IOC cuts ties with Saudi Arabia over Olympic Esports Games partnership: Reasons behind fallout

“The initiative of the Olympic Esports Games has created a great deal of excitement amongst all stakeholders of the Olympic Movement and in the esports community, who are all looking forward to the first edition. In the last year, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee (SOPC) have discussed the concept of the Olympic Esports Games at length in line with the partnership they announced in 2024,” reads the IOC statement.

“Recently, the two parties and the Esports World Cup Foundation sat down again and reviewed this initiative. They mutually agreed that they will end their cooperation on the Olympic Esports Games. At the same time, both parties are committed to pursuing their own esports ambitions on separate paths.

Reasons behind the split

The IOC stated that both parties agreed to part ways while continuing to pursue esports development independently.

In a statement, the IOC said, “The IOC will now develop a new approach to the Olympic Esports Games, taking feedback from its ‘Pause and Reflect’ process into account. This will allow the Games to better align with the long-term ambitions of the Olympic Movement and ensure wider participation across countries.”

Meanwhile, Saudi officials confirmed that the Esports World Cup and the upcoming Esports Nations Cup will proceed as planned.

“This approach will be a chance to better fit the Olympic Esports Games to the long-term ambitions of the Olympic Movement and to spread the opportunities presented by the Olympic Esports Games more widely, with the objective of having the inaugural Games as soon as possible. The overwhelming feedback received from the Olympic Movement stakeholders and the esports community shows that there is a great desire and considerable support for the initiative,” the statement further read.

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