Indian American Saahil ‘UNiVeRsE’ Arora is World’s Top Earning Gamer

Saahil Arora, a 27-year-old young man of Indian origin is the highest-earning gamer in the world, according to esportsearning.com data compiled by Statista. Arora, who dropped out of the University of Wisconsin to follow gaming as a profession, made $2.8 million from 67 tournaments so far, with an average earning of $42,000 per tournament.

Arora, who goes by the name UNiVeRsE, plays for the team Evil Geniuses. Following him in the list of highest-playing gamers are Peter Dager, the CEO of Evil Geniuses, with $2.6 million, and Arora’s teammate Sumail Hassan with $2.51 million. The top 10 gamers in the world include five players from China, three from the US, one from Pakistan and one from Canada.

The International (TI), a Dota 2 Tournament

The players are among many others who are participating currently in the 2017 edition of The International (TI), a Dota 2 tournament. The multiplayer online battle arena video game tournament is being held from August 7 to 12 at KeyArena, a multi-purpose arena in Seattle Center with a seating capacity of over 17,000 people. Valve, the developer of Dota 2 had recently announced 11 minor tournaments and 11 majors next year.  The International 2017, the third major of this year, offers a total prize pool of $24,210,321. The winning team will get $10,538,683, which is more than the total prize money distributed ($10,225,000) during the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, Moneycontrol reported.

UNiVeRsE  aka Sahil Arora has attended every International, featuring as a sub during The International 2011, and is as excited about this year’s event. “The level of excitement,” UNiVeRsE said, according to ESPN. “The kind of feeling — fans all over the world, there are more fans here than any other event. And if you make a huge play, the feeling you get after making it is more than any other event because you hear the roar of the crowd. The atmosphere overall is just way different.”

Team Evil Geniuses has been a rage among fans in North America, and finished among the top three at TI over the last three years. While Arora remains the top performing player, 18-year-old Sumail Hassan, who hails from Karachi in Pakistan, also forms a strong core of the team. Known as ‘SumailL’, Hassan was 16 when he was discovered through in-house leagues in North America for up-and-coming talent, ESPN added. “I’ve played two TIs, and at each TI, I feel like, I’ve been the MVP,” SumaiL told the website. “It just happens at every TI. I play better than everyone else. So hopefully it happens again, and if we win … I just want to call myself the greatest of all time.”