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The first two editions took place in Saudi Arabia, a country that has become a central actor in the sector in recent years. Originally, the 2026 edition was also supposed to take place in Riyadh. However, regional conflict raised serious doubts about our ability to ensure that players could travel to the region within the necessary timeframe,” explained Ralf Reichert, head of the Esports Foundation.

For its third season, the organizers decided to find another location to host the event this summer. They turned to Paris, which will become the epicenter of the esports world for seven weeks during the summer (July 6 – August 23). Paris benefits from numerous infrastructures, institutional support, and the prestige associated with its name, Reichert emphasized.

Twenty-five different competitions “Paris is a unique city. Paris, for many reasons, is one of the essential capitals not only for tourism but also for sports, culture, and entertainment worldwide. All of this, combined with French esports fans, who are renowned worldwide for being exceptional… All of these elements motivated our decision,” Reichert stated.

The EWC stands out from most other esports competitions by bringing together tournaments from multiple video games. “This brings together the entire video game industry. So, it’s a bit different from traditional tournaments in terms of scope and scale,” continued Ralf Reichert.

Therefore, twenty-five different competitions will take place during the event featuring popular esports games like League of Legends, Dota2, Valorant, Rocket League, and Counter-Strike. “All things considered, it’s a bit like the Olympics of esports, except it’s a competition by clubs and not by nations,” explained Nicolas Besombes, an esports sociologist.