'Next World Forum' Discusses Gaming and Esports Sector in Riyadh

The Saudi Esports Federation logo
The Saudi Esports Federation logo
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'Next World Forum' Discusses Gaming and Esports Sector in Riyadh

The Saudi Esports Federation logo
The Saudi Esports Federation logo

The Saudi Esports Federation will launch the "Next World Forum" on August 30 and 31 in Riyadh, at the conclusion of the activities of the largest event for games and electronic sports in the world, "Gamers8: The Land of Heroes."

The forum will discuss promising opportunities in the fast-growing gaming and esports industry worth more than $170 billion globally, exceeding the worth of both the film and music industries.

Prince Faisal bin Bandar bin Sultan, Chairman of the Saudi Esports Federation's Board of Directors, said that the current edition of the forum tackles challenging questions about the gaming and esports industry, as it convenes leaders of the sector and related sectors.

The first day of the forum will see a panel discussion entitled: “Acquisition: Legal Aspects of Corporate Acquisition of Game Studios," then a session about “Electronic Games, the Economy of the Future," followed by a session “From Pixels to the Podium: Studying the Relationship between eSports and the Olympic Games," in addition to a session on “Stagnation of E-Sports: Is the Story Over?”.

On its second day, the forum will witness a session titled "The Impact of Politics on Electronic Games," a session entitled “Challenges Women Face in Achieving Leadership Roles in the World of Electronic Games," and then a session about “Analyzing the Mental and Physical Health of Esports Players" and a keynote session entitled “Better Digital Governance in Metaverse and Blockchain."

The winners of the "Gamers Season Awards for Clubs" will be announced during the "Next World Forum," which is an innovative method for awarding rewards and an updated system that will constitute a quantum leap in the world of electronic sports.



Medvedev Beats Monfils in Beijing. Draper Upsets Hurkacz in Japan

Russia's Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating France's Gael Monfils during the China Open tennis tournament held at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
Russia's Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating France's Gael Monfils during the China Open tennis tournament held at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
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Medvedev Beats Monfils in Beijing. Draper Upsets Hurkacz in Japan

Russia's Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating France's Gael Monfils during the China Open tennis tournament held at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
Russia's Daniil Medvedev celebrates after defeating France's Gael Monfils during the China Open tennis tournament held at the National Tennis Center in Beijing, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Daniil Medvedev safely navigated a tricky first outing at the China Open on Friday, winning 6-3, 6-4 against French veteran Gael Monfils.
The third-seeded Medvedev, runner-up to Jannik Sinner here last year, broke Monfils' serve three times in a dominant opening set, The Associated Press reported.
After trading breaks in a closer second set, former No. 1-ranked Medvedev clinched the match with another service break to seal the win in 92 minutes.
Roman Safiullin, who made the main draw as a lucky loser in qualifying, beat three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka 6-3, 6-4 and will face top-ranked Sinner.
No. 3-ranked Carlos Alcaraz, seeded second in Beijing, begins against No. 51 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France later Friday.
In the women's draw, sixth-seeded Emma Navarro was upset by Chinese wildcard Zhang Shuai 6-4, 6-2 in 75 minutes. The 35-year-old Zhang, a doubles specialist, played well above her current singles ranking of No. 595 as she took five of her seven breakpoint opportunities against the U.S. Open semifinalist.
Zhang will play Greet Minnen of Belgium, who beat 28th-seeded Anastasia Potapova 7-5, 2-6, 6-4, in the third round.
Also, 12th-seeded Diana Shnaider beat former Australian Open winner Sofia Kenin 6-2, 6-3 and Yuliia Starodubtseva had a 6-2, 6-2 win over 27th-seeded Katerina Siniakova.
Second-seeded Jessica Pegula was due open her tournament later Friday against Diane Parry of France, and Coco Gauff faced Clara Burel in a night match.
US Open champion Aryna Sabalenka plays Saturday against Thai qualifier Mananchaya Sawangkaew. Top-ranked Iga Swiatek was not playing this week for personal reasons.
Japan Open Second-seeded Hubert Hurkacz lost 6-4, 6-4 to US Open semifinalist Jack Draper in the second round in Tokyo, a day after top-seeded Taylor Fritz and third-seeded Casper Ruud were eliminated from the tournament.
While the 22-year-old Draper and Hurkacz were evenly matched on aces and winners, it was the Polish player's 30 unforced errors, to Draper's 20, that proved costly.
Draper will next play either Brandon Nakashima or Ugo Humbert in the quarterfinals.
Defending champion Ben Shelton also progressed to the quarterfinals with a 6-4, 6-3 defeat of Mariano Navone. Shelton, along with Fritz, traveled to Japan from the Laver Cup in Berlin, where they represented Team World in a loss to Alcaraz’s Team Europe.