Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), July 10 (IANS) The opening press conference for the 2025 Esports World Cup (EWC) was held in Riyadh, marking the start of the world’s largest esports and gaming festival. The 2025 Esports World Cup (EWC) opened on Thursday evening with a star-studded opening ceremony.

Running until August 24, the event features more than 2,000 elite players, 25 tournaments across 24 leading titles, and a prize pool of over 70 million U.S. dollars.

Speaking at the press conference on Wednesday, Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan Al Saud, Chairman of the Saudi Esports Federation, said: “We are immensely proud to welcome back the world to Riyadh for the Esports World Cup. This event stands as a global milestone for esports by showcasing the scale, ambition, and future of competitive gaming.”

The 2025 EWC brings together the world’s top 200 clubs to compete in a cross-title format, the first of its kind, reports Xinhua.

At the heart of the competition is the Club Championship, where teams accumulate points across multiple games to become the EWC club champion.

“The 2025 EWC is about bringing the gaming world together – iconic games, elite players, and millions of fans around a shared celebration,” said Ralf Reichert, CEO of the Esports World Cup Foundation.

S8UL, a global powerhouse in esports and gaming content from India, has officially qualified for the grand finals of Apex Legends, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB), and EAFC 25 at the upcoming Esports World Cup (EWC) 2025 in Riyadh. Featuring a record-breaking prize pool of $70 million (approx. INR 598 crore), the EWC 2025 is set to be one of the biggest esports events in history.

In Chess, Nihal Sarin and Aravindh Chithambaram will compete in the Last Chance Qualifier from July 24 to 26, while Pyung Jae Koh (GuMiho) will participate in StarCraft II’s EWC 2025: Global Qualifier on June 21 and 22.

In the fighting games genre, S8UL’s Marcoantonio Malpica (Yurikov) in Fatal Fury, and Arja Gamoori (Sephiblack) and Nino Schwarz (Nino) in Tekken 8, will also be competing in upcoming qualifiers.

–IANS

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