Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – The global esports industry has marked a new milestone following the announcement of a strategic partnership between the Esports Foundation (EF) and global sportswear giant, adidas. In this collaboration, adidas has been officially appointed as the official matchwear provider for all national teams competing in the inaugural Esports Nations Cup (ENC), scheduled to kick off on November 2, 2026, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
As the official global apparel partner, the German brand will design and manufacture custom jerseys and training wear for delegations from over 100 countries and territories. More than 2,000 athletes and coaches will wear uniforms specifically designed to blend their respective national identities with the spirit of global sportsmanship.
Esports Foundation Chief Commercial Officer, Mohammed Al Nimer, expressed that national team jerseys carry the pride and great ambitions of each nation. The collaboration with adidas is expected to elevate the prestige of esports athletes to match that of traditional sports athletes on the world stage, while inspiring a new generation of fans.
Echoing this sentiment, Phillip Waller, Senior Vice President of Brand Development at adidas, expressed his enthusiasm for bringing the company's long-standing experience in supporting the world's largest sporting events into the global esports arena. According to him, jerseys play a crucial role in building identity and a sense of belonging among competitors.
The Esports Nations Cup itself is designed as a recurring tournament with a structured format featuring national representative teams instead of standard professional clubs. To ensure the success of this inaugural event, the Esports Foundation has appointed national team representatives, managers, and over 700 coaches from various leading global esports organizations to select the finest talent.
This large-scale tournament offers a fantastic total prize pool of $20 million USD, distributed evenly based on final standings. In addition to the prize money, the organizers have also set aside a Development Fund of $20 million USD out of a total funding commitment of $45 million USD to support operations and the growth of the esports ecosystem in participating countries.
