The inaugural event will be hosted by Saudi Arabia, as revealed by L’Equipe.

This announcement follows the success of the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, which hosts 21 esports titles across 22 tournaments and aligns with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 plan, which heavily invests in the esports industry.

The IOC has partnered with the National Olympic Committee of Saudi Arabia to host the inaugural Olympic Esports Games 2025 in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

This follows the IOC’s recent announcement to establish the Olympic Esports Games.

More: https://t.co/by155ZBxfn pic.twitter.com/l7GimbPzZj

— IOC MEDIA (@iocmedia) July 12, 2024

Thomas Bach explained that the Esports Olympics would be organised within a new specialised structure within the IOC and would be distinct from the traditional Olympic Games in terms of organisation and financial model.

The initiative awaits validation at the 142nd IOC session.

The event is planned to take place at the end of 2025 to accommodate various competitive calendars.

Following the inaugural event, the Olympic Esports Games will occur every two years, with South Korea and the United States already in discussions to host future editions.

The Olympic Esports Games will feature three categories: virtual sports, sports simulations (such as EA FC24 and NBA2K), and popular esports games (like League of Legends).

The IOC aims to include around 15 games across these categories, engaging over 60 nations.

Discussions are underway to incorporate games like Rocket League and Street Fighter.

This new initiative marks the IOC’s renewed effort to integrate esports into the Olympics ecosystem, following past attempts that had limited success.

The IOC acknowledges the unique aspects of esports, particularly those games like League of Legends that are not linked to traditional sports or international sports federations.

Despite previous challenges, the IOC remains optimistic about esports’ place within the Olympic framework.

Bach highlighted the enthusiastic response from the esports community and the attractiveness of the Olympic brand.

Historically, the IOC has supported esports events, such as the 2019 Intel World Open featuring Rocket League and Street Fighter V, and the FIFAe World Cup established in 2004.

The formal approval of the Olympic Esports Games is expected during the IOC committee meeting from July 22–24, 2024.

Details regarding the specific titles and further organisational aspects will follow post-approval.

The IOC has entered into a 12-year partnership with the Saudi Olympic Committee to host the games, ensuring continuity and leveraging Saudi Arabia’s expertise in esports.

However, this partnership has faced criticism due to Saudi Arabia’s human rights record, particularly concerning women and LGBTQ+ communities.

In conclusion, the IOC’s partnership with Saudi Arabia for the Olympic Esports Games signifies a significant step towards integrating esports into the Olympic movement, promising a distinct structure and approach while aiming to uphold Olympic values.

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In a huge time of change, with Counter-Strike 2 set to become the new normal, S?rensen’s signature is set to make the Falcons a force in the global esports scene.

The announcement comes closely on the heels of S?rensen’s triumph with Team Vitality at the Paris Major, where he played a leading role.

S?rensen confirmed his departure from Vitality with media, while he also indicated Team Vitality Lars Robl was also on the move, with both set to start on November 1.

S?rensen, recognised universally in the esports community as one of the greatest coaches, has been instrumental in leading teams to victory. Notably, under his expert mentorship, Team Astralis, which previously struggled to clinch a title, went on to secure four Major titles, with three won consecutively. S?rensen’s journey with Vitality was marked by similar success, as he assisted the team in winning a fifth title within two years.

Whispers are currently circulating within esports circles, hinting at potential changes within Falcons’ CS2 roster. Sources suggest that Peter “dupreeh” Rasmussen and Emil “Magisk” Reif, both seasoned players who have previously collaborated with S?rensen, are likely candidates to join the Falcons squad based in Saudi Arabia.

In response to the speculation, Grant Rousseau, the Global Director of Esports for Falcons, clarified the team’s approach.

“They have come here because they believe in a long-term, sustainable project, one that is not about overspending or being stupid,” Rousseau said.

As S?rensen prepares to assume his role at Falcons, challenges lie ahead. The team, currently positioned at 55th in HLTV’s global ranking and without partnered slots, contrasts sharply with the well-established Vitality, which boasted talents like Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut and Dan “apEX” Madesclaire and had partnerships with BLAST and ESL.

With the first Major in CS2 set to commence its qualification stages merely two months post S?rensen taking charge at Falcons, the pressure is on.

