Esports World Cup 2026

The Esports World Cup (EWC) is the newest major multi-title esports festival, having held its inaugural edition in the summer of 2024. It was conceived and funded by the Esports World Cup Foundation — backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund as part of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 strategy to diversify the economy through entertainment and sports.

The 2024 EWC ran 3 July to 25 August in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, covering more than 20 game titles across seven weeks — from Dota 2, League of Legends, Counter-Strike 2, and VALORANT to fighting games, mobile titles, and more. The total prize pool exceeded $60 million — the largest in esports history. Team Falcons of Saudi Arabia won the inaugural Club Championship.

What makes EWC unique is the Club Championship format: organisations earn points based on results across every game title. The club with the most total points at the end of the festival is crowned overall champion — rewarding breadth of talent rather than mastery in a single game. In its second year (2025), the prize pool grew further, and EWC is now considered one of the most significant events on the annual esports calendar.