The first Olympic Esports Games will now take place in Riyadh in 2027, two years later than originally planned when a 12-year agreement with Saudi Arabia was signed last year.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on Tuesday that the event’s founding partner will be Saudi Arabia’s Esports World Cup Foundation.
The inaugural Esports World Cup took place last July and August in Riyadh, offering tens of millions of dollars in prize money for games like Call of Duty, Fortnite, and Street Fighter.
It remains uncertain which, if any, shooter games will be included in the Esports Olympic program, as the IOC has stated that the games must align with Olympic values.
A six-person panel, co-chaired by IOC member Ser Miang Ng and Saudi sports minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal, will be responsible for determining the games included in the program, according to the IOC.
Details of the inaugural Esports Olympics were confirmed just two days after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman welcomed an Olympic delegation, including IOC president Thomas Bach, in Riyadh. Bach is set to step down in June.
The 12-year agreement, announced last July ahead of the Paris Olympics, marks the latest major sporting event to be hosted or owned by Saudi Arabia, a country known for its oil wealth. In December, FIFA confirmed Saudi Arabia as the host for the 2034 Men’s World Cup.
IOC members were briefed in Paris that the plan for the Esports Olympics is to hold it every two years starting in 2025, featuring a mix of “physical, simulated, and electronic games.”
Qualifying rounds for national teams are expected to begin later this year.