Korea Wins Worlds, but China and Saudi Arabia Dominate Esports [News Seolcham]

Korean Players Shine in Major Matches
China Leads Esports Standardization with IT Giants
Saudi Arabia Fuels Gaming Growth with Oil Money

Editor's Note'Seolcham' is a newly coined term meaning 'refer to the explanation for more details.' In [News Seolcham], we highlight parts of the news that require fact-checking or further explanation and provide more detailed information.

The world's largest esports event, the 2025 League of Legends (LOL) World Championship, ended as a celebration for Korea, with both first and second place taken by Korean teams. However, it appears that Korea has little room to lead in the competition for dominance in the esports industry. This is because giants like China and Middle Eastern countries, backed by massive IT companies and capital, are taking the lead in the industry.

China: The Real Powerhouse Behind the Scenes of Worlds

Korean League of Legends (LOL) professional team T1 won the 2025 LOL World Championship (Worlds). In this Worlds, both first and second place were taken by Korean teams, making it a solo stage for Korean professional gamers. Yonhap News

On November 9 (local time), the 2025 LOL World Championship (Worlds) finals were held at Dong'an Lake Sports Park in Chengdu, China, where T1 faced KT Rolster. Both teams are from Korea and enjoy global popularity. T1 defeated Rolster 3-2 and lifted the championship trophy. The world's largest esports league, Worlds, has become a solo stage for Korean professional gamers.

While Korean players showcase overwhelming skills in esports competitions, the landscape is different in the industry. China, the host country of this year’s championship finals, has now firmly established itself as the undisputed leader of the esports industry.

Although League of Legends is developed and operated by the American game company Riot Games, its parent company is the Chinese tech giant Tencent. Tencent acquired all shares of Riot Games in 2015, making it a wholly owned subsidiary. As a result, Tencent owns the IP for popular esports titles developed by Riot, such as League of Legends and Valorant, and has leveraged its global game service expertise to grow its self-developed game, Honor of Kings, into the top esports title in China. Most of the intellectual property (IP) related to esports is thus owned by Chinese companies.

China is an esports hub with a consumer base of over 490 million people, and Chinese IT companies are actively securing popular game intellectual property (IP). Weibo capture

In addition, China is home to several major game distribution companies such as NetEase and G-Joy, which are aggressively investing in esports. According to the annual esports industry report published by the China Audio-Visual and Digital Publishing Association, last year the Chinese esports industry recorded revenue of 27.5 billion yuan (about 5.64 trillion won), with a consumer base of over 490 million people.

China is also leading the way in establishing regulations related to esports. In January last year, China submitted an 'esports standardization proposal' to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committee 83 (TC83), which was adopted four months later after a vote by 35 countries. The esports standardization proposal includes standardizing and regulating aspects such as esports broadcasting methods, communication equipment, tournament operations, and stadium design.

Saudi Arabia Emerges with Oil Money

Another country that has recently emerged in the esports industry is Saudi Arabia. While China is dominating esports IP and setting industry standards through its IT companies, Saudi Arabia is building its own independent esports ecosystem based on the capital of state-owned enterprises.

The 'Esports World Cup' (EWC), which has been held in Saudi Arabia since last year, is hosted by the Saudi Esports Federation and takes place in Riyadh, the capital. The EWC is held every year for about eight weeks from July to August, and this year, more than three million spectators visited Riyadh during the event.

At last year's inaugural Esports World Cup (EWC) closing ceremony, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia (fourth from the left) awarded the trophy to the team that won the overall championship. The EWC has risen to become the center of global esports in just two years. Saudi Esports Federation

The EWC offers huge prize pools for dozens of globally popular games. As a result, all the top professional gamer teams flock to the EWC, enabling it to quickly grow into a world-class esports event. This year, the total prize pool for the EWC reached 70 million dollars (about 102.3 billion won), attracting 2,500 professional gamers from 89 countries and featuring 871 matches.

The reason the EWC can offer such unprecedented prize money is because of Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company, Saudi Aramco. Aramco is the inaugural sponsor and de facto backer of the EWC, making massive investments so that the event can be held on a grand scale every year.

The EWC also reflects Saudi Arabia's national efforts to move away from a resource-based economy. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, considered the real power in Saudi Arabia, announced 'Vision 2030' in 2016, stating that a public fund of 3 trillion dollars (about 4,380 trillion won) would be established. This fund is being invested in advanced industries and cultural sectors, and the EWC was also established as part of a long-term plan to foster Saudi Arabia as a global hub for the gaming industry.