Taking over from the previous Gamers8 tournaments, the Esports World Cup will boast a staggering US$60 million prize pool, as it aims to be the largest esports event to date.

However, its location in Saudi Arabia, a country criticized for its human rights record, has sparked debate within the gaming community.

The tournament will feature 20 distinct tournaments across a variety of titles, and they include:

Each tournament will follow a unique format while contributing to the larger Club Championship.

This innovative competition will award US$20 million to the top 16 clubs based on their performance across multiple titles.

The prize pool distribution includes over US$33 million for individual game tournaments, US$20 million for the Club Championship, US$1.1 million for MVP awards, and US$7.6 million for qualifying rewards.

The significant investment reflects the organizers’ commitment to fostering the global esports industry and providing substantial opportunities for players and clubs.

Despite the financial allure, the event’s association with Saudi Arabia has drawn criticism.

The country’s track record on LGBTQ+ rights, gender equality, and free speech clashes with the inclusive values often espoused by the gaming community.

However, for many esports organizations grappling with financial challenges, the opportunity to compete for such substantial prizes may outweigh ethical concerns.

The Esports World Cup represents a pivotal moment for esports, aiming to elevate the industry to the scale of traditional sports events like the Olympics.

With the backing of the Saudi Arabian government and a clear vision for growth, the tournament seeks to establish Riyadh as a global hub for gaming and esports.

As preparations for the event continue, details regarding specific tournament formats, dates, and prize pool distributions will be eagerly awaited by fans and participants alike.

While the debate over the tournament’s location may persist, the Esports World Cup signals a significant milestone in the continued evolution of competitive gaming on the world stage.

#EsportsWorldCup 2024 prize pool in a nutshell:
$30,000,000+ | Game Championships
$20,000,000 | Club Championship
$7,600,000 | Qualifiers
$1,100,000 | MVP Awards pic.twitter.com/LNGa1v8V8e

— Esports World Cup (@ESWCgg) April 16, 2024

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This partnership aims to forge a ground-breaking gaming and entertainment universe that merges Disney’s iconic brands and Epic’s gaming expertise.

Robert A. Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, expressed enthusiasm for the collaboration, stating, “Our exciting new relationship with Epic Games will bring together Disney’s beloved brands and franchises with the hugely popular Fortnite in a transformational new games and entertainment universe.”

He emphasized the vast potential for growth and expansion that this venture represents for Disney.

Tim Sweeney, CEO and Founder of Epic Games, highlighted Disney’s early recognition of the synergy between their respective worlds in Fortnite.

“Disney was one of the first companies to believe in the potential of bringing their worlds together with ours in Fortnite, and they use Unreal Engine across their portfolio,” Sweeney said.

He emphasized their joint effort to create a persistent, open, and interoperable ecosystem that would unite the Disney and Fortnite communities.

Creating a new universe @Disney x Epic Gameshttps://t.co/gTwt5e3dpz pic.twitter.com/iPC0T2FlzU

— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) February 7, 2024

The collaboration is expected to yield a multi-year project, although specific details regarding its scope and release date are yet to be disclosed.

However, given the success of previous collaborations between Disney and Epic within Fortnite, such as featuring Marvel and Star Wars skins and hosting live events like the Marvel Nexus War with Galactus, anticipation is high for what this expansive new universe will entail.

Overall, Disney’s investment in Epic Games signals a significant foray into the gaming industry, promising fans innovative and immersive experiences that blend the magic of Disney’s storytelling with the interactive world of gaming.

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Despite the dominance of ESL FACEIT Group in the industry, BLAST has expanded its influence, taking over commercial rights for competitive broadcasts and events for both games.

Initially partnering with Epic Games in 2021 for Fortnite events, BLAST has now renewed and expanded the collaboration, handling all operations for the Fortnite Championship Series (FNCS) and venturing into the Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS).

This move comes as a surprise to those who expected BLAST to contract following the ESL-FACEIT merger.

BLAST, known for its prominent role in Counter-Strike with BLAST Premier, has been strategic in its expansion, also overseeing leagues and events in Rainbow Six Siege and FNCS.

The company’s ability to operate within the margins, securing contracts for esports beyond traditional sports arenas, signals a positive outlook for diversified competition among tournament organizers.

While ESL’s vast resources could potentially dominate the market, BLAST’s flexibility and ability to secure contracts for esports with varying levels of popularity showcase a healthier competition landscape.

The expansion into RLCS marks a significant step for BLAST, taking charge of all league operations for the FNCS and RLCS, demonstrating its commitment to elevating and growing competitive properties in collaboration with major game publishers like Epic Games.

BLAST Epic Games

We have announced a multi-year deal & collaboration with Epic Games to run their prestigious competitive tournaments, the @FNCompetitive (FNCS) and @RLEsports (RLCS) starting in 2024.

