India-based esports and gaming festival company NODWIN Gaming announced Friday that it has secured the Hindi and English language media rights for select matches of the Esports World Cup (EWC) 2025 from Sony LIV.
Financial terms of this selective broadcast rights deal were not disclosed.
Under the terms of this deal, Sony LIV will stream a Hindi-language broadcast from the 2025 Esports World Cup exclusively on the Sony LIV app and official website. In addition, Sony LIV will also stream weekly shows, behind-the-scenes features, and player interactions spotlighting EWC athletes and teams. NODWIN Gaming recently announced that it had partnered with the Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) to manage media rights sales across South Asia, with a focus on India, Bangladesh, Nepal, and other surrounding territories.
“Our goal is to bring the Esports World Cup to as many passionate fans across South Asia as possible, and this partnership with Sony LIV is a major step in that direction,” said Akshat Rathee, co-founder and managing director of NODWIN Gaming. “It combines Sony LIV’s incredible reach with NODWIN’s focus on building localized, fan-first esports experiences. With both Hindi and premium English content, we are creating a viewing experience that feels personal, immersive, and truly regional.”
The Esports World Cup is a multi-title, multi-week competition that offers more than $70 million USD in prize money and features competitive teams from across the world. The annual event is held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and runs from early July until the end of August.
The competition is operated by the Esports World Cup Foundation, a self-described non-profit organization that receives its funding from the Saudi Arabian government’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund. The event is operated with the help of ESL FACEIT Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of Saudi Arabian government-owned 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.