Taking the Esports World Cup to Paris should not ignore the concerns surrounding the event

On May 20, the Esports World Cup (EWC) has officially announced that it will move the $75 million tournament from its previous host, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to Paris for its 2026 edition.

As with all news surrounding the EWC, this announcement was met with divisive opinions from the sports community due to the event’s relationship with the government of Saudi Arabia. However, about half of the participants, including French President Emmanuel Macron, welcomed the change of venue.

This is a reminder that the EWC is nothing more than a clean-up campaign for sports carefully monitored by the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, while exploring why the move to Paris should not distract us from the human rights violations committed by its organized groups.

The EWC aspires to be seen as the pinnacle of sports competition, a welcoming event that delights fans, supports sports organizations with sponsorships, and unites a multitude of topics and stakeholders under one IP—a true gift to our financially struggling industry.

Another fact about EWC is that it was organized and sponsored by the same person who ordered the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

Saudi Arabia’s Prince and Prime Minister, His Royal Highness Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulazizfirst announced the EWC in October 2023. The event was founded together with the Esports World Cup Foundation, the non-profit organization responsible for the EWC. Now called the Esports Foundation, the organization was founded by the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince and is directly funded by the Public Investment Fund (PIF).

The PIF is also the main driver of Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030” program, which aims to position the country as a sports and games center by 2030, in an effort to reduce its financial dependence on crude oil production. As of 2022, this investment strategy was identified as sports laundering by Karim Zidan of the Guardian.

Popularized by Amnesty International, sportwashing refers to the use of sports by repressive regimes to repair their reputation and disrupt human rights violations. In the case of Saudi Arabia, we are talking about the oppression of women and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, the persecution of critics of the regime, and the systematic exploitation of migrant workers.

Thanks to the development of global business relations and a thriving tourism industry, Saudi Arabia can only be associated with fun games and entertainment in the eyes of Western consumers and policy makers.

If you wish to re-inform yourself about Saudi Arabia’s campaign of “sports trading” and the related ethical concerns, I encourage you to watch the video “Saudi Arabia poisons esports: WE MUST BE CAREFUL.” with sports on-air talents Josh “Sideshow” Wilkinson.

“From the beginning, the vision of the Esports World Cup has been to be a global platform for esports, bringing the world’s largest celebration of competitive esports to major cities around the world over time,” EWC said when announcing Paris as its new host city.

“After an extended evaluation process due to the current state of the region, the Esports Foundation has decided to accelerate that international rotation with the 2026 program.”

That sounds very different from the words used at the unveiling of the event three years ago: “The Esports World Cup is the next natural step in Saudi Arabia’s journey to become a global hub for games and sports.”

Although the move to Paris was due to the ongoing war in Iran, the Esports Foundation (EF) seems determined to present the change in the most flattering light possible. Not everyone may believe the EF draft, but some are excited to welcome another major esports event in Europe. Some even praised the French government for publicly supporting the EWC.

“Great examples of why France is a leader in esports. Macron announces EWC, with government support to organize visas etc.,” commented esports expert Jeff Simpkins on X (formerly Twitter). “We need more of this in the UK at government level.”

Thus, at the cost of losing its strong social ties to Riyadh, the EWC is positioning its brand closer to the values ​​and public image of the West and further away from Saudi Arabia’s human rights record.

“For a long time, it’s almost neutral,” said the sports reporter Arsh Goyal told Esports Insider about the trade.

“It validates the EWC as a long-term tournament for sports fans and will probably bring more viewers, but that’s only if the event continues to exist in the coming years and returns to Riyadh. With the PIF withdrawing from several of its titles, it’s possible that the EWC will end altogether.”

Most importantly, however, none of this changes the organizational structure of the EWC or the violence created by the Saudi regime. Funding for EWC is always in the blood. It’s just that the trail now leads to a state of love. Others argued that moving to Paris would benefit the queer community. LGBTQIA+ athletes may feel safer attending the EWC in France instead of a country where being a dog is illegal.

However, as Goyal pointed out: “The risks to their competitors were always very small. The whole point is that Saudi Arabia has painted its western image, so it will do anything to make golf, sports, etc. competitors from abroad as safe as possible.”

“In all our discussions with groups in the region, our thoughts and opinions on all these topics were met with respect. There was an interesting discussion about our views and thoughts,” he explained. Team Liquid Founder and Co-CEO, Victor Goossensbefore the organization’s EWC participation in 2024.
“These conversations have been brought about to talk about what the way forward might look like. And because of that, we believe we have a small role to play in making sure esports is and will be for everyone.”

A year later, the reporter Mikhail Klimentov reported that Team Liquid’s support of the LGBTQIA+ community in the EWC documentary was allegedly screened by viewers in Saudi Arabia. The country’s Crown Prince knows well how to play both sides: he pretends to be willing to study abroad, while doubling down on persecution and death sentences at the borders of Saudi Arabia.

If you are still not convinced that the current regime is not interested in educating sports participants about human rights and inclusion, let me quote Amnesty International 2025 Country Report: “Saudi Arabia has killed the highest number of people on record in any given year.

“Women have continued to be discriminated against in law and practice. Saudi Arabia has failed to take adequate measures to fulfill the right to a healthy environment.”

Not only that significant development is almost impossible for esports organizations. I also fear that Saudi Arabia’s sports washing tactics are already ingrained in our industry. For example, the country’s first attempt to partner with Riot Games’ LEC was canceled due to massive fan backlash. Five years later, EWC’s deal with Riot Games for all of the publishers’ esports titles fell through.

I am very concerned that with the growing influence of Saudi Arabia in the esports ecosystem and the growing acceptance of this influence from esports stakeholders, the diversity and development of inclusion in our environment could be at risk.

We have already seen warning signs in this regard, for example, the removal of the “Journalist of the Year” category from the Esports Awards following its relationship with the EWC.

If neither tacit compliance nor open dialogue with Saudi leaders will curtail the multi-billion dollar money laundering campaign, what can we do to make a difference?

Like many topics surrounding the EWC, this question has divided the esports community. A boycott seems like an obvious “solution” at first glance. However, the blood money provided by the event is difficult for both esports organizations and broadcasting talent to decline. The money laundering industry is highly vulnerable to sports laundering.

Interestingly, in his article “EWC is here to stay, but sports washing has not won,” Arsh Goyal suggested that a significant inclusion of the EWC would have a greater impact than a total boycott.

“I think a complete boycott that ignores the event or pretends it doesn’t exist is still dividing the community,” said a reporter with Esports Insider. “The installation that tries its best to color the EWC in the darkness of its true intentions is probably still the most successful.”

Similarly, the broadcast of charities and fundraisers held by sports participants during the EWC would be “a reminder to all viewers that the Saudi regime is trying to paint an image that it should not accept,” according to Goyal.

As the PIF appears to be drying up, there is a possibility that fans and professionals may resist attempts to wash the games from Saudi Arabia until the EWC completely disappears from the annual esports calendar.