Saudi Arabia now has total ownership over Evo

Saudi Arabia has taken full ownership of the Evolution Championship Series (Evo), the world’s largest and most prestigious fighting game tournament.

With Sony and NODWIN Gaming fully out of the picture, the FGC wonders what this latest change will mean for Evo. Will Super Smash Bros. finally return to the event?

In August 2025, NODWIN Gaming, a former Evo co-owner, became a majority shareholder after acquiring Sony’s stake. At the time, NODWIN stated: “We will continue [Sony Interactive Entertainment’s] great work and honour the legacy of everyone who has made it what it is today, while opening the door for a new generation to experience the spirit of Evo.”

The following month, it was announced that Qiddiya City, a Saudi Arabian megaproject, had acquired RTS, which operates Evo.

“This milestone paves the way for setting new heights in the evolution of Evo toward achieving the aspirations of the fighting game community,” Chief Strategy Officer Muhannad Aldawood said on LinkedIn.

Now, Qiddiya City-owned RTS has taken full and complete ownership over Evo.

With NODWIN Gaming and Sony entirely out, RTS has full control over the Evolution Championship Series brand and events.

“We are proud of our legacy with Evo that started five years ago,” RTS CEO Stuart Saw said in a press release. “We’re going to continue investing in the things that matter to our community, elevating and empowering members of the FGC and working diligently with our game developer partners to ensure that EVO benefits all involved parties.”

Qiddiya City is run by the Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC). This makes Evo another Saudi Arabian-owned event in the esports scene. On top of organising the Esports World Cup and Esports Nations Cup and partnering with esports organisations, Saudi Arabia has also been looking into purchasing MOONTON, the developer behind Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.

Despite backlash from the esports community over Saudi Arabia’s increasingly prominent involvement, RTS has promised to keep Evo’s ‘values and identity’ the same. Of course, the country’s controversies and continued pursuit of owning the esports industry has continued to garner frustration. ESL was acquired by Saudi Arabia in 2022, which has led many gamers to believe that the country is behind ESL Impact’s shutdown.

It’s unclear what this recent ownership update will mean for Evo. It could mean expanding into more countries, creating a larger FGC circuit. It could mean Super Smash Bros. Melee and Ultimate could return to the event, since it was allegedly due to Sony’s involvement that Nintendo cut ties.

With Evo Japan and Evo Vegas coming up in the next few months, the FGC will see firsthand if there are any immediate changes.