The Esports World Cup Foundation revealed that Counter-Strike 2, Valve’s strategic team-oriented shooter, will make its comeback as a competitive game in the Esports World Cup—an esports event spanning eight weeks set to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during the summer of 2025. In a separate announcement, Ubisoft’s strategic shooter Rainbow Six Siege was […]
The Esports World Cup Foundation revealed that Counter-Strike 2, Valve’s strategic team-oriented shooter, will make its comeback as a competitive game in the Esports World Cup—an esports event spanning eight weeks set to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during the summer of 2025.
In a separate announcement, Ubisoft’s strategic shooter Rainbow Six Siege was confirmed to return on Thursday.
Other games officially listed for the 2025 Esports World Cup feature Ubisoft’s previously mentioned Rainbow Six Siege, Valve’s renowned Dota 2, Capcom’s Street Fighter 6, SEA LTD’s trending battle royale title Free Fire, Tencent’s MOBA Honor of Kings, and Activision Blizzard’s first-person shooters Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and Call of Duty Warzone.
Similar to Dota 2, the tournament organizer ESL FACEIT Group (which aids in organizing the Esports World Cup) operates a Valve-approved circuit for Counter-Strike 2, making it intriguing to see whether Riyadh will become an official stop for a Major-level event on its schedule.
Last year, during the 2024 competition, the Esports World Cup Foundation presented a prize pool of approximately $1M USD, predominantly won by Natus Vincere (NAVI), who triumphed over FaZe Clan in the Quarterfinals, MOUZ in the Semifinals, and G2 Esports in the Grand Finals.
The Esports World Cup Foundation identifies itself as a non-profit organization financed by a sports grant from the Saudi Government’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund. The competition is conducted through its strong collaborations and connections to state-owned organizations such as the Saudi Esports Federation, Savvy Games Group, and its subsidiary ESL FACEIT Group (which assisted in many aspects of last year’s eight-week event).
ESL FACEIT Group is entirely owned by Savvy Games Group, which is in turn owned by the PIF and chaired by Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler HRH Crown Prince MBS. EFG encompasses tournament organizer ESL, Esports Engine, competition platform FACEIT, and the esports and gaming festival company DreamHack.
