PUBG Mobile's esports program for 2021 will feature a $14 million prize pool, the highest in the history of mobile esports.

The news was announced during the opening of this year's PUBG Mobile Global Championship.

Furthermore, next year, the battle royale's esports circuit will see the introduction of seven new regions in the PUBG Mobile Pro League – CIS, Turkey, Western Europe, Arabia, North America, Latin America, and Brazil.

As with this year, the PMCOs and PMPLs will be spread across two seasons, culminating in the PUBG Mobile Global Championship at the end of the year. On top of this, there will also be a PUBG Mobile Invitationals even over the summer.

A huge year

"2020 has been an incredibly special year for us as we've expanded in all aspects and completed our amateur to pro ecosystem, but this was only the beginning. We have huge ambitions to become a tier 1 esports and stand shoulder to shoulder with the biggest games in the world, not just to break boundaries within mobile esports," said PUBG Mobile global esports director James Yang.

"The huge increase in the prize pool is representative of the growth we foresee in 2021. In western regions, in particular, there's huge room for expansion, and I couldn't be more excited for the future of PUBG MOBILE esports.

"This year, we've been cooperating closely with our sponsors- Qualcomm Technologies, Mountain Dew, and OnePlus, and we look forward to continue the amazing partnerships with them and with more next year."

Since its release, PUBG Mobile has gone from strength-to-strength. Earlier this year, the game surpassed 600 million downloads.