Qiddiya City has been announced as the Nexus Partner of the Esports World Cup, a global esports competition set to take place from July to August 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The three year partnership will see the Qiddiya Gaming & Esports District become the official home of the Esports World Cup. Starting this year, Qiddiya City is the Presenting Partner of two distinct venues: The Elite Player Lounge and The Qiddiya Esports Arena.
Abdullah Aldawood, Managing Director of Qiddiya Investment Company, said “Our strategic partnership with the Esports World Cup shows our commitment to the gaming and esports communities. Through innovative partnerships and creation of world-class assets, Qiddiya City aims to become a global gaming and entertainment hub.”
Ralf Reichert, CEO of the Esports World Cup Foundation, said: “We are very excited to join forces with Qiddiya City. When we first saw their plans to build a city that will be home to next-generation gaming and entertainment, it was hard to imagine – now, we see the progress in the construction site every day. It’s an honor to be involved in this, and to call Qiddiya City the home of the Esports World Cup in a few years.”
For the Esports World Cup, Qiddiya City has been named the presenting partner of The Elite Player Lounge and The Esports Arena. The Elite Player Lounge is designed as a place for participating EWC professional players to train, relax, socialize and prepare for matches. The lounge will be outfitted with amenities and services to help the players reach peak performance. Qiddiya Gaming will also have its own dedicated experiential zone around the competition venues where it will preview the city’s ambitious plans for the Gaming & Esports District.
Qiddiya City’s Gaming & Esports District has officially unveiled the world first Elite Esports Bootcamps. These cyberpunk themed facilities are designed for esports teams to train and prepare for competition using all the latest hardware and software. Hosting up to 20 different esports organizations simultaneously brings additional infrastructure to the industry and teams.
Launched in December 2023, the Qiddiya Gaming & Esports District will be world’s first mix-use gaming and esports district, attracting gamers from across the globe and cementing Saudi Arabia as the rapidly-growing industry’s global epicenter. Located prominently within Qiddiya City, the Gaming & Esports District will be home to multiple dedicated esports venues — one of which will be among the top three largest in the world — plus next-gen facilities that will host up to 20 top-tier esports teams simultaneously, each with dedicated facilities like scrim rooms and strategy theater –– and the regional headquarters of leading video game companies. The vibrant space covers more than 500,000 square meters of gaming space and aims to attract 10 million visits annually, with 100,000 square meters set aside for retail, dining and entertainment venues.
Qiddiya City is the latest partner to join the Esports World Cup — last year’s previous iteration of the international gaming and esports festival (Gamers8) included marquee companies PepsiCo, Razer, LG UltraGear, Aramco and HONOR as sponsors. The inaugural 2024 Esports World Cup will host major tournaments in StarCraft II, Dota 2, Counter-Strike 2, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Garena Free Fire and more, soon-to-be-announced games.
