China's AG.AL wins $75 million Esports World Cup as Paris tournament concludes

Tournament results and closing ceremony

The third edition of the Esports World Cup concluded on 23 August 2026 in Paris, finishing seven weeks of competition across 25 tournaments and 24 video games. China-based organisation AG.AL took the overall club championship and the $7 million first-place prize. AG.AL secured the title on the final weekend when French player Gwendal Duparc won the Trackmania competition, overtaking reigning champions Team Falcons of Saudi Arabia. Individual results included 15-year-old Chilean competitor Jaime Bustos winning the Street Fighter 6 tournament to become the youngest champion in the event's history, while Rocket League player Samy Hajji secured a third consecutive title and chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen won a second title.

The tournament culminated in an official closing ceremony at the Grand Palais. French President Emmanuel Macron, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and FIFA President Gianni Infantino attended the final proceedings. Footballer Cristiano Ronaldo carried the championship trophy onto the stage before Macron presented it to the AG.AL team leadership.

Relocation from Riyadh to Paris

Organisers moved the 2026 tournament from Riyadh to Paris in late May 2026 due to safety concerns regarding the conflict between the United States and Iran in the Middle East. The Esports Foundation adapted the multi-title competition to Paris Expo Porte de Versailles in south Paris in under eight weeks, managing logistics for 2,000 competitors across 100 countries.

Esports Foundation official Mike McCabe described the logistical transition following the final weekend.

The simple fact of having set up this competition has already been an immense success: going from designing an event in Riyadh to actually organising a world-class event in Paris, in less than eight weeks, has no precedent. It has been incredible.

Attendance and digital viewership

The event offered a total prize pool of $75 million across all events. Ticket sales reached 175,000 across the seven-week run, compared to 90,000 tickets sold during the previous edition in Riyadh. Digital broadcasts recorded 850 million viewers across streaming platforms, a 13% increase from 2025, alongside 440 million hours watched, which represented a 26% year-on-year increase. Live attendance fluctuated between days and titles; weekend matches featuring French teams in League of Legends, Counter-Strike, and Rocket League filled venue halls, whereas weekday sessions for titles like Free Fire, Honor of Kings, and Dota 2 saw sparser crowds.

Esports Foundation board member Prince Faisal bin Bandar evaluated the tournament's performance metrics.

In view of what we do, our goal and the growth we envision, I can say without hesitation that this event has been a success.

Economic strategy and diplomacy

The competition functions as a component of Saudi Arabia's Vision 2030 economic strategy, which aims to establish 250 gaming companies, create 39,000 sector jobs, and contribute $13.3 billion to national output by 2030. The Saudi sovereign wealth fund has backed the initiative, alongside an investment in a consortium that acquired video game publisher Electronic Arts for $55 billion. Following the conclusion of the games, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman scheduled official bilateral talks with President Macron for 24 August 2026. Organisers confirmed that the Esports World Cup will return to Riyadh for its fourth edition in 2027.