The Evolution Championship Series, often called Evo, is an annual esports event in the United States that focuses only on fighting games. The tournaments are open to all players and use a format where competitors can lose once but still have a chance to continue. Like the Super Battle Opera, players from around the world join, including places such as Japan, South Korea, and Pakistan. The first Evolution event was originally named the Battle by the Bay and featured tournaments for Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2. It was renamed Evo in 2002. Each year, more people have attended the event. Since 2005, the event has been held at different locations in the Las Vegas Valley. From 2021 to 2025, Sony Interactive Entertainment and the Endeavor esports venture RTS shared ownership of the event. As of 2026, RTS (now owned by Qiddiya City, a Saudi megaproject) fully owns Evo.
History
Evo was started by Tom Cannon, who also worked on Shoryuken.com, a website about fighting games. The tournament began as "Battle by the Bay," a 40-player event featuring Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2 in 1996 in Sunnyvale, California. Later, the event moved to Las Vegas, Nevada, and was renamed Evolution Championship Series, or EVO for short, in 2002. Over time, the tournament grew, with more than 1,000 players joining in 2009.
At first, the tournament used arcade machines, but in 2004, the organizers changed to console versions of the games. This decision caused some controversy. During the shift to seventh-generation consoles, most games were played on PlayStation 3, though Evo 2014 used Xbox 360 for most games. In addition to official tournaments, there is a "BYOC" area where players bring their own consoles to compete in different games and side events.
The first "Battle by the Bay" event was organized by Tom "inkblot" Cannon, Tony "Ponder" Cannon, Joey "MrWizard" Cuellar, and Seth "S-Kill" Killian. It took place in the Golfland arcade in Sunnyvale, California, and had 40 players, mostly from the United States, but also included players from Canada and Kuwait. The event featured tournaments for Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2.
The B4 Street Fighter Championships happened in July 2000 in Folsom, California. This event added new games to the list, including Street Fighter Alpha 3, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, and Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was the first non-Street Fighter game included, setting a precedent for future events to feature other games. The Capcom Versus series became a major part of Evo and Battle by the Bay events.
The B5 Championships took place in August 2001 in Folsom, California. This event had a large international audience, especially from Japan. Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 was introduced at B5, and Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was a major highlight. TechTV described Marvel vs. Capcom 2 as "the hottest arcade fighting game of the season."
In 2002, the event was officially named "Evo." Evo 2002 was held on August 9, 2002, at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Evo 2004 was held at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, from July 29 to August 1. The tournament had about 700 players from over 30 countries competing in nine different games. These included Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Capcom vs. SNK 2, Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution, Guilty Gear XX, Soulcalibur II, Tekken 4, and Tekken Tag Tournament. Most games used home consoles instead of arcade machines, except for Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, which used arcade cabinets. Evo 2004 is famous for "Evo Moment #37," a moment when Daigo Umehara won a match by parrying a powerful move with very little health.
In 2005, Evo was held at the Green Valley Ranch casino and hotel in Las Vegas for the first time.
Evo 2006 took place at the Red Rock Resort Spa and Casino in Las Vegas. This was the first year Capcom officially supported the event. Evo 2006 included Mario Kart DS, a non-fighting game, for the first time. Other games featured were Dead or Alive 4, Guilty Gear XX Slash, and Hyper Street Fighter II.
Evo 2007, officially called Evo World 2007, was held from August 24 to 26 at the Green Valley Ranch in Las Vegas. Other Evo-themed tournaments were held across the United States that year. The game list included Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Capcom vs. SNK 2, Virtua Fighter 5, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection, Guilty Gear XX Λ Core, and Super Smash Bros. Melee.
Evo 2008 was held at the Tropicana Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip from August 8 to 10. The official games were Capcom vs. SNK 2, Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Street Fighter II Turbo, and Marvel vs. Capcom 2. The Super Smash Bros. Brawl tournament faced criticism for its rules, which allowed items to be used. A player who was not well-known defeated Ken Hoang in this event. Attendees also previewed upcoming games like BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger, Street Fighter IV, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, and Tatsunoko vs. Capcom.
