2021 WSOP Online Domestic Leg Pays Out $18m in Prize Money

The domestic leg of the 2021 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Online Bracelet Series is finally in the books, and while the festival was generally successful, the final figures pale in comparison to the results of the inaugural series in 2020.

In the end, the domestic portion of the poker series which concluded on August 1 attracted over 27,000 entries and awarded more than $18.25 million in total prize money across 33 bracelet events.

The final event of the festival, the $500 Grand Finale, pulled in over 2,000 entries, generating over $900,000 in total prizes, but that figure fell short of the tournament’s initial guarantee of $1 million.

The final results of the 2021 series are far behind the 2020 figures. Last year, the domestic portion of the festival attracted 44,179 entries, and awarded $26,871,625 in total prizes across 31 bracelet events.

Key Facts & Figures

The domestic leg of this year’s WSOP Online Bracelet Series only saw one event drawing enough entries to reach a seven-figure final prize pool – the Lucky 7’s High Roller which also featured the biggest buy-in of $7,777.

The tournament attracted 151 entries to generate $1,113,927 in total prize money. As stated earlier, the $500 Grand Finale had an initial guarantee of $1,000,000, but it failed to meet its target after attracting just 2,024 entries.

Just 10 of the 33 events attracted over 1,000 entries, while seven tournaments had less than 500 participants.

Drop in Online Traffic Expected

The drop in participation numbers this year is understandable. In 2020, the massive turnout was mainly brought about by the influx of players playing online as a result of pandemic-related lockdowns implemented worldwide.

While most businesses were heavily impacted by the COVID-19 restrictions, most online businesses were an exception. Online poker in particular experienced a mini boom, achieving record traffic and revenue, contrary to its live counterpart.

In 2021, online poker numbers began to decline as COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted and businesses return to normal operations. While online operators have resumed hosting massive tournaments, they’ve seen a drop in participation numbers, and that includes the WSOP Online Series on WSOP.com.

The international portion of the series is currently underway on GGPoker and has been doing well so far, with over $3 million in prize money awarded across the first two events. This week, an exclusive WSOP Online Series will also kick off in Pennsylvania.