The 2024 Esports World Cup is poised to become the most significant event in the industry’s history, boasting over a dozen individual esports tournaments and an exceptionally high prize pool. Here’s everything you need to know about this Saudi Arabian extravaganza.
The Esports World Cup succeeds the Gamers8 festival organized by the Saudi Esports Federation in 2022 and 2023, which showcased multiple high-profile esports tournaments. With the Saudi government consolidating the esports industry under the Savvy Games Group umbrella, which acquired both ESL and FACEIT, the conglomerate is uniting almost every major esports entity for its summer tournament in Riyadh.
In addition to the individual esports events, there will be a cross-game competition among the participating organizations, with one being crowned the inaugural Esports World Cup Champion. Last year’s Gamers8 event featured a combined prize pool of around $45 million, and this tournament is poised to surpass it significantly.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Esports World Cup.
ESPORTS WORLD CUP: SCHEDULE
The stage is set! 🏆🔥
Only one club can reach the top and become the Esports World Cup champion! 👑 #esportsworldcup #futureofesports pic.twitter.com/QPNFFrTIzm
— Esports World Cup (@ESWCgg) October 30, 2023
The complete schedule for the Esports World Cup is yet to be released. Some esports events are conducting open qualifiers in April and May, suggesting a start date in June or July for the main event. In 2023, Gamers8 commenced on July 6.
The tournament is likely to either integrate into the participating esports’ circuits or operate as a third-party event, filling a gap in their schedules.
The event will span eight weeks and will be held in the capital city of Riyadh.
This section will be updated as more information becomes available.
ESPORTS WORLD CUP: ESPORTS TOURNAMENTS
Nineteen esports titles are confirmed to appear at the Esports World Cup, including:
- Counter-Strike 2
- Dota 2
- EAFC
- Apex Legends
- Fortnite
- Garena Free Fire
- Honor of Kings
- League of Legends
- Mobile Legends Bang Bang
- Overwatch 2
- PUBG
- PUBG Mobile
- Rainbow Six
- RENNSPORT
- Rocket League
- StarCraft II
- Street Fighter 6
- TEKKEN 8
ESPORTS WORLD CUP: PRIZE MONEY
The Esports World Cup is set to feature the largest prize pool ever, although the organizer has yet to disclose the purse for each tournament or the bonus for the cross-tournament champion.
Fans can expect the combined prize pool across its over a dozen tournaments to exceed last year’s $45 million pot. That prize pool was the combination of 13 esports events and some cross-tournament incentives, as the 2024 event will include headliners like League of Legends, Overwatch 2, and Apex Legends.