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When it comes to betting on eSports, it pays to get to know the players including their success and their playing style. Chinese eSports players, by nature, are highly competitive. Some even spend days in internet cafes playing their beloved games. ESports players earn a lot of money by playing well. Some even score sponsorships and deals from their skills. This has led to the birth of organisations recognising eSports players as athletes in their own league.
How are the Chinese players doing in terms of earnings? Let’s take a look at the highest-earning Chinese eSports players of today.
Highest Earning Chinese ESports Players
Lu Yao
Total Earnings to Date: $2,298,924.22
Lu Yao is ranked number 14 in the highest overall earnings. He has earned $2,298,924.22 from 59 tournaments, with the largest cash prize coming from The International 2018 when he finished second winning him $817,029.60. Also known as Maybe, Lu Yao plays for PSG.LGD.
He is a Dota veteran who played for Team Greedy together with Bu Yanjun. He moved to the Dota 2 arena in 2013 when he joined in the Chinese Dota Elite Community (CDEC), China’s most prestigious in-house league. In 2015, Lu Yao showed growth in his playing style earning two spring titles to his name, including the MarsTV Dota 2 2015 Chinese League and the I-league Season 3. He placed third in The International 2015 subsequently signing up with LGD until 2019.
Xu Linsen
Total Earnings to Date: $2,207,733.44
Also known by different handles such as fy, VG.fy. 天喔, and Yxy, Xu Linsen is a Chinese Dota 2 player who currently ranks 18th in the highest overall earnings. The largest prize he won from a single tournament is $817,029.60 from The International 2018 when he finished second together with teammate Lu Yao. Xu Linsen tops the list of the highest-earning Chinese eSports player.
Zhang Yiping
Total Earnings to Date: $2,033,175.56
Zhang Yiping is a Dota 2 player from China. He ranks number 20 in the highest overall earnings with a total of more than $2 million. His biggest prize money earned from a single tournament was $1,827,800 when he won The International 2016. He is also known as Innocence, Wings.y’. Innocence, Y., y’Innocence, and ZYP in the eSports industry. His current team is EHOME and acts as Captain and Support.
Zhang Ruida
Total Earnings to Date: $2,011,615.14
Zhang “Faith_bian” Ruida is a Dota 2 player playing for EHOME as an offlaner. From 32 tournaments, Ruida has earned more than $2 million, with as much as 90.86% of his total earnings coming from The International 2016 when they placed first. He is known for his alternate IDs including Wings.Faith_bian, bian, Vicky, Zrd.
Li Peng
Total Earnings to Date: $1,998,972.63
Li Peng or iceice is a Dota 2 player from China. A popular pubstar, Li Peng came into the professional arena through the help of xiao8 when he played as part of the team Big God. After a two-month stint with Big God, iceice transferred to Wings Gaming. His achievements include winning ESL One Manila 2016, The Summit 5 and The International 2016, where he took home his biggest cash prize of $1,827,800.40. He currently ranks number 22 in the overall highest earnings.
Chu Zeyu
Total Earnings to Date: $1,972,758.12
Also known as Shadow and Aventador, Chu Zeyu is a Dota 2 player who currently ranks 24th in the overall highest earnings. He is playing for Team Serenity as carry. Zeyu is part of the team that won The International 2016.
Zhou Yang
Total Earnings to Date: $1,995,423.02
Zhou Yang is a retired Chinese Dota 2 player who played Solo Middle. He won The International 2016 with Wings Gaming. Also known as bLink, Yang used to play in Chinese matchmaking servers where he played with Speed Gaming. The team’s success at the MLG Columbus 2013 prompted the organisation to create a Chinese team where bLink’ team was chosen. He also played as a stand-in for Team DK for WPC 2014. In 2016, bLink’s team defeated Team Liquid 3-0 to win the ESL One Manila 2016.
Zhang Ning
Total Earnings to Date: $1,837,534.96
A former DotA: Allstars player, Zhang Ning is a professional Dota 2 player who currently serves as the coach for the team EHOME. He began his foray into professional eSports in September 2010 playing for Dream along with DD, Yao, SJQ, and Li.
In 2011, xiao8 played for Catastrophic Cruel Memories together with Ferrari 430, Zhou, and ddc. With their success, they eventually moved to join Invictus Gaming for a $6 million deal. Since the team performed poorly in The International 2011 and World Cyber Games 2011, his team moved to LGD Gaming where he played as an offlaner. He eventually played as solo middle during the International 2012.
He was part of the Chinese Dream Team alongside Hao, ZSMJ, Mu, and KingJ. The team won The International 2014 where he took home $1,005,661.60.
Chen Zhihao
Total Earnings to Date: $1,761,646.83
Chen Zhihao currently plays for Old Boys and is included in the list of highest-earning Chinese eSports player. His nickname Hao came from the Chinese community who referenced General Hao for his aggressive playing style. In his gaming career, Hao has played for several teams including Nirvana.cn, TongFu, Pandarea, Newbee, and Invictus Gaming. He is a carry player who has the urge to kill, which can often make or break the team he plays for. He is one of the few players who has played in every International tournament since it began in 2011 being the one to jump boat from Warcraft 3 Dota to Dota 2.
Zeng Hongda
Total Earnings to Date: $1,746.661.60
Currently playing for Typhoon E-Sports Club, Zeng Hongda is a Dota 2 player who was invited to the inaugural International 2011 as part of TyLoo. After 97 tournaments, his current earnings amount to $1,746.661.60. After playing for TyLoo, Zeng Hongda moved to Invictus Gaming to play for The International 2012 where they managed to reach the grand finals against Na’Vi, eventually winning the series 3-1 and clinching 1st place. For The International 2017, Hongda, together with KuroKy faced off against Team Liquid where they placed second. In the same event, he won his biggest cash prize of $790,013.40.
These Chinese eSports players have successfully made a name for themselves in the industry. They were able to play competitively against other players from around the world, proving that Asians have more to offer. Almost all of these players have made their biggest earnings from winning in Dota‘s premiere The International tournament, which have been giving out the highest prize money in years.
