GeoGuessr Draws Ire From Fans After Entering Esports World Cup

GeoGuessr has announced that it’ll be at the Esports World Cup 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 

It also announced it’ll host a Lance Chance Wildcard Tournament, giving players a chance at the 2025 World Finals in Copenhagen. 

GeoGuessr Announcement

The geography game was taken to X to announce that it would be part of the event. 

“HUGE ANNOUNCEMENT: We're heading to the Esports World Cup 2025!

As part of the @EWC_EN Festival, this is a massive step for us. Let’s show the world what we’ve got. We will host a Last Chance Wildcard Tournament live in Riyadh, a final shot at the 2025 World Finals in Copenhagen!”

The Wildcard Series runs throughout the 2025 campaign, and the Last Chance opportunity in Saudi Arabia will be the final shot for players. 

There are no details yet as to how players can join.

This is GeoGuessr’s latest attempt to expand into esports. It’ll also have three offline regional Majors in Japan, the United States, and Sweden. The Americas Major will be aprt of DreamHack Dallas as the EMEA Major takes place on mid-June. 

This announcement comes after GeoGuessr announced Opera GX as a partner ahead of the 2025 GeoGuessr World Championship. 

Fans Not Happy About Esports World Cup Appearance 

In the replies to the announcement on X, fans aren’t happy about GeoGuessr participating. The Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund backs the Esports World Cup, and fans cite Saudi Arabia’s stance on various human rights as an issue. 

“I think you should reconsider this. You know why. There are other paths to grow GeoGuessr,” one user wrote. 

“Genuinely, what does this accomplish other than alienating your playerbase? I’m disappointed, to say the least,” another said. 

“What a terrible announcement. You guys have really let down the community with this in a deeply disappointing way. I will be boycotting this event in solidarity with the many LGBT members of our community. This is completely unacceptable. Do better,” someone else said. 

Another user added, “Extremely disappointed about this. You people are sellouts. This is a slap in the face of your playerbase.”

GeoGuessr hasn’t made any comment on the recent backlash.