The world's largest esports festival is coming back this summer – with more than double the prize pool

·       Gamers8: The Land of Heroes begins on July 6, with eight weeks of incredible action

·       The eyes of the esports world will be on Riyadh as the biggest esports competitions are combined with big-name concerts, festivals, community gaming, and more

Gamers8, the biggest esports and gaming festival worldwide, is returning this summer even bigger and better – with a world record prize pool in excess of $30million, more than double last year’s grand prize total. 

Entitled Gamers8: The Land of Heroes for the 2023 season, the eight-week entertainment extravaganza makes a triumphant return on Thursday, July 6 – so make a notification of the date now, and don’t miss out. The big date will blast off a superb summer jampacked with the biggest esports competitions, live music from star names, as well as festivals, shows, community gaming, education platforms, and fun-filled activities for all ages. 

Gamers8: The Land of Heroes follows the success of last year’s Gamers8 at Boulevard Riyadh City. Gamers8 2022 saw the world’s best teams and players battle it out across five top titles – Rocket League, Dota 2 Riyadh Masters, Fortnite, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Siege and PUBG Mobile – for a prize pool of $15million. 

And with bigger and better absolutely guaranteed at Gamers8: The Land of Heroes, full details of this summer’s elite competitions and entertainment calendar will be released in due course. 

HRH Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan, Chairman of the Saudi Esports Federation, said: “Gamers8: The Land of Heroes is going to be the destination this summer and we are delighted to once again be welcoming the elite of the esports world to Riyadh.

“The Land of Heroes is the place for world-class esports champions and gaming universe lovers. It is the ultimate occasion where you can compete for glory and become a hero walking among the worlds of your chosen story.

“Showcasing the most popular titles on the planet will be amplified even further this summer. To be frank, when we mean bigger and better this summer – we truly mean it. We cannot wait to reveal what we have in store for Gamers8: The Land of Heroes.”

Gamers8 in 2022 succeeded in bringing the virtual world of esports and gaming out into the physical realm of Riyadh, a city which was the ideal setting for an ultra-modern festival with big ideas and big ambitions. 

Just some of the highlights from Gamers8 2022 include: 

• 1.4 million visitors
• 132 million people watching the elite competitions
• 392 professional players 
• 113 international professional teams – including Team Falcons, PSG.LGD, FURIA Esports, and FaZe Clan
• 61 nationalities represented
• Eight nights of music at the NXT LVL Arena at Boulevard Riyadh City throughout the summer that brought in an incredible total of 74,670 ticketholders, who enjoyed performances from 19 global artists, 10 Arab artists, and 17 local Saudi artists

Gamers8 concluded last summer with the Next World Forum, an esports and gaming forum in Riyadh that brought together sector leaders and experts from around the world, to host first-of-a-kind discussions shaping the future of the booming industry. 

Gamers8: The Land of Heroes will similarly conclude with the Next World Forum, with full details to be released in due course.