Three Gaming Giants Join the Esports Nations Cup
The competitive gaming landscape just got a massive upgrade. The Esports World Cup Foundation dropped some exciting news this week: Chess.com, MOONTON Games, and SNK are officially joining the inaugural Esports Nations Cup as publishing partners. Think of it as the Olympics meets esports, players won’t be repping their favorite teams, but their entire countries.
What Exactly Is the Esports Nations Cup?
The Esports Nations Cup (ENC) is breaking new ground in the esports world by shifting the spotlight from club-based competition to national pride. Instead of watching Team Liquid battle Fnatic, you’ll see the United States take on South Korea, or Brazil face off against France.
Launching in November 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this biennial tournament promises to be the first recurring international esports competition at this scale. After its debut, the event will adopt a rotating host model, bringing the action to different countries every two years—similar to how the FIFA World Cup operates.
The Format That Changes Everything
What makes the ENC unique is its inclusive approach to competition. National teams from every major region will compete, including North America, South America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Oceania. The tournament features both team-based games and solo player formats, ensuring diverse competitive opportunities.
Qualification won’t be a simple “best teams win” scenario either. The ENC uses a multi-layered system combining global rankings, regional qualifiers, and wildcard entries with solidarity placements. This ensures smaller gaming nations get their shot at glory alongside traditional esports powerhouses.
Who’s Bringing What to the Table?
The latest publisher announcements add serious firepower to the tournament’s lineup.
Chess.com brings legitimacy to mind sports within the esports ecosystem. Their involvement means competitive chess will sit alongside traditional video games, expanding what we consider “esports”. The platform has already integrated the ENC into its 2026 qualification cycle, connecting events like Titled Tuesday and the Speed Chess Championship to the larger tournament.
MOONTON Games is bringing Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) to the competition. With millions of active players across Southeast Asia and beyond, MLBB’s inclusion ensures mobile esports gets the respect it deserves on the international stage.
SNK Corporation rounds out the trio with titles like Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves. It’s worth noting that SNK is owned by Savvy Games Group, which connects directly to Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, making their partnership particularly strategic for the tournament’s Saudi debut.
These three join previously announced heavyweights including Electronic Arts, Krafton, Tencent, and Ubisoft. Each publisher will co-design qualification paths and competition formats for their respective titles, ensuring the tournament structure makes sense for each game’s competitive community.
Why National Competition Matters Now
Ralf Reichert, CEO of the Esports World Cup Foundation, put it perfectly: “By partnering closely with publishers, we can make the Esports Nations Cup truly player-centric, and give players the opportunity to represent their country in the games that define their careers”.
There’s something fundamentally different about watching someone compete for their country versus their paycheck. Traditional sports have leveraged national pride for centuries, just look at the Olympics or World Cup viewership numbers. The ENC is betting that same emotional connection will translate to esports fans.
The biennial format also provides stability that the esports ecosystem desperately needs. Players, coaches, and organizations can plan long-term strategies around a predictable calendar, while publishers and sponsors gain confidence to invest in national team programs knowing the tournament isn’t a one-off experiment.
The Saudi Arabia Factor
The ENC’s launch in Riyadh isn’t happening in a vacuum. Saudi Arabia has aggressively positioned itself as a global esports hub through massive investments via its Public Investment Fund. The Esports World Cup, the club-based predecessor to the ENC, already established Riyadh as a major tournament destination with its $70 million prize pool in 2025.
This nation-focused tournament builds on that momentum while extending the Esports World Cup Foundation’s mission to a new layer of global competition. Where the Esports World Cup unites the best clubs, the ENC taps into regional representation and national identity.
What Comes Next?
The Esports World Cup Foundation promises more details about game titles, qualification structures, and prize pools in the coming weeks. With the tournament still a year away, expect gradual announcements as each publisher finalizes their competitive format.
For players, the next year becomes crucial for establishing themselves in their national rankings and regional qualifiers. For fans, it’s time to start thinking about which countries will dominate which games and whether we’ll see unexpected underdog stories emerge from regions traditionally overlooked in club-based competitions.
The addition of Chess.com, MOONTON, and SNK signals that the Esports Nations Cup is serious about representing the full spectrum of competitive gaming. From mobile MOBAs to fighting games to intellectual sports, this tournament is shaping up to be more inclusive and globally representative than any esports event before it.
Adrian Kovacs 
Lex Northbyte