Sources: FIFAe World Cup 2026 in jeopardy as teams consider withdrawal over safety concerns

According to Sheep Esports sources, multiple national team associations are considering withdrawal from the Rocket League FIFAe World Cup 2026 in Jeddah due to increasing concerns regarding travel to Saudi Arabia. While teams have started to receive their tickets, the current regional conflict has cast doubts on the safety of staff and players at the event in October. England, Brazil, Australia, South Africa, Puerto Rico, France, and the United States are amongst the teams weighing up pulling out of the competition.

FIFAe, which has hosted the tournament in Riyadh for the past two years, announced in September the event would be relocated to the more sheltered city of Jeddah, which sits on the Red Sea as Saudi Arabia’s second city. However, even this safer location has been at risk, with multiple alerts and warnings issued in the city by the Saudi authorities over recent weeks.

The current iteration of the FIFAe World Cup was first hosted by FIFA in 2024 and holds national team events in Rocket League, Football Manager and eFootball. The tournament has been a success in Rocket League so far, providing the esport with a unique end-of-year tournament that features the best players representing their nation. The reigning champions are France, while Saudi Arabia won the 2024 edition.

The 2026 FIFAe World Cup is currently on track to be the most ambitious version of the event yet. It was split into three stages: beginning with an online Nations League, then a Continental Championships featuring LANs across five locations around the world, before leading into the Main Event, which is set to start on October 20 with 16 national teams.

A recent escalation in the Yemeni Civil War, has led to increased attacks on Saudi Arabia’s urban centres and energy facilities. The Kingdom was already under stress from the Iran War, which entered its eighth month in October and has led to the cancellation of multiple events in esports this year. Currently the USA recommends that “Americans outside the Middle East should seriously reconsider travel to and through the region” and has a Level 3 travel advisory warning for the country. Likewise, the United Kingdom foreign travel advice suggests “there is a risk of more attacks and escalation” and lists Jeddah as a city impacted by the Houthi rebel military group which has targeted “several cities” with “missiles and drones”.

The ongoing geopolitical situation in the region even led to the relocation of Riyadh’s premier event, the Esports World Cup (EWC), to Paris earlier this year. The EWC, which has held Rocket League tournaments since its inception, had also been hosted in Riyadh for the past two years by the Saudi Esports Federation. Its sister event, the Esports Nations Cup (ENC), which was expected to hold its own $1,320,000 national team tournament for Rocket League in November, was entirely postponed to 2027 instead.

Had there been any wiggle room to host these events in Saudi Arabia, the Saudi Esports Federation would likely not have hesitated, but the situation in the region was clearly too unsafe and untenable to stage an esports event. Riyadh has had multiple air raid alerts since these decisions were made, and its airport was recently targeted.

If several national associations potentially withdraw from the FIFAe World Cup, the event could be cancelled. While teams may want to see the tournament relocated, with the competition set to start in under a month’s time, relocation seems unlikely at such short notice. As a result, sources suggest the event is in jeopardy. As a fallback plan, the organizers have been contacting national associations who did not directly qualify for the event to see if they would travel as replacements for those who are arranging to withdraw.

Relocation is not really an option. While FIFAe does have experience running events elsewhere, having organized the Continental Championships across five cities back in August, these were at much smaller venues and organized far in advance. What is clear is that the current safety concerns raised by teams are not expected to go away any time soon, with no end to the regional tensions in sight.