Game on: E-Sports championship tournament held in Boston

Fans filled the stands at MGM Music Hall Friday to get a first-hand look at one of their favorite sports.

This game wasn’t taking place on the field or with a ball, it was happening on screen.

Thousands flocked to Boston for the “Six Invitational.”

20 teams from across 24 countries compete playing “Rainbow Six Siege,” one of the most popular video games in the world.

This isn’t just fun and games however. The tournament boasts a $3M prize pool.

“For us, it’s a huge event,” said Maxime Vial, director of E-Sports, Ubisoft. “It’s a culmination of a whole season of competition… And of course, aside from that, there’s glory of being the world champion of that year.”

E-Sports has exploded into a multi-billion dollar industry.

Many people streamed the event all over the world through sites like YouTube and Twitch.

Josh Pritchard plays for a Swiss-based team that advanced to the finals on Sunday. He says the crowd lives up to Boston’s reputation as a sports town.

“The crowd’s been really good lately,” said Pritchard. “You can feel them… I wanted to explore [Boston], but because we’ve made it so far, we’ve been doing nothing but working.”