Qiddiya, the Saudi Arabian mega-city project, has fully acquired Evolution Championship Series (EVO) tournament organizer RTS, Qiddiya chief strategy officer Muhannad Aldawood announced in a new LinkedIn post. Financial terms regarding the acquisition of RTS were not revealed.
Aldawood said, “Excited to share that Qiddiya | القدية has acquired full ownership of RTS, a strategic step that will further strengthen our esports business and unlock new opportunities across the broader gaming ecosystem. And most importantly, this will enable Qiddiya to keep fueling the continued growth of Evolution Championship Series (EVO), the world’s largest fighting game event since 1996, with unlimited potentials.
“This milestone paves the way for setting new heights in the evolution of EVO toward achieving the aspirations of the fighting game community.
“Grateful to our incredible team Steven Roberts, Omar Elsayed, Mike Milanov, Nathavout (Rocky) Khanuja for their dedication, along with the outstanding leadership of Stuart Saw, Kim Phan, and Richard Thiher. Also special thanks as well to our valued partner and true friend Akshat Rathee.”
Qiddiya is backed by the Saudi Arabian government-owned sovereign wealth fund known as the Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is controlled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. Qiddiya and EVO owner NODWIN opened offices in New York City this year to conduct business with companies in North America. It’s also worth noting that Qiddiya has been a global partner of EVO since 2024 prior to the acquisition.
This past August, EVO announced that Sony Interactive Entertainment has sold its stake in the company to NODWIN Gaming, a company backed by parent company Sony Group Corporation. Sony Interactive Entertainment is new global sponsor of EVO through 2028 and will continue to utilize its PlayStation Tournaments platform and key products.
