The second annual Esports World Cup has kicked off in Saudi Arabia, as the kingdom steps up its gaming investments.
The tournament includes 25 games, including League of Legends, Overwatch, and online chess. Teams from around the world will compete for a total prize pool of US$71.5 million until the event’s conclusion on 24 August.
“Nearly 50 organisations – with players from 84 different countries – will descend on Riyadh to compete for historic prize pools, glory, and the ultimate championship trophy,” according to the Esports World Cup.
The event has partnered with Saudi companies like Aramco and Saudi National Bank, as well as foreign businesses like Sony, Amazon, and Spotify.
During the 2024 Esports World Cup, four of the tournament’s games reported more than 500,000 viewers at their peak. Mobile Legends: Bang Bang was its most-watched game, with a peak of 2.38 million viewers, excluding the Chinese market.
The tournament is facing boycotts due to Saudi Arabia’s poor human rights record. While the map guessing game GeoGuessr was originally set to feature at the tournament, GeoGuessr withdrew after protests from map creators and fans.
Under the kingdom’s National Gaming and Esports Strategy, Saudi Arabia is seeking to host the world’s most viewed esports events and rank in the top three nations with the most esports gamers per capita.
There are over 22.3 million gamers in Saudi Arabia, according to a 2023 Google MENA report, and 63% of Saudis are under the age of 30.
Saudi Arabia’s gaming sector could contribute US$13.3 billion to its GDP by 2030, per a report by the Saudi gaming company Savvy Games.
The National Gaming and Esports Strategy is another of the kingdom’s Vision 2030 efforts, which aim to diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy away from oil by investing in sectors like tourism, entertainment, and infrastructure.
Global esports revenue will reach US$4.8 billion in 2025, Statista projects, with nearly 900 million players by 2029.
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