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Ubisoft Leans into EWC 2026 for Rainbow Six Siege Esports
Ubisoft has announced its 2026 esports roadmap for Rainbow Six Siege, signaling a deeper strategic integration with the Esports World Cup (EWC).
- Ubisoft has formally integrated the Esports World Cup (EWC) 2026 into its official Rainbow Six Siege esports circuit as a mid-season competition held in August.
- The winner of the EWC 2026 Rainbow Six Siege Championship will receive a direct qualification invite to the Six Invitational, marking a significant change in the tournament's stakes.
- Ubisoft’s 2026 esports roadmap includes a unified Challenger Series from February to March, a season kickoff in April, and two regular Majors scheduled for May and November.
Epic Inks Deal for Rocket League, Fortnite Competitions EWC 2026
The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) has entered into a formal partnership with Epic Games to officially sanction and operate Fortnite and Rocket League tournaments for the 2026 Esports World Cup (EWC 2026).
- Epic Games has signed a formal agreement with the Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) to officially sanction and endorse Fortnite and Rocket League tournaments at the 2026 Esports World Cup.
- The partnership marks a shift from 2025, when the EWCF operated tournaments for these titles without official sanctioning from Epic Games.
- The deal includes the operation of the Fortnite Reload Elite Series, which will culminate in a championship in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, featuring a $1 million USD prize pool.
Esports Nations Cup Adds More Game Makers
The Esports World Cup Foundation has expanded the roster of participating developers for its inaugural Esports Nations Cup, scheduled for November 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
- The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) has expanded the partner lineup for its inaugural Esports Nations Cup by signing agreements with Chess.com, Moonton Games, and SNK Corporation.
- The Esports Nations Cup is a new biennial tournament property scheduled to hold its first event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in November 2026.
- The new partners join an existing roster of developers and publishers for the event, which includes Ubisoft, Tencent Games, Electronic Arts, and Krafton.
Esports World Cup Foundation Club Partner Program
The Esports World Cup Foundation has officially opened applications for its 2026 Club Partner Program, a government-funded initiative designed to incentivize international esports organizations.
- The Esports World Cup Foundation has opened applications for its 2026 Club Partner Program, which provides a total of $20 million USD in financial incentives to participating organizations.
- The 2026 program will expand to support 40 international esports organizations, an increase from the 30 clubs selected for the 2025 iteration.
- Eight organizations have already received direct invites for 2026 based on their 2025 performance: Team Falcons, Team Liquid, Team Vitality, Twisted Minds, Virtus.pro, AG.AL, Gen.G Esports, and Weibo Gaming.
Esports Breakup: Why the IOC Backed Out of Saudi Esports Deal
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Saudi Arabian government have mutually terminated a 12-year agreement to host and operate the Esports Olympic Games.
- The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Saudi Arabian government have officially terminated their partnership to develop an Esports Olympic Games.
- The breakdown in negotiations followed the transition from former IOC President Thomas Bach to new President Kirsty Coventry, who opposed the Saudi proposal due to concerns over a lack of democratic processes and permanent Saudi government control.
- Disagreements emerged over the IOC charter's requirement to work with established federations, as the Saudi government sought to bypass existing bodies like the IESF and GEF in favor of creating its own entity.
Call of Duty League 2026 Season Details Revealed
The Call of Duty League has unveiled its operational roadmap for the 2026 season, focusing on a global expansion of event locations and structural adjustments to competitive formats.
- The 2026 Call of Duty League season will host four Majors in Dallas, Birmingham (March 27–29), Atlanta, and Paris, with the Championship Weekend taking place in Las Vegas.
- The league will expand its international presence in 2026 by including a stop at the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
- Major I and Major II will feature an extended online qualifying stage where all teams play a full round-robin of 11 matches, with the bottom two teams eliminated before the Major II bracket.
Global Publishers Refine Strategies Ahead of 2026
The article outlines strategic shifts in the global video-game sector as publishers prepare for 2026. Warner Bros.
- Warner Bros. Discovery is evaluating strategic alternatives for its gaming division following unsolicited bids, amid a broader industry trend of accelerating consolidation.
- Microsoft plans to expand its cross-platform strategy by bringing Halo titles to PlayStation in 2026, signaling increased industry-wide collaboration.
- Nintendo is targeting 25 million units for its Switch 2 console by March 2026, while Xbox maintains a 30 percent margin target for its hardware business.
Fresh Round of Layoffs Hit ESL FACEIT Group
ESL FACEIT Group (EFG), a prominent international tournament organizer and festival company, has implemented a new round of workforce reductions.
- ESL FACEIT Group (EFG) has initiated a new round of layoffs affecting approximately 80 to 90 employees, primarily within its EMEA division.
- EFG CEO Niccolo Maisto stated in an internal email that this reduction marks the end of the current phase of organizational change and that no further layoffs of this scale are anticipated.
- The company described the cuts as a strategic realignment intended to reduce operational complexity and focus resources on high-growth areas, rather than purely a cost-cutting measure.
Grant Rousseau Joins NIP Group to Lead Esports Division
NIP Group (NASDAQ: NIPG) has appointed industry veteran Grant Rousseau as the new chief operating officer of its esports division.
- NIP Group (NASDAQ: NIPG) has appointed Grant Rousseau as the new chief operating officer of its esports division.
- Rousseau joins NIP Group following a three-year tenure at Team Falcons, where he oversaw the expansion of 20 esports rosters and secured back-to-back Esports World Cup victories in 2024 and 2025.
- In his new role, Rousseau will report to Co-CEOs Hicham Chahine and Mario Ho to manage operations for NIP Group’s global competitive rosters, including Counter-Strike 2, Apex Legends, and Honor of Kings.
The Esports World Cup 2025 on Live Streaming
The Esports World Cup 2025 serves as a comprehensive analysis of live-streaming performance for the second iteration of the multi-game tournament held in Saudi Arabia.
- The Esports World Cup 2025 generated 168 million hours watched, a 73% increase over 2024, and reached a peak viewership of 3.2 million, marking a 1 million viewer improvement from the previous year.
- MOBAs dominated the event by accounting for over 50% of all hours watched (85.6 million), despite representing only 5 of the 25 total tournaments.
- Co-streaming was a critical distribution channel, contributing 41.5% of total hours watched, with some titles like Warzone and Counter-Strike seeing co-streaming viewership reach 88% and 76% respectively.
Esports Charts Partners With GeoGuessr
Esports Charts and the competitive division of the geography-based game GeoGuessr have entered into a strategic partnership to enhance the data-driven capabilities of the latter’s tournament operations.
- Esports Charts has entered a partnership with GeoGuessr to provide viewership and audience engagement analytics for the game's competitive esports tournaments.
- The collaboration will provide GeoGuessr event organizers with a tournament dashboard to track engagement trends, compare regional performance, and inform data-driven decision-making for future events.
- Financial terms of the partnership agreement between the two companies were not disclosed.
Call of Duty League Team Vegas Falcons Relocate to Riyadh, Rebrand as Riyadh Falcons
The Call of Duty League (CDL) franchise formerly known as the Vegas Falcons has officially relocated to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and rebranded as the Riyadh Falcons.
- The Call of Duty League (CDL) franchise formerly known as Vegas Legion has officially relocated to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and rebranded as the Riyadh Falcons.
- The franchise slot was acquired by the Saudi Arabian organization Team Falcons in late 2024, ahead of the 2025 season.
- Star player McArthur “Cellium” Jovel, a 2021 Call of Duty World Champion, has joined the Riyadh Falcons following his departure from Atlanta FaZe.