Moving the Esports World Cup to Paris shouldn’t negate the concerns surrounding the event

On May 20th, the Esports World Cup (EWC) officially announced that it would move the $75m competition from its previous host, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to Paris for its 2026 edition.

As with any news surrounding the EWC, this announcement was met with divisive reactions from the esports community due to the event’s ties to the Saudi Arabian government. However, a concerning portion of stakeholders, including France’s President Emmanuel Macron, have welcomed the change of location with excitement.

This is a reminder that the EWC is nothing but a sportswashing campaign carefully employed by the Saudi Arabian regime, while exploring why the move to Paris should not distract us from the human rights violations inflicted by its organizing parties.

The EWC wishes to be seen as the annual pinnacle of esports competition, a welcoming event that entertains fans, supports esports organizations with funding, and unites countless titles and stakeholders under a single IP— a true gift to our financially struggling industry.

Another fact about the EWC is that it’s organized and funded by the same person who ordered the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018.

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

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

Popularized by Amnesty International, sportswashing describes the use of sports by oppressive regimes to mend their reputations and distract from their human rights violations. In the case of Saudi Arabia, we’re talking about the oppression of women and members of the LGBTQIA+ community, the persecution of regime critics, and the systematic exploitation of migrant workers.

For the sake of improved global business relationships and a flourishing tourism industry, Saudi Arabia would rather be associated with fun sports and entertainment activities in the eyes of Western consumers and policymakers.

If you wish to further inform yourself on Saudi Arabia’s “esportswashing” campaign and the accompanying ethical concerns, I encourage you to watch the video “Saudi Arabia is poisoning esports: We SHOULD Care.” by esports on-air talent Josh “Sideshow” Wilkinson.

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

“Following an extended evaluation process in light of the current regional situation, the Esports Foundation decided to accelerate that international rotation for the 2026 edition.”

That sounds very different from the wording used for the event’s reveal three years ago: “The Esports World Cup is the natural next step in Saudi Arabia’s journey to become the premier global hub for gaming and esports.”

Although the move to Paris was most likely due to the ongoing war in Iran, the Esports Foundation (EF) seems to be determined to present the change in the most flattering light possible. Not everyone might believe the EF’s framing, but some are certainly excited to welcome another sizeable esports event to Europe. Others have even commended the French government for its public support of the EWC.

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

So, at the expense of losing some of its strong public association with Riyadh, the EWC positions its brand closer to the values and public image of Western countries and further away from Saudi Arabia’s human rights record.

“Long term, it’s probably neutral,” esports journalist Arsh Goyal told Esports Insider in regard to this trade-off.

“It legitimizes EWC as a long-term tournament for esports fans and will probably bring more viewers, but that’s only if the event continues to exist in future years and goes back to Riyadh. With PIF pulling out of several of its titles, it’s possible that EWC will go away entirely.” 

Most importantly, though, none of this changes the organizational structure of the EWC or the violence inflicted by the Saudi regime. EWC funding remains drenched in blood. It’s just that the trail now leads to a more romantic setting. Some have argued that the move to Paris could benefit the queer community. LGBTQIA+ athletes might feel safer when attending the EWC in France instead of a country where being queer is illegal. 

However, as pointed out by Goyal: “The dangers to queer competitors were always very minimal. The whole point is for Saudi Arabia to paint a westernized image of themselves, so they’ll do anything for golf, esports, etc competitors from overseas to be as safe as possible.”

“In all of our conversations with parties in the region, our thoughts and opinions on all of these topics have been met with respect. There’s been a dialogue with an interest in learning about our perspective and thoughts,” explained Team Liquid Founder and Co-CEO, Victor Goossens, ahead of the organization’s EWC participation in 2024.

“These conversations have been approached with a willingness to talk about how a path forward might look like. And partially because of that, we believe that we have a small role to play to ensure that esports is and will be for everyone.”

One year later, journalist Mikhail Klimentov reported that Team Liquid’s support for the LGBTQIA+ community in an EWC documentary had been allegedly censored for Saudi Arabian viewers. The country’s Crown Prince knows well how to play both sides: feign a willingness to learn externally, while doubling down on persecution and death penalties within Saudi Arabia’s borders.

If you aren’t yet convinced that the current regime has no interest in learning from esports stakeholders on human rights and inclusion, allow me to cite Amnesty International’s 2025 report on the country: “Saudi Arabia executed the highest number of people on record in any given year. People were put to death for a wide range of crimes, including drug-related offenses, often involving foreign nationals.

“Women continued to face discrimination in law and practice. Saudi Arabia failed to take adequate measures to realize the right to a healthy environment.”

Not only are notable improvements unlikely to be induced by esports organizations. I also fear that Saudi Arabia’s sportswashing tactics have already taken root within our industry. For instance, the country’s first attempt to partner with Riot Games’ LEC was canceled due to immense fan backlash. Five years later, the EWC’s deal with Riot Games for all the publisher’s esports titles went through. 

I am deeply concerned that with Saudi Arabia’s increasing influence in the esports ecosystem and a growing acceptance of this influence from esports stakeholders, diversity and inclusion advancements in our scene could become jeopardized. 

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 partnership with the EWC.

If neither silent compliance nor an open dialogue with Saudi leaders will slow down the billion-dollar sportwashing campaign, what can we do to make a difference? 

As with most topics surrounding the EWC, this question has divided the esports community. Boycotting seems to be the obvious “solution” at first glance. However, the blood money offered by the event is difficult for both esports organizations and broadcast talent to decline. An industry that bleeds money is incredibly susceptible to sportswashing.

Interestingly, in his article “EWC is here to stay, but sportswashing hasn’t won,” Arsh Goyal proposed that critical EWC coverage could be even more impactful than a complete boycott. 

“I think a full boycott that ignores the event or pretends it doesn’t exist still segregates the community,” shared the journalist with Esports Insider. “Coverage that tries its best to color the EWC with the darkness of its true intentions is probably still the most effective.”

Similarly, charity streams and fundraisers held by esports stakeholders during the EWC can serve as “a reminder to all viewers that the Saudi regime is trying to paint an image that you should not accept,” according to Goyal.

With the PIF seemingly drying up, there is a real possibility that fans and professionals can withstand Saudi Arabia’s sportswashing efforts until the EWC disappears from the annual esports calendar entirely.