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The Counter-Strike team defeated SAW 2-1 in the finals of the European open qualifiers, rounding off the team list in the anticipated Gamers8 2023 tournament.

The $1 million Gamers8 Counter-Strike event will run August 16 to August 20 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

9INE will join teams like Vitality, Heroic, and Fnatic, who won the inaugural European Open qualifier to claim a spot. 9INE faced off against sYnck and Team Spirit on the first day of the qualifiers before advancing to day two and beating out Aurora and 1WIN to move to the grand finals against SAW.

The series started on Ancient, which 9INE won 16-10 before SAW tied 1-1 with a 16-8 victory on Vertigo. 9INE were able to secure a win on Anubis, reaching 10-5 at map half and 16-8 by the end of the map to close the series 2-1.

Besides Gamers8, 9INE are slated to participate in other tier-one LAN events like the Intel Extreme Masters Cologne Play-in later this month. The Hussar Cup is also among their list of upcoming events in addition to an ESL Pro League Season 18 campaign in Group D.

Multiple high-profile CS:GO squads like Astralis and MOUZ failed to secure spots in the Gamers8 event. Astralis were beaten in the RO16, while Ninjas in Pyjamas faced an overtime defeat when facing SAW in the quarter-final stage of the qualifiers.

MOUZ, on their end, were eliminated in the third round of the Gamers8 Europe open qualifiers following a 6-16 loss to 1ADL. Bad News Eagles also failed to secure a place after losing to Sashi 10-16 in the qualifiers.

The list of teams for Gamers8 CS:GO includes:

• Heroic
• G2
• FURIA
• FaZe
• Natus Vincere
• Virtus.pro
• Cloud9
• MIBR
• Apeks
• fnatic
• ENCE
• Liquid
• Falcons
• fnatic
• GamerLegion
• 9INE

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The world’s biggest esports and gaming event will hold in Riyadh, in the next eight weeks. The event is to be held at the purposefully designed Riyadh Boulevard City and it is scheduled to run from July 14 through to September 8.

The event, which is themed “Gamers8 – Your Portal to the Next World,” will include fun activities such as festivals, concerts, shows, and other events. Slated to perform at the event are eight big international artists during the eight-week long tournament. It also promises to feature top professional players in the world, serving the audience an unmatched thrill.

The tournament will be done across six esports titles and organized by the Saudi Esports Federation alongside Gamers Without Borders. Gamers Without Borders area charity organization with objectives centered around the donation made out to victims of various causes such as COVID-19, vaccination efforts, and the likes.

The President of the Saudi Esports Federation, His Royal Highness Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan had spoken on the penetration of gaming into the Saudi Arabia citizenry. He stated that there exists an estimated 23.5 million gamers in the country, with at least one person in every household being a huge gamer or an enthusiast.

“With an estimated 23.5 million gamers across the country, almost every home in the Kingdom has someone with a deep passion for gaming,” Sultan said. “This passion for gaming has long been a source of pride for Saudis.”

He revealed that the country’s gaming sector’s progress is in line with the country’s greater ambitions of Vision 2030. This, he stated, was what led to the creation of Gamers8.

He made known that event’s mission is to blur the lines between what is physical and what is virtual. He boasted that the atmosphere to be experienced promises to be nothing like anyone has experienced before.

“The gaming sector in Saudi Arabia has been on a journey of progress and development that matches the greater ambitions of the country drawn by Vision 2030 – and that is epitomized by the hosting of Gamers8,” he went on. “The event in Riyadh this summer has a mission to blur the lines between what’s physical and what’s virtual and offer a spectacle and an occasion beyond what anyone has experienced before.”

“Our goal is to bring the virtual world of esports and gaming out into the physical realm of Riyadh – a global city with immense purpose and burgeoning opportunity, and the ideal setting for Gamers8. We look forward to seeing you all this summer for what will be an unforgettable, futuristic, and incredible time.”

The organizers have announced that the tournament will be broadcast live online on its official website.

The Saudi Arabia government has taken it upon itself to develop the country’s hold on any promising industry that could define the future. The gaming market of the Kingdom attained $1 billion in 2021, making it the country with the most value among the Golf nations.

In line with the country’s goal, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) birthed the Savvy Gaming Group. The SGG platform had earlier in the year acquired ESL Gaming for $1.08 billion, and also purchased the esports platform FACEIT.

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