Video games can count as very large threats and also as very large opportunities. One of the largest opportunities of the video game industry is " esports or electronic sports ". What is meant by this phrase is leagues that are held among video game players. With these leagues, magnificent events can be staged, abundant revenue created, and the way society experiences video games can also be directed to some extent. During the holding of the "International Sports Conference" in Riyadh, it was announced that the Electronic Sports World Cup will be held in Saudi Arabia every year from the summer of 2024. This action should be considered under this country's Vision 2030 with the aim of Saudi Arabia's economic transformation and development. It is also in continuation of a program that has taken shape since 2017 with the formation of the Saudi Electronic Sports Federation.
Electronic sports competitions
The International Esports Federation (IESF) was formed in 2008 in South Korea. The aim of this global organization was to introduce video games as a branch of sport under the title of electronic sports and to support it. This federation has also, from 2009 and in line with such an aim, held world video game competitions, or electronic sports. These competitions have been under way through 2023 in various disciplines that are categorized on the basis of different computer games, and more than 100 countries have had representatives in these competitions.
Of course, the holding of global game tournaments is not limited to the competitions of the International Esports Federation. The International competitions are one of the most popular electronic sports tournaments, held annually by the game company Valve, and many audiences (especially fans of the MOBA genre and the game Dota2) watch it in person or with Twitch and StreamTV. Other companies as well, which are generally producers and distributors of games, hold leagues centered on their own companies' games. Leagues such as the FIFA eWorld Cup, Fortnite World Cup, Call Of Duty League, Evolution Championship Series, and so on.
The economy of electronic sports
The economy of electronic sports is to a large extent tied to the issue of broadcasting and viewers. At these events, many audience members will be busy watching these competitions. Streaming services such as Twitch also generally cover these events.
Through 2023 the electronic sports market has had 3.8 billion dollars in revenue, and it is forecast that with a growth rate of 8.62 percent this figure will reach 5.7 billion dollars by 2028. It is also expected that by 2028 the market for types of electronic sports will have 924.5 million active people who play a role in it.
Saudi Arabia and electronic sports
Holding such events, like registering for electronic competitions, helps a great deal in attracting tourists, and tourism is one of the important components of Saudi Arabia's economic development. Alongside the economic motive, this country's cultural motive, in line with repairing its negative image before world public opinion, should also not be ignored.
Saudi Arabia, in line with such an aim, established its electronic sports federation in 2017. This federation operates at two levels. One, strengthening gamers to reach a professional level and the possibility of global competition. Two, creating an equivalent chain among players and gamers to empower talent and the electronic sports industry. This federation has so far held several local and global tournaments and has sought to strengthen the Saudi electronic sports market by attracting international developers.
The world's largest electronic competitions league in Riyadh
The Gamers8 (gamers8) event, the world's largest electronic sports cup, was held in Riyadh in 2022 and 2023 by the Saudi Electronic Sports Federation. Prominent commercial companies such as Spotify and LG supported this event, and well-known celebrities and singers were also present at it. During this event a set of tournaments related to gaming and electronic sports with huge prizes was held, and associations and dedicated events related to the game industry, information-technology startups and digital innovations were also present at it. Alongside these, an effort was made to provide a huge set of various recreational activities and entertainments for visitors.
The competitions related to 2022 were held in five disciplines related to the games Fortnite, Dota 2, PUBG Mobile, Rainbow Six Siege and Rocket League, and a total of 15 million dollars in prizes was set for them. The amounts set as rewards broke the record of similar tournaments. The second Gamers8 event was held in the summer of 2023 in Riyadh for eight weeks and was able to break many of its own previous records as well.
This event was watched for 62.23 million hours, of which 48 percent of these hours related to the video game Dota 2. The total prizes set for the Dota2 discipline were 15 million dollars (equal to the total prizes of the first year of this event). This is while the largest third-party organizer of a Dota 2 tournament, namely the Lima Major, in the same year had set a 500 thousand dollar prize. That means Gamers8 had set 30 times this reward for the winners.
Gamers8 of 2023, with a total of 30 million dollars in prizes and ten disciplines, was able to become the world's largest electronic sports cup event.
Holding the Electronic Sports World Cup in Riyadh
Only two months after the holding of the second Gamers8 event, bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's crown prince, announced at the "International Sports Conference" held in Riyadh that Saudi Arabia would host the Electronic Sports World Cup annually from the summer of 2024. This event is supposed to take the place of the Gamers8 event and is supposed to be even more ambitious than it. It appears that about 50 million dollars in prizes has been set for this event, and the disciplines that will be present in it will probably have more diversity relative to the Gamers8 event. Saudi Arabia is already busy preparing for this event, and it has been arranged that alongside holding the events, various recreational and attractive programs will be provided for visitors. It has also been arranged that the environment in which the event is held will be an indoor environment so that Saudi heat does not bother visitors.
Mohammed bin Salman said during the said electronic sports cup in Riyadh: "The Esports World Cup is the natural next step in Saudi Arabia's journey to become a global premier hub for gaming and esports, offering an unparalleled esports experience and pushing the boundaries of this industry."
Closing remarks
When the Seoul Game Academy was established in South Korea in 2011, perhaps no one imagined that video game competitions would one day become a national policy. But today not only are video game competitions held under the title of electronic sports, but academies and schools have been established so that children and adolescents study in fields related to video games and one day become professional video game players, or more precisely athletes!
The expansion of the video game industry and its economy has caused some governments to look at it as an opportunity. Like Saudi Arabia, which wants to become a hub of video games and electronic sports. The formation of the Saudi Electronic Sports Federation in 2017 led to the holding of the largest electronic sports event, named "Gamers8", in 2022 and 2023. Now it appears that the next step will be holding a world cup of the video-game kind in 2024.
Sources
https://esports.gg/news/esports/esports-world-cup-saudi-arabia-launches-annual-competition/
https://www.reuters.com/sports/saudi-arabia-announces-esports-world-cup-statement-2023-10-23/
https://gamerant.com/famous-gaming-tournaments-you-can-watch/#fifa-eworld-cup
https://www.statista.com/outlook/amo/esports/worldwide
https://gamers8.gg/en/about-us
Machine-translated from Persian by Namafar; the Persian original is authoritative. Read the original in Persian