As a League of Legends enthusiast that’s writing this article in a Fnatic t-shirt, I’m very much of the mind that esports isn’t dead. Oftentimes seen as a fad that came and went in the early 2020s, competitive gaming is certainly its own niche with its own problems, but it’s here to stay. When you think of esports, however, you conjure up an image of the fast-paced action of a Counter-Strike Major, or the glitz and glamor of League of Legends Worlds. You don’t immediately think of Age of Empires 2, a strategy game that was first released in 1999. But AoE esports is thriving, and Red Bull Wololo: Londinium proves it.
Taking place from Wednesday, April 1 through Monday, April 6, Wololo: Londinium saw players compete in both Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition and Age of Empires 4. With a combined $250,000 prize pool and thousands of fans piling into the Royal Albert Hall, it’s nothing to smirk at.
In a reverse sweep for the ages, last year’s winner and longtime frontrunner Hamzah ‘Hera’ El-Baher took the AoE 2 crown (that’s a pretty cool trophy to win), while Alexis ‘MarineLorD’ Eusebio continued his own victory run by beating out Daniel ‘Wam01’ Svoboda.
Per Esports Charts, the Wololo: Londinium is Age of Empires 2’s most-watched esports event to date, peaking at 109,748 viewers, with a total of 1,470,424 hours watched. In terms of AoE esports as a whole, it’s second only to Wololo: Legacy Age of Empires I back in 2022, which peaked at 113,600 concurrents.
It is, however, a new record for AoE 2, having beaten out Wololo: El Reinado, which took place in October of 2024. El Reinado capped out at 85,848 viewers, as opposed to Londinium’s 109,748. Not bad, if I do say so myself.
It’s also worth noting that MarineLorD’s match capped out at 66,705 viewers, which, after a quick peruse of Esports Charts, seems to be a new high for Age of Empires 4, too. It beats out El Reinado’s 44,239 peak, and while it’s still below Legacy, it’s yet another record broken.
Now, it’s worth noting that none of these numbers come anywhere close to some of the bigger esports titles: in 2025 Esports Charts states that League of Legends Worlds peaked at 6,752,585, Dota 2’s The International pulled 1,785,132, and Valorant Champions accrued 1,473,642 concurrent viewers. But, it’s proof that esports isn’t dying, especially for smaller competitive communities.
It’s an industry that has its issues, but overall I’m happy that it’s still growing. I started my journalism journey as an esports writer, and it’s still one of my biggest passions. So, is Age of Empires 2 really an esport? Yes, it is. And is anyone really watching it? Yes, they are. And who knows, maybe you should be, too. Plus, there’s a whole new Chinese expansion in the works for Age of Empires 4. Perfect timing, am I right?
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