Esports World Cup leaves Riyadh for Paris in 2026 with $75M on the line

The Esports World Cup is leaving home. For 2026, the Esports World Cup Foundation has confirmed Paris, France as host of its flagship tournament — the first edition staged outside Saudi Arabia since the competition launched. Organizers moved the event away from Riyadh, citing instability across the Middle East region, and have chosen one of Europe's largest exhibition complexes to absorb it.

The numbers are the headline. The 2026 edition carries a total prize pool of $75 million, the largest ever assembled in esports. Of that, $30 million is earmarked for the Club Championship, a season-long battle between the top 24 organizations for both prestige and payout. It is a scale that pushes esports prize money firmly into the territory of established global sporting events.

The competition runs July 6 to August 23, 2026 — a seven-week stretch that turns a single tournament into a summer-long fixture. The venue is Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, the sprawling parc des expositions in the 15th arrondissement that has hosted everything from trade fairs to Olympic events, and which offers the floor space and infrastructure a multi-title esports festival demands.

On the competitive side, the 2026 lineup spans 25 events across 24 titles. New additions include Trackmania, making its debut, and the return of Fortnite to the schedule. The breadth signals where the format is heading: less a one-game showpiece, more a broad-front championship covering the major franchises that drive viewership and sponsorship.

For the events industry, the relocation is a notable data point. A marquee property worth tens of millions has chosen a Western European exhibition hall over its purpose-built home market — a reminder of how quickly large-scale live events can, and sometimes must, move venues and host nations.

Full details, the complete title list and prize breakdown are available via the source below.