Esports World Cup Fantasy League Launched

The Esports World Cup Foundation has launched a dedicated fantasy sports platform for the upcoming Esports World Cup, scheduled to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from July 7 to August 24, 2025. Developed in partnership with the London-based sports technology firm Genius Sports, the platform allows fans to select their preferred teams across various tournament titles to compete for leaderboard rankings. To incentivize participation, the foundation has allocated approximately $200,000 in prize money for the league.

The initiative represents a strategic effort to increase fan engagement during the eight-week, multi-title event. While the platform is currently live, specific terms and conditions remain pending, prompting caution regarding user data privacy. The Esports World Cup is managed by the Esports World Cup Foundation—a non-profit entity supported by the Saudi government’s Public Investment Fund—and is operated by the ESL FACEIT Group, a subsidiary of Savvy Games Group.

The launch occurs alongside other promotional activities for the tournament, including partnerships with Sony and Secretlab, as well as the announcement of the New Global Sport Conference. Despite these commercial developments, the event continues to face scrutiny from international human rights organizations, which have historically criticized Saudi-backed projects for their potential role in sports-washing. The financial details of the collaboration between the foundation and Genius Sports have not been disclosed.