The Middle East continues to champion the eSports industry despite its biggest slowdown in the past three decades. Recently, True Gamers had revealed plans to build the world's first eSports island on Abu Dhabi. The UAE is betting big on the industry and is gearing up to be the go-to destination for eSports gaming for both regional and international talents.
On a mission to attract some of the world's best and also emphasize homegrown talent amongst the gaming industry, the Middle East is adding an eSports island to its long list of impressive investments. According to BCG, more than 60% of the population in the region are gamers, resulting in the Middle East having one of the highest gaming mobile app downloads in the world. True Gamers' project comes at the right time as they recently announced a $280 million USD investment in Abu Dhabi to build the island.
Set to be located between the Al Bandar and Al Dana developments along the Al Raha beach, the island is projected to hit $1 billion USD at the time of completion. The island is expected to include a luxury hotel, high-tech venues for global and regional tournaments, professional training facilities like the GG Bootcamp and even content creation spaces. The bootcamp itself is expected to be equipped with state-of-the-art gaming PCs as well as analytical tools and even isolated rest areas for sleep or down time. Gamers will also have access to a balanced nutrition program. The True Gamers Arena will be wear the island will host most of its tournaments. It is expected to feature many areas for conferences and exhibitions. Ther will also be a console zone, many gaming PCs and even a streaming area. As for the GG Resort, it boasts 200 rooms with gaming computers. The property is said to be facing th beach and has a space for gamers to unwind, as well as a pool.
In a statement, True Gamers CEO and co-founder Anton Vasilenko said, "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. This in-depth analysis gives us confidence that the proposed business model will be instrumental in bringing eSports Island to life." In the past, the Middle East has been at the center of some of the biggest eSports tournaments in the world.
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