{"id":103719,"date":"2026-01-05T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-01-05T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/?p=103719"},"modified":"2026-01-05T09:19:53","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T09:19:53","slug":"from-buyer-to-builder-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/enterpriseam.com\/ksa\/2026\/01\/05\/from-buyer-to-builder-3\/","title":{"rendered":"From buyer to builder"},"content":{"rendered":"

2025 marked the year Riyadh shifted from being a high-profile gaming investor to the industry\u2019s<\/strong> primary architect<\/strong>, vertically integrating the gaming value chain \u2014 from hardware to global publishing and distribution. With the USD 55 bn Electronic Arts (EA) takeover \u2014 the largest leveraged buyout in history \u2014 the Kingdom moved from passive equity into strategic control of the space where digital gaming meets global sport. The result is Riyadh\u2019s emergence as a neutral digital hub, sidestepping West\u2013East tech frictions while anchoring a sector now central to the non-oil economy.<\/p>\n

\n

Buying the \u201csports bridge\u201d<\/p>\n

The <\/strong><\/a><\/strong>EA megadeal<\/a><\/strong><\/a><\/strong> is economically defensible as a play for stable, cashflow-rich IPs like <\/strong>EA Sports FC and Madden NFL.<\/strong> Beyond that, by owning EA, the Kingdom now controls the digital stadiums where hundreds of mns of people spend their time daily. This allows the Kingdom to bypass traditional media hurdles and build direct cultural capital with a global, mobile-first demographic \u2014 particularly in growth markets like India.<\/p>\n

The challenge shifts from ownership to optimization in 2026.<\/strong> The PIF-led consortium must now prove it can revitalize fan sentiment that has historically viewed EA as overly focused on monetization at the expense of player experience.<\/p>\n

\n

The Asian pivot<\/p>\n

Savvy Games Group\u2019s aggressive moves into China, Japan, and South Korea are not just <\/strong>about market share; they are about geopolitical arbitrage. <\/strong>As Western regulators tighten scrutiny on Chinese tech, Savvy is positioning Riyadh as a safe harbor for Asian giants like Tencent and NetEase to scale internationally without the political baggage of direct US-China friction. By 2030, the Kingdom aims to produce over 30 globally recognized games, and this pivot ensures that the Saudi-made pipeline will have access to the narrative depth of Japan and the technical online infrastructure of South Korea. In March<\/a> <\/p>\n

\n

Infrastructure and record-breaking events<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, esports took new strides as the seven-week Esports World Cup (EWC) 2025 <\/strong>hit viewership records and ticket revenues jumped.<\/strong> The event posted 350 mn hours watched (up 73% y-o-y) and drew 750 mn global viewers. Beyond the screens, the event was a hit on the ground. Ticket revenues doubled compared to last year, prompting EWC\u2019s COO Mike McCabe to confirm that a larger, more permanent venue is in the cards for 2026 to accommodate the influx of visitors.<\/p>\n

ICYMI- <\/strong>We sat down with McCabe in July<\/a> to discuss the growth of esports in our Kingdom, its cultural and economic impact, and the foundation\u2019s measures of success and future plans.<\/p>\n

The EWC foundation unveiled the Esports Nations Cup (ENC) <\/strong>in August<\/a><\/strong>, a biennial tournament set to debut in Riyadh in November 2026. Unlike the club-based EWC, the ENC will feature over 100 national teams competing across more than 15 titles.<\/p>\n

Twisted Labs also launched at Riyadh\u2019s Boulevard City <\/strong>in February<\/a><\/strong>, providing a tangible boost to the Kingdom\u2019s professionalization of exports. The JV between Twisted Minds and Riyadh Season houses training facilities, production studios, and nine entertainment zones, serving as the local scene\u2019s new hub.<\/p>\n

This hardware-first approach is a prerequisite for the Kingdom\u2019s long-term competitive<\/strong> strategy. <\/strong>By front-loading capital expenditure on permanent facilities like Twisted Labs and the expanded EWC zones, the Kingdom is securing the capacity required to host the inaugural Olympic Esports Games in 2027. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Saudi authorities are targeting the gaming industry to contribute SAR 50 bn to GDP by 2030<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":103720,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":false,"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_primary_brand":0,"newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_show_updated_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4797],"tags":[10,1273,4547,1672,1671,4796],"brand":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"class_list":["post-103719","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-year-in-review","tag-enterpriseam-ksa","tag-esports","tag-esports-world-cup-foundation","tag-gaming","tag-savvy-games-group","tag-year-in-review","wpautop","entry"],"acf":{"mongo_id":"f8d7a667-1d7e-4113-a161-3aedad822f84","order":"6","is_powered_by":false,"story_type":"1","photo_url":"https:\/\/ent.news\/2024\/7\/965.jpg","photo_position":"above","homepage_title":"","full_issue_title":"How Saudi Arabia shifted from being a buyer of games to a builder of the industry","related_issue":[103709],"teaser":"Saudi authorities are targeting the gaming industry to contribute SAR 50 bn to GDP by 2030"},"yoast_head":"\nFrom buyer to builder - 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