Saudi Crown Prince announces new Esports World Cup

This morning, Saudi Arabia Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, announced the creation of an annual Esports World Cup, the first of which will be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, the following summer. The event will be host to tournaments across several esports titles with organizations at the focus of the event in crowning the best overall esports club for their placings in each event.

The Esports World Cup is the successor to the Gamers8 esports festival that has been held for the last two years in Riyadh. While it has not yet been announced what titles will be featured during the event, it will likely feature many of the same that were held this year, including Counter-Strike.

During the announcement, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said the event was a "natural next step in Saudi Arabia's journey to become the premier global hub for gaming and esports". The event will enhance the nation's progress towards diversifying the economy, growing tourism, and creating new jobs.

Saudi Arabia has continued their massive funding within esports, which began when the government-backed Savvy Gaming Group acquired ESL and FACEIT in January 2022 in a $1.5 Billion USD acquisition. Additionally, the International Esports Federation announced earlier this year that they would host the 2024 World Championships in Saudi Arabia.

Following the announcement, it was revealed that the Electronic Sports World Convention (ESWC) has merged with the Esports World Cup, which the Esports World Cup Foundation now owns. Ralf Reichert, co-founder of ESL, will be leading the project. The ESWC previously hosted a number of events in the beginning of the century, however they last held a competition in 2018.

Since the EFG acquisition, the nation has kicked off massive spending in what critics call "sportswashing". Saudi Arabia has been criticized for its historic and ongoing mistreatment of the LGBTQ+ community, women, religious and ethnic minorities, among others, and its reactionary and regressive positions on human rights.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who spoke at the announcement, was accused of having Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi assassinated in October 2018 due to his public dissent through social media and columns. The United States Central Intelligence Agency later concluded that the Crown Prince had ordered the killing.

Teams, format, and schedule for the Esports World Cup has not yet been announced.