It’s been a great year for fighting game events. Not only did Evo 2024 — the biggest fighting game tournament in the world — wrap up after breaking records, but we’ve seen growth across the genre, and across the globe. It feels like more attention than ever is on a historically niche style of game, as well as the culture of high level play surrounding it.
However, while much of this growth and success has been reaped and sown by grassroots tournaments and community initiatives, a constant presence year-round has been the Esports World Cup. This event — entirely funded by the Saudi Arabian government — is seemingly throwing heaps of cash at any competitive gaming scene with a pulse. This includes Tekken 8 and Street Fighter 6, the tournaments for which have drawn in many of the world’s best players thanks to prize pools exceeding many other established events.
This initiative has been identified as sportswashing by many critics and concerned groups, the practice of using sports (and yes, esports) to better a countries reputation. This is not the first time Saudi Arabia — a country with a poor human rights record and reprehensible treatment towards LGBTQIA+ groups — has invested in such a venture. It has previously gone on big spending sprees across F1, football, golf, and even wrestling.
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