Which fighting game tournament is commonly known as EVO?

The Evolution Championship Series is the fighting game tournament commonly known as EVO.

EVO is an annual competition centered on arcade and console fighting games. It began in 1996 as Battle by the Bay, a Street Fighter tournament held in Sunnyvale, California, before evolving into a broader event and eventually adopting the Evolution Championship Series name.

Unlike a league devoted to one game, EVO has traditionally featured several fighting games on the same tournament program. Street Fighter, Tekken, Mortal Kombat, Guilty Gear, and Super Smash Bros. have all appeared in different editions, although the exact lineup changes from year to year.

The event is also known for its open-entry format: competitors generally qualify by registering and then playing through pools and elimination brackets. EVO is not an acronym for “Electronic Video Olympics,” a common mistaken expansion. The official short name is simply EVO.