eSports
Esports World Cup Foundation Confirms Full Game Lineup, Schedule, and Club Championship Rules for EWC 2025
200 Clubs, 2,000 players, 25 tournaments across 24 games, and a $70M+ prize pool set the stage for the largest celebration of competitive excellence and esports fandom
The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) has finalized the full lineup of games, tournament schedule and Club Championship rules for the Esports World Cup 2025 (EWC), the world’s largest esports event, set to return to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from July 7 through August 24. This summer, over 2,000 elite players and 200 top Clubs from more than 100 countries will battle across 25 tournaments in 24 games, for a record-breaking $70+ million life-changing prize pool, the largest in esports history.
The Esports World Cup 2025 will once again unite gaming and esports communities for a global competition that will crown the next Esports World Cup Club Champion, while elevating esports as a global sport and driving long-term growth for the entire ecosystem.
The confirmed EWC 2025 game lineup will include iconic esports titles spanning fan-favorite shooters, battle royales, MOBAs, fighting games, and chess. New additions — CROSSFIRE, FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves, chess and VALORANT — join the prestigious lineup of returning titles, making this the most diverse and competitive EWC yet.
With the schedule locked, the stage is set for seven weeks of world-class competition. The initial wave of tickets are now on sale, and the countdown is on for the biggest celebration of esports, kicking off with the EWC Festival on July 7. Below is the schedule for each EWC tournament.
Week 1 (July 8–13):
VALORANT featured at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 8-13), Apex Legends at 2025 Esports World Cup 10–13), FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 10–12), Rennsport at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 8–11), Dota 2 at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 1 (July 8-13)
Week 2 (July 15–20):
League of Legends featured at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 16–20), Free Fire at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 16–20), Dota 2 at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 2 (July 17–19), Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Women’s Invitational at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 15–19), Honor of Kings World Cup at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 1 (July 15–20)
Week 3 (July 22–27):
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 24–27), PUBG MOBILE World Cup at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 1 (July 25-27), Honor of Kings World Cup at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 2 (July 23-26), StarCraft II at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 22–25), Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Mid Season Cup at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 1 (July 23–27)
Week 4 (July 29–August 3):
Overwatch Champions Series: MidSeason Championship at 2025 Esports World Cup (July 31–August 3), PUBG MOBILE World Cup at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 2 (July 29-30 / August 1–3), Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Mid Season Cup at 2025 Esports World Cup – Week 2 (July 30–August 2), Chess at EWC 25 (July 29–August 1)
Week 5 (August 7–10):
EA SPORTS FC 25 at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 7–10), Call of Duty: Warzone at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 6–9), TOM CLANCY’S RAINBOW SIX SIEGE X at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 7–9)
Week 6 (August 11–17):
Rocket League featured at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 14–17), PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 12–16), TEKKEN 8 at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 13–16), Teamfight Tactics featured at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 14–15)
Week 7 (August 19–24):
Counter-Strike 2 at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 21–24), Street Fighter 6 at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 20–23), CROSSFIRE at 2025 Esports World Cup (August 19–23)
EWC 2025 will unfold across four dedicated arenas, each spotlighting one game at a time to deliver the best fan experience. Select titles will host Last Chance Qualifiers in the Festival zone — giving players one final shot at advancing to the main stage.
The Esports World Cup has introduced a refined tournament schedule to enhance viewership across its expanded lineup. Finals will now take place on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays – reducing overlap and ensuring dedicated coverage for each title. Tickets for EWC 2025 are now available to purchase at esportsworldcup.com.
The total $70+ million prize pool is allocated across the Club Championship, Game Championships, MVP Awards, and EWC Qualifiers. Out of this, $27 million is dedicated to the EWC Club Championship — an innovative cross-game format that rewards the top 16 Clubs for their performance across multiple titles, with $7 million reserved for the 2025 champion. Game Championships will feature their own prize pools, totaling over $38 million combined, while standout players will compete for a share of the $450,000 MVP Award pool.
Open to all participating organizations, the Club Championship awards points for top-eight finishes across tournaments. To claim the title, Clubs must secure at least two top-eight placements and win at least one tournament. New for 2025, joint ventures — collaborations between two distinct organizations on a specific roster — will be ineligible for points, with Clubs required to compete under one aligned name throughout the EWC to qualify. The Club that shows both consistency and competitive excellence across the entire EWC calendar, will be crowned the Esports World Cup Club Champion at the EWC 2025 closing ceremony on August 24, 2025.
At EWC 2024, Team Falcons dominated with 5,665 points and three tournament wins to claim the $7 million Club Championship. Team Liquid and Team BDS followed in second and third, with 2,545 and 2,000 points respectively. The top 10 also featured some of the biggest names in global esports: Gaimin Gladiators, T1, Virtus.pro, Team Vitality, Twisted Minds, Gen.G, and LOUD — all delivering standout performances across multiple titles, setting the stage for EWC 2025.
The post Esports World Cup Foundation Confirms Full Game Lineup, Schedule, and Club Championship Rules for EWC 2025 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
eSports
Emmy-Winning Director R.J. Cutler’s Docuseries Esports World Cup: Level Up Premieres June 6 on Prime Video
Prime Video, one of the leading entertainment destinations, will premiere the five-part documentary Esports World Cup: Level Up on June 6, with new episodes released weekly. Directed by Emmy-winning filmmaker R.J. Cutler (Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry, Elton John: Never Too Late and Martha), the series goes behind-the-scenes of the inaugural Esports World Cup (EWC) in 2024 — a defining moment in global esports, where over $60 million in prize money ignited a high-stakes, multinational battle to crown the world’s top esports Club.
