Sometimes outside events and situations can have an impact on the Fighting Game Community, and this is apparently one of those times.
The Esports World Cup 2026 is reportedly relocating this Summer due to the conflict in the Middle East.
According to GamesBeat, the organizers are said to be moving the event from where it was originally going to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Instead, the EWC is being shifted to be held in Paris, France.
It doesn’t appear that the EWC has publicly confirmed this relocation yet, however, GamesBeat reports that stakeholders are being informed of the decision now.
This isn’t overly surprising considering the tense situation going on in the region that has led to flights being canceled both into and out of the Middle East, so it seems they’re trying to prioritize attendee safety as well as reduce the chances of major production issues or cancelations.
The Esports World Cup 2026 is set to host major invitationals to Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8 this year with each title sporting a $1 million prize pool.
Fatal Fury and Street Fighter’s events are scheduled for July while Tekken is taking place in early August if the timing stays the same as it was before.
The FGC had already been feeling the effects of the travel restrictions before with Arc System Works requesting an Israeli player withdraw from their Guilty Gear finals a few months ago.
As for what else the Saudis have been doing lately in our neck of the woods, their Electronic Gaming Development Company just opened up the new VS Studio with Katsuhiro Harada and SNK.
We’ll have to wait and see if this conflict is going to have more impact on Saudi Arabia’s ambitions to be an eSports titan having recently bought out the controlling stakes for Evo too.