The Super Smash Bros. Ultimate final was the most watched Evo tournament in the event’s history.

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was the last game at Evo 2019. Its final matches brought in 279,000 combined viewers on Twitch, well above any other game in Evo history.

This record was pointed out by esports consultant Rod “Slasher” Breslau on Twitter, who added that Dragon Ball FighterZ still holds the record for the highest number of viewers for a single stream (main channel) at 258,000, which it achieved last year.

Smash Bros Ultimate has set the record for the highest peak viewership in EVO history for any game at over 279,000 Smash 4 lyfe #EVO19 pic.twitter.com/yTdc3PyrLu — Rod Breslau (@Slasher) August 5, 2019

This new peak is surprising for a few reasons. First, Smash is generally assumed to be among the more niche fighting games at Evo. Street Fighter traditionally closes out the show, but not this year. More importantly, the prize money for Smash tournaments are generally low, with top eight finalists earning less than $500.

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This year’s Evo also skipped Super Smash Bros. Melee, a mainstay and favourite of many. This move could have caused viewers to skip Ultimate streams altogether, but that didn’t happen.

For a round-up of all tournament winners, see our Evo 2019 winners story.