GeoGuessr will not be one of the games participating in Saudi Arabia’s Esports World Cup this year, after criticisms of sportswashing and the country’s poor human rights record. The competitive guessing game that’s popular on Twitch had previously agreed to be part of the event alongside Riot, Blizzard, and other game makers, but reversed course after a full-on revolt from its community of map makers. “You—our community—have made it clear that this decision does not align what GeoGuessr stands for,” the CEO behind the game announced on Thursday.
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“I’ve seen your reactions over the past few days regarding our decision to participate in the Esports World Cup in Riyadh,” Daniel Antell wrote in a statement on X. “When we made that decision, it was with positive intentions. To engage with our community in the Middle East and to spread GeoGuessr’s core mission of let everyone Explore the World.”
He continued, “That said, you—our community—have made it clear that this decision does not align what GeoGuessr stands for. So, when you tell us we’ve got it wrong we take it seriously. That’s why we’ve made the decision to withdraw from participating in the Esports World Cup in Riyadh.”
GeoGuessr’s retreat comes in the face of an uproar among fans after it revealed it would be joining the competitive gaming event scheduled to take place over the summer in Riyadh. “We, the creators of a considerable share of GeoGuessr’s most popular maps, have decided to make our maps unplayable in protest of GeoGuessr AB’s decision to host a World Championship wildcard tourney at the Esports World Cup (EWC) in Riyadh,” Zemmip posted on the game’s subreddit yesterday. “The EWC is a sportswashing tool used by the government of Saudi Arabia to distract from and conceal its horrific human rights record.”
As Aftermath reports, GeoGuessr uses data from Google to test its players’ geographical knowledge, but relies in large part on community maps to funnel all of that information into locations and content for PvP duels that are more interesting to play and watch. Many fans signed onto the map makers’ boycott, with support for the blackout spreading through the GeoGuessr Discord, even as big prize pools in Saudi Arabia tried to lure the game’s top competitors.
The Esports World Cup features a $70 million prize pool and lots of flashy pageantry. Launched in 2024, it’s part of a growing pattern of Saudi Arabia trying to leverage sports, entertainment, and gaming in particular to diversify its economy and improve its national image which is otherwise tainted by everything from anti-LGBTQ+ laws to the slaughter of journalists critical of the ruling royal family. Esports pros in other scenes, from Valorant to Dota 2, have faced criticism for participating in that effort.
“Imagine the one dev with the balls to stand up to Saudi is GeoGuessr,” wrote former Overwatch League caster Christopher “MonteCristo” Mykles after it reversed course. “Time for Riot, Blizzard, EA, and Epic to follow suit.”
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