August 27 – Together with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, FIFA president Gianni Infantino attended the maiden Esports World Cup in Riyadh.
Team Falcons, a Saudi outfit, claimed the inaugural crown following the eight-week tournament that included over 200 clubs, with a record-breaking $60 million prize pool up for grabs across 22 tournaments and 21 titles.
On Instagram, Infantino wrote: “Esports is a fascinating and growing market, and one we at FIFA are excited to be a part of. Next week, FIFAe will be running the first-ever multi-title football esports event in 🏴 Liverpool, featuring tournaments for both Football Manager and eFootball Pro Evolution Soccer.” 👏”
The FIFAe World Cup is the world federation’s esports tournament that shifted to football-focused series after Zurich parted ways with EA Sports. In negotiations, FIFA had sought to double the $150 million deal with EA Sports.
“It was amazing to see the passion that so many people have for esports in Riyadh this weekend, as the closing ceremony was attended by HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Minster for Sport of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and Cristiano Ronaldo among others…”
Infantino has long been a champion of Saudi Arabia and its Crown Prince and in December, FIFA, via a vote of its Congress, is set to award the 2034 World Cup to the Arab Kingdom. Saudi Arabia is the only country bidding for the tournament after FIFA gave other countries in Asia and Oceania less than a month to enter the race.
The country, with its poor human rights record, like Qatar before it, will face the scrutiny of the world’s media and human rights bodies.
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