FIFA Postpones 2026 FIFAe Finals Over Security Fears
By Don Ferdy
The Federation International of Football Association, FIFA, and the Saudi Esports Federation have postponed the FIFAe Finals 2026 scheduled to take place in Jeddah from October 16 to 25.
The organisers stated this following recent attacks on Saudi Arabia where a strike on Riyadh’s international airport on Saturday killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300, with Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement claiming responsibility for the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade.
“The decision follows an assessment of recent developments in the region and their impact on the logistical arrangements required to stage the tournament”.
“Further announcements on the FIFAe Finals will be communicated in due course”, organisers of the global video game tournament said.
Meanwhile, Japan and Brazil withdrew their esports teams on Saturday after assessing the situation in the host country.
The Six Kings Slam exhibition tennis tournament was therefore moved from October to December, while golf’s Asian Tour said it is monitoring developments ahead of next month’s Saudi International in Riyadh.
The Asian Football Confederation, (AFC), said it remains open to delaying the Asian Cup until 2028 if necessary. The continental tournament is scheduled to kick off on January 7 next year across venues in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar.
Also, the Korea Football Association, (KFA), in a statement said it was in communication with the AFC.
“We are closely monitoring the situation in Saudi Arabia and plan to continue discussions regarding overall developments”.
It would be recalled that the previous Asian Cup was delayed by a year after China withdrew as hosts because of COVID-19 restrictions, with Qatar stepping in to stage the tournament in early 2024.
