JEDDAH: The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the Saudi Esports Federation have postponed the FIFAe Finals 2026, citing regional developments that are affecting logistics, in a statement on Wednesday.
Organisers had scheduled the global esports tournament from Friday through October 25. Their announcement provided no replacement dates. “Further announcements on the FIFAe Finals will be communicated in due course,” organisers said.
The original programme included three FIFAe World Cup 2026 competitions, featuring Rocket League and the console and mobile versions of eFootball. National teams were due to compete across the different titles.
Teams representing Japan and Brazil had already withdrawn on October 10 after assessing conditions in Saudi Arabia. Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement claimed responsibility for a strike on Riyadh’s international airport that day.
Other sporting schedules have changed. Six Kings Slam organisers moved the exhibition tennis tournament from October to December.
Golf’s Asian Tour is monitoring developments ahead of the Saudi International, scheduled for Riyadh in November. Asian Football Confederation (AFC) officials remain open to postponing the Asian Cup until 2028 if necessary.
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Korea Football Association (KFA) officials are communicating with the AFC. In a statement, the KFA described plans to continue discussions while monitoring conditions in Saudi Arabia. Qatar staged the previous Asian Cup in early 2024 after a one-year delay. China had withdrawn as host because of COVID-19 restrictions.
Saudi Arabia’s edition remains scheduled to begin on January 7, 2027, across venues in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar.
(With additional input from Reuters)