Read more: https://t.co/dbo5FXzzBV pic.twitter.com/GQKNMnX6Ph

— BLAST (@BLASTEsports) January 4, 2024

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This move accounts for roughly 16% of the workforce. Of these job cuts, around 250 employees are connected to Epic’s divestiture of Bandcamp and SuperAwesome.

The decision to reduce the workforce comes as a response to Epic’s financial situation.

Sweeney acknowledged that the company has been operating at a deficit, attributing it to their investments in the development of the Epic ecosystem and the growth of Fortnite as a metaverse-inspired platform for content creators.

While Fortnite is seeing renewed growth, it relies heavily on creator content with a substantial revenue-sharing model, which has lower profit margins compared to the early days when Fortnite Battle Royale funded their expansion.

This shift in business model necessitated a major structural change in the company’s financial approach.

Sweeney emphasized that Epic had been making continuous efforts to trim costs globally, such as freezing new hiring and reducing expenses in areas like marketing and events.

However, these efforts fell short of achieving financial sustainability, prompting the layoffs as a necessary step to stabilize the company’s finances.

Employees affected by the layoffs will receive a severance package consisting of six months’ base pay and six months of Epic-paid healthcare, applicable in the US, Canada, and Brazil.

Additionally, Epic is offering an accelerated stock option vesting schedule until the end of 2024, granting two extra years for option exercise.

In the US, they are also allowing unearned profit sharing from employees’ 401k accounts to vest.

The company will provide support for career transition services and visa-related matters where feasible.

Epic has asserted that these layoffs mark the conclusion of their restructuring efforts and will bring financial stability to the company moving forward.

This decision coincides with their ongoing legal battle with Apple over antitrust issues and a recent announcement that Fortnite’s in-game currency, V-Bucks, will see a price increase due to inflation.

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Raidiant is a content and initiative platform focused on creating and celebrating opportunities for female gamers. The platform was created by Dignitas’ parent company, New Meta Entertainment, in November 2021.

The RCC is a new event series that will offer women competitive, influencer-driven, and pro-am tournaments across five popular game titles, including include Valorant, Rocket League, Fortnite, Overwatch 2, and League of Legends.

“As we continue to demonstrate that there’s a substantial appetite for more women’s esports programming,” Head of Raidiant Heather Garozzo said.

“I look forwards to expanding upon our events and working with even more brands to support the community and provide opportunities for the thousands of women participants, talent, producers, and gaming professionals who make all of this possible.”

Raidiant and Twitch also signed a co-sales agreement, placing the streaming platform as Raidiant Challenger Circuit’s exclusive sponsorship sales partner. Twitch will partner with multiple top brands in order to promote their event series and the events while supporting the community.

“We are thrilled to be part of the Raidiant Challenger Circuit. Our goal with this programme is to amplify the amazing work that Raidiant continues to do to provide a platform for women in gaming to compete at the highest level and inspire the next generation of women in esports,” Twitch’s global head of sponsorship sales, Lou Garate, said.

“Women have always been a part of gaming culture, and it’s important that we continue to celebrate and champion their impact.”

“By securing sponsors for the Raidiant Challenger Circuit, we want to support the continued growth of this fundamental sector of the gaming industry.”

The Raidiant Heroes Major will be the first event in the year-long programme. The competition is part of Blizzard’s Calling All Heroes initiative to lend a hand to marginalised groups in Overwatch 2.

The tournament will kick off on April 21 and conclude on April 23. Other RCC events will be held from July 7 to 9, then from November 17 to 19, before ending on January 17 to 19, 2024, in a Last Chance Qualifier.

Besides the recent partnership with Twitch, the platform has also collaborated with brands like NYX Cosmetics, Nerdy St. Gamers, and Twitter.

Raidiant also recently hosted Psyonix’s Ally Women’s Open tournament for female Rocket League teams in North America and Europe.

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In a complaint announced in December as part of a settlement package with Epic, the FTC said that the company deployed a variety of design tricks known as ‘dark patterns’ aimed at getting consumers of all ages to make unintended in-game purchases.

The FTC claims that “Fortnite’s counterintuitive, inconsistent, and confusing button configuration led players to incur unwanted charges based on the press of a single button”, making it easy for children to make purchases while playing Fortnite without any parental consent.

According to the FTC’s complaint, Epic locked the accounts of customers who disputed unauthorised charges with their credit card companies.

The FTC has ordered Epic to pay $245 million, which will be used to provide refunds to consumers, as well as barring the company from blocking consumers from accessing their accounts for disputing unauthorised charges.

As part of the $520 million settlement announced in December last year, Epic agreed to pay $275 million for violating Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).

