The Evolution Championship Series, often called Evo, is an American yearly event that only includes fighting games. The tournaments are open to all players and use a format where competitors can lose twice before being eliminated. Like Super Battle Opera, players from around the world join, including places known for gaming such as Japan, South Korea, and Pakistan. The first Evolution event, named Battle by the Bay, featured tournaments for Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2. It was renamed Evo in 2002. Each following year, more people attended the event. Since 2005, Evo has been held at different locations in the Las Vegas Valley. From 2021 to 2025, Sony Interactive Entertainment and the Endeavor esports company RTS shared ownership of the event. As of 2026, RTS (now owned by Qiddiya City, a large project in Saudi Arabia) fully owns Evo.
History
Evo was started by Tom Cannon, who is also known for creating Shoryuken.com, a website about fighting games. The tournament began as "Battle by the Bay," a competition with 40 players in Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2. It took place in 1996 in Sunnyvale, California. Later, the event moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. In 2002, the tournament was renamed Evolution Championship Series, or EVO for short. Over time, the number of participants grew, reaching over 1,000 in 2009.
At first, the tournament used arcade machines, but in 2004, the organizers decided to switch to console versions of the games. This change caused a lot of discussion among players. As the tournament moved to seventh-generation consoles, most games were played on a PlayStation 3, though Evo 2014 used the Xbox 360 for most games. In addition to the official tournaments, there is a "BYOC" area where players bring their own consoles to play different games and hold side events.
Battle by the Bay, or B3, was organized by Tom "inkblot" Cannon, Tony "Ponder" Cannon, Joey "MrWizard" Cuellar, and Seth "S-Kill" Killian. It was held at the Golfland arcade in Sunnyvale, California, in 1996. The event had 40 players, mostly from the United States, but also included players from Canada and Kuwait. The games played were Super Street Fighter II Turbo and Street Fighter Alpha 2.
The B4 Street Fighter Championships took place in July 2000 in Folsom, California. This event added new Capcom fighting games to the lineup, including Street Fighter Alpha 3, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, and Marvel vs. Capcom 2. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was the first non-Street Fighter game included in the tournament, showing that the event could include games outside the Street Fighter series. Capcom Versus games later became a major part of Evo events.
The B5 Championships happened in August 2001 in Folsom, California. This event had a larger 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 called it "the hottest arcade fighting game of the season."
In 2002, the event was officially named "Evo." Evo 2002 took place 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. About 700 players from over 30 countries competed in nine different games. The games 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, except for Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike, which used arcade machines. This event is famous for "Evo Moment #37," where Daigo Umehara won a match by countering a powerful move with very little health left.
In 2005, Evo was first held at the Green Valley Ranch casino and hotel in Las Vegas.
Evo 2006 took place at the Red Rock Resort Spa and Casino in Las Vegas. This was the first year Capcom officially supported the tournament. For the first time, Evo included a non-fighting game, Mario Kart DS, along with fighting games like Dead or Alive 4, Guilty Gear XX Slash, and Hyper Street Fighter II.
Evo 2007, called Evo World 2007, happened from August 24 to 26 at the Green Valley Ranch in Las Vegas. Other Evo-themed tournaments were held across the United States during the year. The official game list included eight titles: 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 the use of items. A player who was not well-known defeated Ken Hoang in this event.
Attendees at Evo 2008 also got a preview of upcoming games, including 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 greatly increased attendance, with over 1,000 players competing in its tournament alone.
Evo 2010 was held at Caesars Palace from July 9 to 11. Super Street Fighter IV had about 1,800 players competing for a $20,000 prize pool. Justin Wong won the Marvel vs. Capcom 2 tournament, defeating the previous year's champion, Sanford Kelly. However, Wong did not make the top 8 in Super Street Fighter IV, losing to Vance "Vangief" Wu and Bruce "GamerBee" Hsiang. The final game of the tournament, Melty Blood: Actress Again, was chosen through a poll on Shoryuken.com. BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger was not included because the community had moved on to BlazBlue: Continuum Shift, and Marvel vs. Capcom 2 was added instead. 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 tournament took place at the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino from July 29
Outside Vegas
In 2010, the Evolution Championship organizers created a new event called "Evo vs Godsgarden" to be held in Japan in 2011. However, the event was canceled after the Tohoku earthquake and never held again. During a Nico Nico livestream after Evo 2013, Cuellar said he still wanted to hold a tournament in Japan.
At Evo 2016, organizers announced a separate event named "Evo Japan" to be held in Japan. Japanese companies Aetas, Hearts United Group, and Shochiku Broadcasting invested a total of US$1 million in the event. At the Tokyo Game Show in 2016, organizers said the tournament would take place in January 2018, with some activities planned for 2017.
At Evo 2017, the lineup for Evo Japan 2018 was announced. The games included 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 happened from January 26 to 28, 2018. The lineup focused on games popular in Japan, while other games like Super Smash Bros. Melee, Injustice 2, and Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite were not included because they were less popular in the region.
Despite having 7,000 participants, Evo Japan 2018 reported a $1.13 million loss according to financial reports by Hearts United Group.
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. The games 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, organizers announced that Evo Japan 2024 would take place 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, organizers announced that the third event, Evo France, would be held in Nice, France, 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 take place in Singapore in 2026 and that a new awards show called the Evo Awards would be held in Los Angeles in February 2025. In December 2024, organizers confirmed that Evo Japan 2025 would be held in Tokyo from May 9–11, 2025, with a lineup of Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8, Guilty Gear Strive, Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising, and The King of Fighters XV. Special tournaments would include Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike and Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O.
In December 2025, the lineup for Evo Japan 2026 was announced alongside the lineup for Evo 2026. The event would take place from May 1–3, 2026, and would feature 12 games, including 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.