The International Olympic Committee and Saudi Arabia have ended their 12-year Esports partnership after only a year, parting ways to develop separate projects, the IOC said on Thursday.

Two years before the first Olympic Esports Games were to be held in Riyadh, the IOC said discussions with the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee had ending the partnership 14 months after announcing a 12-year deal during the 2024 Paris Olympics.

“Recently, the two parties and the Esports World Cup Foundation sat down again and reviewed this initiative,” the IOC said in a statement.

“They mutually agreed that they will end their cooperation on the Olympic Esports Games. At the same time, both parties are committed to pursuing their own Esports ambitions on separate paths.”

The IOC has been looking in

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