The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) and PC maker Lenovo announced Tuesday a partnership for the upcoming Esports World Cup.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Under the terms of this new deal, Lenovo’s Legion brand has been named the “official PC & gaming hardware partner” of the multi-week event taking place from Jul 7 – Aug. 24, in Riyadh Saudi Arabia. Lenovo Legion Towers, Lenovo Legion laptops, and various gaming peripherals will be made available to participants during tournaments and in practice areas.
Some of those products being provided include the Legion Tower 7i and Legion Tower 5i PC lines, as well as Legion Pro 7i laptops, and various PC gaming peripherals (such as mice and keyboards).
In addition, Lenovo Legion branding will appear during global broadcasts, in digital content, and across onsite experiences. Lenovo will also host festival zones with PCs, gear, and laptops available for attendees to try out. Finally, as a partner Lenovo will promote its participation with the Esports World Cup across its social media channels.
“Lenovo Legion equips gamers around the world with outstanding devices to help them achieve their goals and reach their impossible,” said Volker Düring, VP, PC gaming business, at Lenovo. “The Esports World Cup is the ultimate forum for the world’s best gamers to showcase their mettle and emerge at the top of the world leaderboards, and when the best gamers compete on Lenovo Legion devices, anything is possible.”
In case you are not familiar with the Esports World Cup, it is a seven-week, multi-title event, held on an annual basis during the summer managed by the EWCF. EWCF claims to be a non-profit funded by a sports grant from the Saudi government’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund. The event is operated by ESL FACEIT Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of Saudi government-owned gaming and esports company Savvy Games Group.
Projects backed or owned by the Saudi Arabian government such as Esports World Cup are criticized for helping the government engage in “sports washing,” or using various forms of entertainment to cover up its record on human rights, women’s rights, LGTBQ+ rights, military actions in Yemen, and more. These and other criticisms have been highlighted by international watchdog groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.
Last week the Esports World Cup announced that the New Global Sport Conference (NGSC2025) would be held Aug. 23 – 24, at the Four Seasons Hotel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The organization also announced a new fantasy sports game for the Esports World Cup operated by London-based sports technology company Genius Sports.