Love esports, gaming and cool tech? Then Toronto is the place to be. Add these tournaments, festivals and conferences to your itinerary, and explore the surrounding neighbourhoods.
Toronto is one of the world’s top destinations for esports and gaming, and a thriving tech hub, and the events hosted here surely prove it. From large-scale industry and fan conventions to intense esports showdowns, there’s something for everyone. The City of Toronto has even named June Video Game Month—check out all the gaming and esports events in the city this summer. While you’re here, make a whole trip out of it and visit some of our favourite gamer-friendly restaurants and bars, best esports studios and arcades and top city attractions, too.
1. VALORANT Champions Tour (June 7–22, 2025) looks for a winner in Toronto
Valorant Masters Toronto is an esports tournament that brings together 12 elite teams to battle in the popular first-person tactical shooter game for the lion’s share of the US $1 million prize pool at Exhibition Place’s Enercare Centre. Also, at stake? Championship points for a chance to advance to the Valorant Champions 2025 event in Paris, France.
If you go: Venture outside the venue and enjoy the summer weather. Take a walk or bike ride along the scenic waterfront or travel across on the ferry to Toronto Islands. Ward’s Island is home to Toronto’s oldest residential communities, Centre Island has an amusement park and petting zoo, and Hanlan’s Point has a clothing-optional beach.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about Toronto Islands.
2. Toronto Games Week (Jun. 12–18, 2025) puts all types of games into the spotlight
Whether you love screen-based games or good ol’ fashioned board games, escape rooms or LARPing, then Toronto Games Week is for you. Programming takes place across the city—at venues such as Hyatt Regency, Fort York Library and George Brown College—and includes fun events like an indie games emporium, an evolution-themed scavenger hunt, a nighttime popup arcade and more.
If you go: Depending on your chosen programming, you’ll have so many options all over the city. At the Fort York Library? Head to Stackt, North America’s largest shipping container market, for vintage shopping, craft beers and outdoor games. At the Hyatt Regency? Try Minami, a high-end Japanese restaurant on King West, or if you’re a theatre and music fan, grab some tickets to a show at Royal Alexandra Theatre or Roy Thomson Hall.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about King West.
3. Toronto Tech Week (June 23–27, 2025) honours the industry’s biggest builders
Toronto Tech Week is a city-wide celebration featuring over 196 partner-led events. The week offers everything from panel discussions and pitch competitions to networking experiences and exclusive meetups in diverse venues across 19 neighbourhoods. A few highlights: the marquee homecoming at Evergreen Brickworks, the Shopify Tech Talk at the Shopify Toronto headquarters, and the Monday Girl x Intuit: Women in AI Meetup, which champions diversity in tech leadership. Check out the full schedule—there’s so much more.
If you go: The decentralized event will take you all over the city: King West, Financial District, Distillery District and Evergreen Brick Works, a reclaimed quarry in the heart of the Don River Valley trail network.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about Evergreen Brick Works, home to farmers’ markets, walking and biking paths, and the surrounding Don River Valley.
4. VRTO Spatial Media World Conference (Jun. 25–26, 2025) showcases virtual and augmented reality
This event is all about immersing yourself in the exciting world of virtual and augmented reality. This year, the conference, which is celebrating its tenth year, is taking place at Ontario College of Art and Design University. Participants can look forward to student project demonstrations, talks on wearables and haptics design, in-person networking with industry developers and much more.
If you go: Right next door is the Art Gallery of Ontario, one of the largest art museums in North America. Spend an afternoon—or just a few hours—exploring works from Europe and Canada, including pieces from First Nations, Inuit and Metis peoples. Kensington Market is also about a 15-minute stroll away, a walkable bohemian neighbourhood filled with taco joints, vintage shopping, coffee shops and more.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about Kensington Market.
5. The Call of Duty League Championship (Jun. 26–29, 2025) hosts top esports teams to Canada
The Call of Duty League (CDL)’s Toronto Ultra is the host for this year’s championship. Fans will flock to see top teams compete for the title in a live atmosphere. The 2025 event is an hour outside the downtown core at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium.
If you go: Make the most of your time between matches with a stroll through Victoria Park, Kitchener’s oldest park, or grab a bite at StrykerZ Kitchen and Bar (try the fish and chips or one of their burgers!). Or on your way to or from Kitchener, stop to explore one of Toronto’s many neighbourhoods or hike in one of the thousands of parks that make up our city.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about all of Toronto’s neighbourhoods.
