Amateur players could compete on-site while also watching professional matches, creating an environment where spectators and competitors shared the same event space. This overlap remains a defining feature of festival-style esports.
DreamHack Montreal ran multiple times across the late 2010s, with the most recent event held in September 2019. It is not currently listed on DreamHack’s global festival calendar, showing how host cities in esports can shift over time as organizers adapt to changing industry priorities.
League-based events and franchise competition
Canada has also hosted tournaments linked to franchised esports leagues, which operate more like traditional sports with fixed teams, scheduled seasons, and structured championship formats.
Toronto has been a key location for this model. The city has hosted Call of Duty League events tied to Toronto Ultra, which rebranded as Toronto KOI in 2025, as well as Overwatch League homestand events connected to the Toronto Defiant before the league ceased operations in 2023 and the brand was later discontinued.
These tournaments show a significant long-term investment. Franchise leagues require stable markets, consistent audiences and corporate backing, with teams assigned to specific cities. When league organizers host events or establish franchises in Canadian locations, they are effectively positioning those cities as permanent parts of the competitive ecosystem, even as leagues themselves evolve or restructure over time.
The role of media, betting and market data
As esports events become more visible, they are increasingly analyzed in ways similar to traditional sports. Coverage now includes viewership metrics, team performance trends and competitive odds.
Tools such as Oddspedia bring this information together in one place, helping users compare odds, track results, and navigate the growing number of esports and betting platforms. This increased accessibility has also made it easier to compare operators and promotions across different markets. For example, users can quickly find offers such as a Leovegas bonus code available in Canada, alongside other platform comparisons, without needing to search individual sites separately.
At the same time, esports wagering does not operate under a single global framework. Regulations vary by region, and not all tournaments or operators are covered in the same way. Still, the growing visibility of data platforms reflects how esports, online gaming, and sports betting are becoming more closely connected within the wider digital entertainment ecosystem.
Fighting game and community-led competitions
Not all major tournaments in Canada are publisher-run or franchise-based. Fighting game events, particularly those centered on titles such as Street Fighter and Super Smash Bros continue to operate largely through community leadership.
Canada Cup has historically been a notable destination event for international fighting game players, helping establish Canada’s presence within the global competitive circuit. More recently, large grassroots tournaments such as Get On My Level in Toronto and Battle of BC in Vancouver have drawn significant international participation, reflecting the continued strength of the community-driven model.
These events typically emphasize open participation, in-person competition, and player-led organization. Many competitors travel internationally to attend, reinforcing long-standing traditions of grassroots competition. This structure differs from globally centralized esports such as Counter-Strike 2, where most major tournaments are run by large organizers within professional circuits rather than local communities.
Community-led tournaments highlight an important aspect of esports that is sometimes overlooked. Growth is not driven solely by corporate investment. Dedicated player communities continue to shape competitive culture, particularly in genres where local meetups and live events remain central to the experience.
A scene still taking shape
Canada’s esports tournament ecosystem is still developing. It combines global franchise events, large-scale festivals, and community-driven competitions, each operating with different goals and structures.
There is no single defining tournament that represents the entire scene. Instead, it’s shaped by a mix of recurring events, experimental formats and shifting publisher strategies.
That diversity allows Canada to host international spectacles while still maintaining grassroots competitive traditions. For now, the country’s role in esports is best understood not as a fixed destination but as an evolving stage within a rapidly changing global industry.
