Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh is preparing to host the world’s biggest gaming tournament, the Esports World Cup, for the second time in a row. With more games and higher prize money, the event is set to reinforce Saudi Arabia’s growing role as an important player in international esports.
Running across seven weeks this summer, the event will not only showcase elite-level competitive gaming, but also deliver a festival-style experience for fans, content creators and industry professionals.
Here is everything you need to know about the contest and its key players.
Dates and venue
The Esports World Cup 2025 will take place from July 7 to August 24 in Boulevard City, Riyadh. The tournament will be held at the brand-new SEF Arena, a purpose-built venue spanning 34,000 square metres.
The complex has five halls, including a main arena with a capacity of 2,200 spectators. There are also dedicated areas for professional team training, along with multiple fan-focused spaces, cafes and content creator zones.
The size and scope of the venue marks a significant leap forward from last year and reflects Saudi Arabia’s aim to become a global hub for esports and gaming culture.
Post Malone to perform at opening ceremony
American musician Post Malone will headline the Esports World Cup's opening ceremony on July 10. The singer behind hits such as Circles, Rockstar, Congratulations and Sunflower, has recently turned to country music, scoring a major hit with Morgan Wallen called I Had Some Help.
Malone will return to the region on December 5 to perform as part of the F1 after-race concert series in Abu Dhabi.
Organisers have also announced several other artists who will perform during the tournament. These include Quavo, Metro Boomin, Don Diablo, Central Cee, R3hab and Black Eyed Peas. They'll be supported by regional musicians including Nileboi, Shaolin and Bayou.
Dino from Seventeen's official song
Grammy-nominated producer and electronic music artist Alesso has worked with Dino from the K-pop band Seventeen; American rapper and singer Duckwrth; and Telle Smith of metal band The Word Alive to produce the tournament's official song.
Titled Til My Fingers Bleed, the song is set to be performed live for the first time during the opening ceremony on July 10. It was written and produced by Alex Karlsson and T.Ma, known for their work with BTS, G.E.M. and ATEEZ, along with Jared Lee (Duckwrth), who wrote the track’s rap verse.
Record-breaking prize pool
The 2025 tournament features a $70 million prize pool, the largest in esports history. It surpasses last year’s total of $62.5 million, showing the growth and ambition of the competition.
The prize money is divided across multiple streams: $27 million is reserved for the Club Championship, with the top club receiving $7 million. A further $38 million will be distributed across 25 different game tournaments, while $450,000 is set aside for MVP awards, recognising individual performances. About $5 million will go towards qualifier tournaments leading up to the main event.
Global ambassador Cristiano Ronaldo
The tournament has appointed Portuguese football star Cristiano Ronaldo as the official global ambassador for 2025. The EWC Foundation has also announced several major partnerships, including a long-term agreement with Riot Games, covering League of Legends, Teamfight Tactics and Valorant until at least 2027. Meanwhile, Chess.com has been named as the official platform for the chess component of the tournament.
Saudi Arabia will also host the first-ever Olympic Esports Games, an initiative supported by the International Olympic Committee.
Expanded game line-up
The 2025 Esports World Cup will feature 25 tournaments across 24 titles, offering a mix of strategy, shooter, sports, fighting and mobile games.
Additions this year include: Chess, in a 10-minute blitz format, with grandmasters such as Magnus Carlsen and Hikaru Nakamura expected to appear; Valorant and Crossfire, both added after the signing of a multiyear deal with Riot Games; and Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, marking a return for SNK’s classic fighting franchise.
Returning favourites include: Dota 2, League of Legends, Counter-Strike 2, Call of Duty: Warzone and Black Ops 6, EA Sports FC 25, Street Fighter 6, PUBG Mobile, Battlegrounds Mobile India, Apex Legends, StarCraft II, Rocket League, Tekken 8, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Siege.
The selection covers both competitive popularity and global appeal, making it an international event for players and spectators alike.
Club Championship
At the heart of the event is the Club Championship, a format designed to encourage cross-game performance and consistent success. About 200 clubs and 2,000 players from more than 100 countries are expected to take part.
