Originally starting out as a television program to follow the raising popularity of StarCraft in Korea, the successful growth of broadcast-gaming in Korea allowed the Starleague in 2000 to become its own dedicated channel on OnGameNet. Starting out with a small prize sum and very few followers, Starleague grew tremendously in its twelve-year history. It has catapulted electronic gaming into a major competitive sport in Korea, with more viewers than other professional sports. These Starleague events regularly attract upwards of 50,000 fans. The league also brought attention to one of the most iconic players of Starcraft, Lim Yo Hwan . With the growth of electronic sports, international teams began to come to Korea in order to participate in these events and have a chance at stardom while also landing a professional contract with major teams such as SK Telecom T1 and KT Rolster. South Korea is well known for its popularization of electronic sports.
Tournaments
Ongamenet Starleague
The Ongamenet Starleague is a semi annual Starcraft tournament broadcast by OnGameNet. The Starleague dates back to 1999, but it was not until 2001 that the tournaments became a professional setting. Being the oldest professional Starcraft tournament in Korea, the Starleague is considered by many to be the most prestigious Starcraft tournament. During the first OSL Guillaume "Grrrr..." Patry would be the first and only non-Korean to win an individual Starleague since its inception. There have been a total of 34 OSLs for dating from October 1999 to August 2012. As of June 2012, the StarLeague has officially transitioned to Blizzard's newest title Starcraft 2.
Proleague
The Proleague was a Premier Brood War Team League and was formerly hosted on OGN and MBCGame. It is now solely hosted on OGN after MBC closed down its gaming venture. The Proleague allows for fans to follow their favorite team or player. It also allowed up and coming amateurs to participate in a televised setting. There have been a total of 31 Proleague events for Starcraft: Brood War from March 2003 to September 2012. As of December 2012 the Proleague has moved on to Starcraft 2. This would mark the first time since the inception of the Proleague that a non-Korean team would participate in the event with the collaboration between Evil Geniuses and Team Liquid.
''League of Legends''
The Champions is the highest level of League of Legends competition in Korea. The tournament officially launched in March 2012 and is now in its third season, just recently ending with OLYMPUS Champions Winter 2012–13. Continuing their sponsorship from OLYMPUS to hold OLYMPUS Champions Spring 2013 and eventually switching to Hot6ix to hold Hot6ix Champions Summer 2013.