Fortnite players who believe that they have been impacted by the practices can visit the official Fortnite page on the FTC website for more information.

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The prize pool for the 2023 Gamers8 event, dubbed ‘The Land of Heroes’, will be the largest in history, surpassing Dota 2’s The International 2021 figure of $40 million.

The Gamers8 prize pool will be spread across a number of esports titles over two weeks of competitive gameplay, and while the 2023 titles have yet to be announced, the 2022 games included Rocket League, Dota 2, Fortnite, Rainbow Six Siege, and PUBG Mobile.

The biggest esports festival in the world returns!
Bigger, better, bolder than ever.
$45,000,000
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
July 6th, 2023#Gamers8 #TheLandofHeroes pic.twitter.com/EkwWvo6pwP

— Gamers8 Esports (@Gamers8GG) March 7, 2023

Despite the fact that the Saudi-owned esports organiser offers exorbitant prize money, it hasn’t stopped teams and other esports organisers from shining a light on the country’s human rights record, particularly in terms of LGBTQ+ and women’s rights, over the years.

Moist Esports, for example, declined an invitation to the 2022 event due to the Saudi government’s human rights record.

However, Saudi Arabia’s interest in esports has not waned, as the government-backed Savvy Gaming Group purchased both ESL Gaming and FACEIT, two of the industry’s most important tournament organisers, for a total of $1.5 billion.

The Saudi Esports Federation Chairman, Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan, spoke about the country’s commitment to developing esports around the world.

“It is our great pleasure to welcome the elite of the esports world to Riyadh once again for Gamers8, the Land of Heroes, where the very best in esports shine and triumph,” he said in a press release.

“Our goal is to serve the global community of esports and gaming enthusiasts, and to eventually develop the global esports ecosystem.”

The Gamers8 event will commence on July 6, with more announcements to come.

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The game organizer made a press release to share details of the 2023 Fortnite Champions Series, while also highlighting the prize pool of $10 million.

“FNCS is back for 2023 with a new “Major” structure, a $10,000,000 total prize pool, and a Global Championship in-person event!” the statement read.

“Each FNCS Major will be crucial to earning your spot in the Fortnite Champion Series Global Championship 2023 taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark in late 2023. Ready up for FNCS Major 1 kicking off on Thursday, February 2, 2023.”

The upcoming season will bring several changes and new features to the competitive scene of Fortnite, one of which will be the introduction of FNCS Majors, large-scale events for the game. In line with other competitive games, the upcoming Fortnite Champions Series (FNCS) 2023 season will feature four majors, which will act as a lead-up to the Global Championship.

As per Epic Games, the first FNCS Major will have a five-week format featuring competitive matches and players will be awarded points based on their performance. These events will provide players with an opportunity to earn points based on their performance, with the top 40 ranked duos advancing to the Major Grand Finals.

The first Major final (Major 1 Grand Finals) is scheduled to take place in March 2023, with the second and third finals taking place in May and August respectively. Each Major will have a prize pool of $2 million, and the Global Championship will boast a prize pool of $4 million.

Another significant change for the 2023 season is the return to LAN events for competitive Fortnite players. The pandemic led to a long pause in competition, and only a few large-scale LAN esports tournaments took place in 2022. Gamers8, which took place in Saudi Arabia and the FNCS Invitational, were the only large-scale LAN Fortnite tournaments in 2022.

The FNCS 2023 season will feature the return of LAN events with a new edition of the Global Championship taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark, later in the year. The Global Championship will feature the top 75 Fortnite duos of the season, providing players with an opportunity to showcase their skills and compete at a high level in a LAN setting.

In addition to the FNCS Majors and the Global Championship, Epic Games has also announced a Last Chance Major for players who have not yet secured a spot in the finals. This event will give players a final opportunity to earn points and advance to the next stage of the tournament.

The $10 million prize pool for the FNCS 2023 season is lower than the Fortnite World Cup of 2019, which had a prize pool of around $15 million for both the duos and solos. However, the return to LAN events and the introduction of the FNCS Majors will provide players with a new and exciting way to compete and give fans a thrilling viewing experience.
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The battle royale genre is highly popular among gamers of all platforms, including PC, mobile, and console. This type of game is played by millions of people around the world.

According to Esports Charts’ recent report published on January 2, PUBG Mobile, the battle royale game developed by Krafton and published by PUBG Corporation, was the most-watched esports title in the battle royale genre in 2022. The game’s esports content was watched for over a total of 112 million hours during the year, and it was the only title in the battle royale genre to surpass 100 million hours of watch time.

