IOC suspends Esports Commission operations, raising uncertainty over Olympic Esports Games initiative

According to information from the Japanese news agency Kyodo, the International Olympic Committee has reportedly decided to put its “Esports Commission's activities on hold.” After its formal unveiling at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games by then-IOC President Thomas Bach, the Olympic Esports Games could have marked a major step forward for the industry. Ultimately, however, the project appears to have stalled since then, leading to the likely end of its dedicated commission.

Presented as more protective of traditional sports, Kirsty Coventry, the new President of the International Olympic Committee since June 2025, reportedly sent a message to group members at the end of last January, stating that she “will take responsibility for moving this forward from here on out. In the next phase, we will need a more integrated approach that is firmly aligned with the overall strategy of the Olympic Movement.” This appears to be a polite way of sidelining the esports working group. A move an anonymous source told the Japanese agency had effectively confirmed by explaining that the commission’s activities have “come to a close.”

Initially announced for 2025 through a partnership with Saudi Arabia, the event was later postponed to 2027 before being canceled on October 30, 2025, following the end of the agreement between the IOC and Saudi representatives. Placed in a “Pause and Reflect” phase, as Kirsty Coventry stated at the time, it now appears she has decided to bring discussions about the project’s future to an end. While the exact reasons remain unclear, the Kyodo report may offer some insight.

Already seen as rather reluctant toward new sports, the Zimbabwean IOC president is also said to have scrapped plans to add certain “Summer Olympic” sports to the Winter Olympics, with initial tests expected for the 2030 French Alps Winter Games. According to the Japanese news agency, the 2032 Brisbane Olympics, scheduled to take place in Australia, “is set to undergo a significant reduction in the number of sports due to financial concerns, and even the sports retained could have some of their disciplines or events cut.” This suggests that esports is far from being a priority for the IOC, which appears to be struggling to define its future direction.

A lengthy article published by Sheep Esports on January 31 had already raised questions about the future of the Olympic Esports Games. It explored the IOC’s position amid Saudi Arabia’s rapid progress with its Esports Nations Cup, notably due to the fact that the Saudis do not face the same historical constraints as the Olympic Committee. In addition to ongoing debates around so-called “violent” games, with Counter-Strike and FPS titles in particular under scrutiny, the IOC also appeared unable to find a solution to reconcile its Olympic model with the intellectual property held by major publishers such as Riot Games, Epic Games, Valve, Capcom, and many others.

At the same time, while the Asian Games, organized by the Olympic Council of Asia, will take place in Japan in a few months and feature several esports titles such as League of Legends, Honor of Kings, and PUBG Mobile, the IOC’s international stance is raising many questions across the scene. While many stakeholders are looking for an alternative to the Saudi government’s project, the Olympic Esports Games could have emerged as a viable and more widely accepted option. That is no longer on the table, and likely not for quite some time.