Ready, player one?
Get ready to button-smash your way to victory because the Esports World Cup is back to the Kingdom.
The 2026 edition will light Riyadh up with RGB lights as some of the most prestigious gaming teams battle it out on the Saudi capital’s stage.
The returning event has announced 24 games so far, including the return of the oldest strategy game in the world, Chess.
What’s more, Esports World Cup 2026 will feature Ubisoft’s racing game Trackmania.
Saudi’s own team Falcon defended their crown and won the club championship last year, allowing them to take home USD$7,000,000.
Enough lore and set-up, grab your HUD and get ready. Here is everything to know about the largest Esports event in the world.
Esports World Cup 2026
First introduced in 2024, the Esports World Cup brings almost two months of gaming, music, and shenanigans to Riyadh every summer. The first-ever EWC featured eight weeks of intense gaming in the most popular games across the globe from all genres. What’s more, the cup also had a unique cross-game competition format combined with a diverse range of activities.
Over 2000 esports players from more than 200 clubs battled it out for the largest prize-pool in the sport’s history in 2025. The closing weekend featured the return of the New Global Sport Conference.
Formerly known as Gamers8, the championship will transform Riyadh into a world-class gaming festival, offering fun activities for the whole family.
The tournament is all about building passion and creating interest in Esports to more records-breaking announcements, gaming, and excitement.
The Esports World Cup 2026 location
While the official location of this year’s world cup has not been announced, if the last two years are anything to go by then the third EWC will take over Hittin’s Boulevard City.
The Esports World Cup 2026 dates
The seven-week championship is currently loading and will be playable from Monday, July 6. The championship will end with an awesome closing ceremony on Sunday, August 23.
The Esports World Cup 2026 tickets
Tickets for the giant gaming championship will go live on webook.com in the coming days.
Esports World Cup 2026 games
- Apex Legends
- Call of Duty: Black Ops 7
- Call of Duty: Warzone
- Chess
- Counter-Strike 2
- Crossfire, Mercenary Forces Corporation
- DOTA 2
- FC26
- FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves
- Fortnite Reload: Elite Series
- League of Legends
- Mobile Legends Bang Bang
- Mobile Legends Women’s Inutational
- Overwatch 2
- PUBG BATTLEGROUNDS
- PUBG Mobile
- Rainbow Siege X
- Street Fighter
- Rocket League
- Teamfight Tactics
- Tekken 8
- Trackmania
- VALORANT
More sporting events in Saudi
In addition to the Esports World Cup, the Kingdom does other awesome events like the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and Formula E. Riyadh will be bringing your favorite WWE and RAW stars to your backyard for the first-ever Royal Rumble to be held in Saudi.
Mon, Jul 6-Sun Aug 23. esportsworldcup.com.