Evo 2009 took place from July 17 to 19 at the Rio Convention Center in Las Vegas. The official games included Soulcalibur IV, Guilty Gear XX: Accent Core, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, and Street Fighter IV. The release of Street Fighter IV significantly increased attendance, with over 1,000 players competing in its tournament alone.
Evo 2010 was held at Caesars Palace from July 9 to 11, 2010. Super Street Fighter IV had about 1,800 players competing for a $20,000 prize. Justin Wong won the Marvel vs. Capcom 2 tournament, defeating the previous year's champion. However, he did not make the top 8 in Super Street Fighter IV. Melty Blood: Actress Again was chosen as the final game after a poll on Shoryuken.com. BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger was replaced with Marvel vs. Capcom 2 after the community shifted focus to BlazBlue: Continuum Shift. G4 provided limited coverage of the event, including commentary from X-Play host Adam Sessler.
For Evo 2011, a tournament season was introduced where players could earn ranking points at eight events. The event took place at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino from July 29 to 31. It featured players from all 50 U.S. states and 44 other countries. Over 2 million people watched the livestream on UStream. Street Fighter series producer Ono Yoshinori announced a free balance patch for Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition. Tekken series producer Katsuhiro Harada demonstrated new mechanics for Tekken Tag Tournament 2 and Soulcalibur V. Other games shown included Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, King of Fighters XIII, Skullgirls, and Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition. A Skullgirls side tournament was held, with the winner receiving a special arcade stick.
Outside Vegas
In 2010, the Evolution Championship organizers announced a new event called "Evo vs Godsgarden," which was planned to take place in Japan the following year. However, the event was cancelled after the Tohoku earthquake and delayed permanently. During a Nico Nico livestream after Evo 2013, Cuellar said he still wanted to hold a tournament in Japan.
At Evo 2016, it was announced that a separate event named "Evo Japan" would be held in Japan. Japanese companies Aetas, Hearts United Group, and Shochiku Broadcasting invested a total of $1 million in the event. At the Tokyo Game Show in 2016, organizers said the tournament would be held in January 2018, with a smaller event taking place in 2017.
At Evo 2017, the lineup for Evo Japan 2018 was revealed. It included games such as Street Fighter V, Guilty Gear Xrd REV 2, Tekken 7, Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, BlazBlue: Central Fiction, The King of Fighters XIV, and ARMS. The event took place from January 26 to 28, 2018. The lineup focused on games popular in Japan, and some games like Super Smash Bros. Melee and Injustice 2 were not included because they were less popular in the region.
Despite 7,000 participants, financial reports from Hearts United Group showed that Evo Japan reported a loss of $1.13 million.
Evo Japan 2019 was held in February 2019.
In October 2019, it was announced that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate would be the main game for Evo Japan 2020.
After EVO 2022, the lineup for Evo Japan 2023 was revealed. It included Guilty Gear Strive, Street Fighter V, Tekken 7, The King of Fighters XV, Granblue Fantasy: Versus, Melty Blood: Type Lumina, and Virtua Fighter 5 Ultimate Showdown. The event was planned for March 2023.
In August 2023, it was announced that Evo Japan 2024 would be held in April 2024. The lineup included Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Guilty Gear Strive, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, The King of Fighters XV, and Under Night In-Birth II [Sys:Celes], with Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike as the Throwback Tournament.
In August 2023, it was also announced that Evo would add a third event in a new location in 2024.
In July 2024, it was announced that the third event, Evo France, would take place in Nice from October 10–12, 2025. The lineup included Street Fighter 6, Guilty Gear Strive, Tekken 8, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, and Dragon Ball FighterZ. It was also announced that a fourth event would be held in Singapore in 2026, and a new awards show called the Evo Awards would take place in Los Angeles in February 2025. In December 2024, it was announced that Evo Japan 2025 would be held in Tokyo from May 9–11, 2025, with a lineup including Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Guilty Gear Strive, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, and The King of Fighters XV. Special tournaments would feature Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike and Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O.
In December 2025, the lineup for Evo Japan 2026, which would take place from May 1–3, 2026, was revealed. It included 12 games, such as Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Guilty Gear Strive, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, The King of Fighters XV, Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, Fist of the North Star, Vampire Savior, Melty Blood: Type Lumina, Under Night In-Birth II [Sys:Celes], and 2XKO.