The series is produced by This Machine (a part of Sony Pictures Television), with R.J. Cutler directing, John Dorsey serving as showrunner, and Jane Cha Cutler, Trevor Smith, Elise Pearlstein and Mark Blatty executive producing. Level Up will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide.
Esports World Cup: Level Up offers a rare look inside a global competition that’s redefining what it means to be a champion for a new generation of athletes and fans. R.J. Cutler and his team of expert storytellers embedded themselves within the eight-week tournament – watched by over 500 million fans globally – to uncover the personal sacrifices, rivalries and stakes driving the action.
Shot in verité style, the series combines intimate home visits from around the world and on-the-ground coverage from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It follows a wide cast of characters – from Club CEOs orchestrating million-dollar strategies to rising stars chasing life-changing wins – while capturing the pulse of elite esports competition.
“What drew me to the Esports World Cup was the compelling human stories unfolding within this high-stakes arena. Level Up isn’t just about the incredible competition and prize money; it’s about the dedication, the passion, and the sheer will of these athletes and teams pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. Under high pressure, we discover the true character of the competitors who vie for $60 million, but who also expose their humanity in the process,” said Cutler.
At the heart of Level Up is the “EWC Club Championship,” an unprecedented, multi-title tournament format where Clubs compete across more than 20 games, earning points toward a single leaderboard. Every match, every point, reshapes the race for global dominance. With the highest prize pool in esports history on the line, the EWC is not just a tournament – it’s a proving ground for the next generation of sports icons.
“A win might make the headlines — but the real story is the people behind it. Level Up dives into the human side of esports: the pressure, the ambition, the sacrifices. It’s about what it really takes to compete at the highest level — and why it matters. R.J. is the best at bringing those stories to life, and this one captures the heart of what we’re building,” said Ralf Reichert, CEO of the Esports World Cup Foundation.
The post Emmy-Winning Director R.J. Cutler’s Docuseries Esports World Cup: Level Up Premieres June 6 on Prime Video appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
Esports betting pioneer adds daily fantasy esports offering to its growing range of products, with its sights set on the US market
PandaScore, the award-winning provider of esports odds, data and betting products, has continued to push boundaries with the launch of Daily Fantasy eSports, a truly groundbreaking product for operators and players.
Daily Fantasy eSports has been developed for the US market but will have global appeal with players drawn in by the chance to create virtual teams of real-life players and earn points based on their actual game performances.
Contests range from daily matchups to season-long leagues, with plenty of prizes up for grabs.
PandaScore’s Daily Fantasy eSports is backed by an expert-led esports trading team to deliver fast, accurate settlement data across unique, player-focused markets driven by the provider’s established and proven betting models.
An Interactive Player Widget serves up rich player stats and profiles, with PandaScore’s powerful BetBuilder enabling same-game parlays.
But that’s not all. PandaScore has more than 17,000 players in its esports player age and info database, the largest in the market.
It also offers dedicated helper codes and documentation to ensure smooth and seamless operator integration. It really is as easy as 1-2-3.
1 – There is a kick-off call to align on goals, timelines and fantasy formats.
2 – The operator accesses PandaScore’s dedicated fantasy-focused API to accelerate the build
3 – The dedicated integration manager ensures effortless onboarding and a successful launch
By leveraging PandaScore’s odds and data, alongside its team of experts and specialists, online sportsbook and daily fantasy sports operators can launch faster, ensure accuracy and scale their Daily Fantasy eSports offering with confidence.
Oliver Niner, Head of B2B at PandaScore, said: “Daily Fantasy eSports is a pioneering product from PandaScore that will really hit the mark with operators across North America, as well as other global markets.
“It allows operators to engage esports fans and bettors with a compelling product and proposition, but without the degree of risk that comes with standard betting as the payouts are controlled.
“Daily Fantasy eSports is already live with Dabble and is performing incredibly well, so we look forward to going live with more operators in the coming months.
“This really is a game-changing product, and we can’t wait to see it become available at some of the biggest betting brands in North America and beyond.”
The launch of Daily Fantasy eSports complements PandaScore’s growing esports betting offering, which includes odds and data for a huge number of disciplines, plus betting products like its BetBuilder, MicroMarkets and StoryBuilder.
The post PandaScore launches game-changing Daily Fantasy eSports product appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Esports Charts, a Ukraine-born analytics company that aggregates real-time viewership insights about esports, has won the Esports Innovation Award at the EsportsNext Industry Awards, hosted by the Esports Trade Association (ESTA) in Dallas, US.
The Esports Innovation Award recognizes an organization or individual that has introduced groundbreaking technology, services, or strategies significantly advancing the esports industry.
Esports Charts was honored for its scalable analytics platform, which provides comprehensive tournament and viewership statistics across more than 25 livestreaming services — helping stakeholders from publishers and teams to fans make smarter, data-driven decisions.
“Winning the Innovation Award from ESTA is an important milestone for us as a leading esports analytics service in the world. Also, we’re especially proud to represent Ukraine-born innovation on an international stage.
“From day one, our mission has been to bring clarity and transparency to the world of esports data. And this recognition from the industry is both an honor and a motivation to keep raising the bar.
“Thank you to our incredible team and partners, who believed in us from the start. This award is a shared success — and we’re just getting started,” Artyom Odintsov, co-founder and CEO of Esports Charts.
The post Esports Charts Wins “Esports Innovation Award” at the EsportsNext Industry Awards appeared first on Gaming and Gambling Industry in the Americas.
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