Abu Dhabi building world’s first Esports island to rival Saudi Arabia in $280m project
- Abu Dhabi has made a bid to rival Saudi Arabia’s sports supercity, Qiddiya
- The nation is building the world’s first Esports island
- The project will cost $280 million
Published on Mar 28, 2024 at 9:31 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Apr 02, 2024 at 6:56 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
In a bid to rival Saudi Arabia’s sports supercity, Abu Dhabi is building the world’s first Esports island.
The $280 million project will have a professional training facility, a business hub, and a frat-style BootCamp.
These will sit alongside a luxury hotel offering PUBG-style parachute check-in.
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Saudi Arabia’s 500,000 sq m district is set to be an international gaming haven.
It will even feature a Mario-Kart-inspired F1 track.
Now True Gamers, Esports’ lounge network, is doing the same for the UAE – and the race is on for the title ‘world first’.
The $280 million project will be located near the Al Seef area in Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi’s Esports project will boast a professional gaming training facility, a tech venue TG Arena for tournaments, and a luxury hotel.
Over 60 percent of the population in the Middle East are gamers, per Wired.
The world’s first Dragon Ball theme park is also being built in Saudi Arabia.
Now, Abu Dhabi wants to capitalize on the slew of gaming mobile app downloads.
The GG Bootcamp will be a holistic experience with state-of-the-art gaming PCs, analytical tools, and isolated sleep and rest areas – there’s even a nutrition program to boost performance.
No, it’s not just cans of Monster and Cheetos.
The Esports arena will be packed with car simulators, a console zone, gaming PCs, and a streaming area.
Plus the Digital Tower provides workspaces for animation developers while GG Resort has 200 rooms for when they need to relax at the end of the day.
But, if you often bring work home, that’s doable too with every room featuring in-built gaming computers.
“True Gamers conducted a comprehensive market analysis of the MENA region’s eSports landscape and the global eSports industry’s growth trajectory before developing plans for the eSports island,” Anton Vasilenko, CEO and co-founder of True Gamers, said.
“This in-depth analysis gives us confidence that the proposed business model will be instrumental in bringing eSports Island to life.”
Meanwhile, in Saudi Arabia, plans are gigantic for the Esport district in Qiddiya City.
It will feature 43 sports facilities, an F1 track, and 12 theme parks.
It will also boast a $315 million multifunctional stadium that’s set to be the world’s biggest.
Rumor has it that it will be bigger than the Vatican City.
Similarly to Abu Dhabi, it will also come with several game-themed luxury hotels, entertainment, and shopping.
Hopes are high that it will attract 10 million visitors annually.
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London-based Amelia cut her journalistic teeth covering all things lifestyle, wellness and luxury in the UK capital. Fast-forward a decade and the experienced content creator and editor has put pen to paper for glossy magazines, busy newsrooms and coveted brands. When her OOO is on you can find her spending quality time with her young family, in the gym or exploring the city she loves.