6. Get On My Level (Jul. 4–6, 2025) welcomes fighting-game action to Toronto
Get On My Level (GOML) is one of Toronto’s top esports events featuring fighting games. It attracts players worldwide who duke it out in games such as Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8 and Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves. Held at the Sheraton Toronto Hotel and Convention Centre in the Downtown Yonge neighbourhood, this annual event is always a good time—whether you’re in it to compete for prize money or just soak in all the action.
If you go: Take a walk to Nathan Phillips Square (and snap a photo with the iconic Toronto sign!) or shop at the Eaton Centre, which boasts more than 200 stores. To fuel up between matches, check out Little Anthony's for classic Italian cooking or head to St. Lawrence Market, which has been around since 1803, for a peameal bacon sandwich, grilled salmon salad, French macarons and more.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about Downtown Yonge.
7. Vector Festival (Jul. 10–20, 2025) highlights experimental games and media
This experimental media festival was founded in 2013 by a group of independent artists and curators. It showcases digital games and creative media through exhibitions, screenings, performances, lectures and workshops. Although events take place at venues across the city, the majority are hosted at the InterAccess Gallery in the Queen Street West neighbourhood. This year’s fest is titled “404_not_found.”
If you go: If you’re at InterAccess, grab a drink at one of the neighbourhood’s classic cocktail bars, The Drake Hotel or Gladstone House. Trinity Bellwoods Park is also within walking distance, where locals spend long summer days playing baseball or lawn games, strumming a guitar, slacklining or picnicking with friends.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about Queen Street West.
8. Fan Expo Canada (Aug. 21-24, 2025) celebrates everything gaming and pop culture
Fan Expo Canada, held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (MTCC), is one of the largest annual events in the country for fans of gaming, anime and all things pop culture. Love Star Wars, Jujutsu Kaisen, Spider-Man or Deadpool? Fan Expo Canada celebrates all fandoms. Attendees can also enjoy live tournaments, meet gaming voice actors and watch insightful panels that cover topics like anime and film. There’s even a red carpet for cosplayers!
If you go: The MTCC is located right downtown near the Rogers Centre, which is home to the Toronto Blue Jays (catch a game from March to September) and walking distance to the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto’s Financial District. Hungry? The MTCC is close to hundreds of diverse restaurants—from Indian to Chinese to Mexican and beyond. Pai, the Michelin-recommended Thai food spot, is always a good choice.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about the South Core.
9. Toronto Game Expo (Nov. 22–23, 2025) connects gamers and cosplayers all under one roof
Toronto Game Expo, which takes place at the Better Living Centre at Exhibition Place, is known for its countless vendors, opportunities to meet artists, indie game developers and voice actors from your favourite franchises, and video game demonstrations galore. Get ready for some fun: vendors are selling everything from Pokémon cards to retro collectibles, there’s a cosplay contest, plus a raffle for gaming consoles and other goodies to add to your collection.
If you go: Check out the nearby Liberty Village neighbourhood, known for its millennial and Gen Z energy. Enjoy a few games and drinks at Tilt Arcade Bar or learn some history at the MZTV Museum of Television. The ever-so-geeky Medieval Times is right by the venue, too.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about Liberty Village
10. Toronto Comicon (Mar. 20–26, 2026) unites several fandoms together
Toronto Comicon, which is held annually at the MTCC in Toronto’s Entertainment District, is for fans of comics, science fiction, horror, anime and—of course—gaming. This event brings together thousands of attendees each year for live panels, celebrity photo ops and opportunities to meet their favourite comic book creators. There are cosplay workshops, vendors galore and exclusive merch (where you can nab your next set of video game posters!).
If you go: You’re just steps away from iconic attractions like the CN Tower and Ripley's Aquarium. At the CN Tower, you can brave the EdgeWalk, where you’ll walk along the ledge of the 116-storey-high attraction and overlook the city below, and at Ripley’s, you can snap photos of more than 20,000 aquatic animals. Afterwards, enjoy a beer at Steam Whistle, the city’s largest independent craft brewery.
Explore the neighbourhood: Learn more about the Entertainment District.