To win the Club Championship, a team must win at least one tournament and finish in the top eight in at least two additional events. This system rewards both dominance and versatility, encouraging clubs to build squads across multiple games.
Last year, Team Falcons, based in Saudi Arabia, won the Club Championship, with Team Liquid from the Netherlands and Team BDS from Switzerland finishing second and third respectively. With a more substantial pool of teams this year, the race for the Club Championship title is expected to garner international attention from esports fans.
Fan experience and industry summit
The Esports World Cup will also host a number of events for visitors and fans to enjoy alongside sitting in on the action.
Visitors can look forward to cosplay contests, fan meetups, livestreams, creator booths, gaming challenges, community events, live performances and merchandise zones.
Towards the end of the tournament, the New Global Sport Conference will be held on August 23 and 24, inviting industry leaders from across gaming, technology, media and sport to participate in networking opportunities.
The chief executives of Sony, Activision, Sega, Bandai Namco, Disney and the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics have confirmed they will be attending the conference. Organisers have also revealed that the conference's theme this year is “The Next Game – Building the Future of Gaming, Esports, and Sports".
Ticket prices
Tickets are on sale with options including daily passes, multi-week access and VIP hospitality packages. Prices start at 999 Saudi riyals ($266) for weekly passes. Organisers said prices for daily passes will be revealed closer to the start of the event.
Cricket World Cup League 2 Fixtures
Saturday March 5, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy (all matches start at 9.30am)
Sunday March 6, Oman v Namibia, ICC Academy
Tuesday March 8, UAE v Namibia, ICC Academy
Wednesday March 9, UAE v Oman, ICC Academy
Friday March 11, Oman v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Saturday March 12, UAE v Namibia, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri, Muhammad Waseem, CP Rizwan, Vriitya Aravind, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Akif Raja, Rahul Bhatia
RACECARD
%3Cp%3E5pm%3A%20Al%20Shamkha%20%E2%80%93%20Maiden%20(PA)%20Dh80%2C000%20(Turf)%201%2C400m%0D%3Cbr%3E5.30pm%3A%20Khalifa%20City%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(PA)%20Dh80%2C000%20(T)%201%2C400m%0D%3Cbr%3E6pm%3A%20Masdar%20City%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(PA)%20Dh80%2C000%20(T)%201%2C600m%0D%3Cbr%3E6.30pm%3A%20Wathba%20Stallions%20Cup%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(PA)%20Dh70%2C000%20(T)%202%2C200m%0D%3Cbr%3E7pm%3A%20Emirates%20Championship%20%E2%80%93%20Group%201%20(PA)%20Dh1%2C000%2C000%20(T)%202%2C200m%0D%3Cbr%3E7.30pm%3A%20Shakbout%20City%20%E2%80%93%20Handicap%20(TB)%20Dh80%2C000%20(T)%202%2C400m%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The past winners
2009 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
2010 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
2011 - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren)
2012 - Kimi Raikkonen (Lotus)
2013 - Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull)
2014 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
2015 - Nico Rosberg (Mercedes)
2016 - Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)
2017 - Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
PSG's line up
GK: Alphonse Areola (youth academy)
Defence - RB: Dani Alves (free transfer); CB: Marquinhos (€31.4 million); CB: Thiago Silva (€42m); LB: Layvin Kurzawa (€23m)
Midfield - Angel di Maria (€47m); Adrien Rabiot (youth academy); Marco Verratti (€12m)
Forwards - Neymar (€222m); Edinson Cavani (€63m); Kylian Mbappe (initial: loan; to buy: €180m)
Total cost: €440.4m (€620.4m if Mbappe makes permanent move)
More on Quran memorisation:
RACE CARD
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 – Group 1 (PA) $65,000 (Dirt) 2,000m
7.05pm: Handicap (TB) $65,000 (Turf) 1,800m
7.40pm: Meydan Classic – Listed (TB) $88,000 (T) 1,600m
8.15pm: Nad Al Sheba Trophy – Group 3 (TB) $195,000 (T) 2,810m
8.50pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes – Group 3 (TB) $130,000 (T) 2,000m
9.25pm: Meydan Challenge – Listed Handicap (TB) $88,000 (T) 1,400m
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