Despite being banned in various countries around the world, PUBG Mobile managed to become the most watched battle royale esports title of 2022 with 112.09 million hours of watch time. The game’s highest peak viewership occurred during the 31st Southeast Asian Games PUBG Mobile, with a recorded 903,011 viewers, demonstrating its popularity in Asian countries. The PUBG Mobile Global Championship 2022 (PMGC 2022), which has yet to hold its main event (grand finals), has already garnered over 20.9 million hours of watch time.

Apex Legends was stated to have recorded the second-most watched hours of a battle royale title in 2022. The esports title saw significant growth in both the number of new players and its audience in the Asian region.

This could be attributed to the launch of Apex Legends Mobile, the game’s mobile version. Apex Legends also had a successful year in terms of esports viewership, recording over 62.47 million hours of watch time. The game reached its peak viewership of 676,653 during the Apex Legends Global Series 2022: Split 2 Playoffs.

According to Esports Charts, Free Fire garnered the third-most hours, acquiring a total of 43.83 million hours. The esports title recorded a peak viewership of 1.4 million viewers. Compared to its 2021 numbers, Free Fire lost half of its total watch time dropping from second place to third in the 2022 charts.

Fortnite and PUBG: Battleground are pegged as the fourth and fifth most-watched battle royal titles in 2022, respectively. Fortnite recorded a total of 38.96 million hours and Battleground registered about 29.63 million hours.

PUBG, which is also published by Tencent Games, was released in 2018 and has quickly gained a massive player base. It’s no secret that PUBG Mobile has a strong competitive scene, with various tournaments and leagues taking place throughout the year. In fact, the game has a dedicated esports division, PUBG Mobile Esports, which oversees the competitive side of things.

One of the main reasons for PUBG Mobile’s success in the esports world is its accessibility. The game is available on a variety of platforms, including iOS and Android devices, making it easy for players to get in on the action. Additionally, the game’s free-to-play model means that anyone can try their hand at competitive play without having to make a financial commitment.

Another factor contributing to PUBG Mobile’s success is the game’s popularity in countries such as India and China, where the game has a massive player base. This has helped to drive viewership numbers for PUBG Mobile tournaments and has made the game a major player in the esports world.

But PUBG Mobile’s success isn’t just limited to its player base and viewership numbers. In November 2022, PUBG Mobile exceeded $9 billion in lifetime revenue generation. In addition, it was honored with the “Esports Mobile Game of the Year” award at the Esports Awards 2022.

As we move further into 2023, it will be interesting to see how PUBG Mobile continues to dominate the battle royale esports scene. With its massive player base, strong competitive scene, and major sponsorships, it seems that PUBG Mobile is here to stay as a major player in the world of esports.

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It is rare to see an esports franchise willingly part ways with a top player in a popular title, but this is the current state of the industry. The esports industry has proven over time to be a volatile one, and teams sometimes have to make tough decisions, such as letting go of a world champion, as was the case with Sentinels and their Fortnite player, Bugha.

Rob Moore, the Chief Executive Officer of Sentinels said they will no longer be participating in competitive Fortnite. He also stated that none of their Fortnite players, including Nick “Aspect” McGuire, Brian “Zyfa” Wielgolaski and Kyle “Bugha” Giersdorf, the 2019 Fortnite World Cup solos champion, will be re-signed for the 2023 season.

According to CEO Moore, the reason for the team’s decision to part ways with Bugha and the Fortnite scene is due to the lack of opportunities for sponsorships and branded in-game content.

In neither the game itself nor at Epic-hosted LAN events does Fortnite offer the opportunity for Sentinels jerseys and apparel to display team sponsors to cameras and crowds. In addition, since the Fortnite World Cup in 2019, Epic Games has not announced plans for any future LAN events which hinders the franchise’s ability to showcase their team sponsors to its audience.

In 2023, Bugha will be a free agent, three years after winning $3 million for his first-place finish at the World Cup and becoming the first marquee name to compete under the Sentinels brand.

To honor the 19-year and thank him for his contribution to the franchise, the CEO made a farewell post on his Twitter page with a link to a dedicated video clip posted on YouTube.

While the Sentinels make an exit away from Fortnite, they have competitive teams in Halo, Apex Legends and Valorant.

These three esports titles have official esports tournaments that are either run by the developers or publishers, or in partnership with them. In addition, both Halo and Apex Legends have included content in their games that represents participating esports teams.

Due to the current state of the esports industry, with a lack of outside investment causing many teams to focus on games that offer support and revenue opportunities, the decision to cut the Fortnite team is not surprising.

While Fortnite remains a popular game with a strong player base, it may not offer as many monetization opportunities compared to other titles. However, it should be noted that Fortnite has been able to thrive through its collaborations and events, suggesting that it may not necessarily need support.

With Sentinels officially withdrawn from Fortnite, it is possible others may follow suit in the future. However for teams looking to make a splash in the Fortnite scene, there is currently a great opportunity to recruit some well-known players.

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