6-day tournament kicked off on July 11 and will run until Sunday July 16 Last year’s champions Vampire Esports from Thailand back to defend their crown RIYADH: Gamers8: The Land of Heroes on Tuesday welcomed the world’s best PUBG MOBILE teams to Riyadh for six days of intense Battle Royale competition at the $3 million PUBG MOBILE World Invitational tournament. For the latest updates, follow us on Twitter @ArabNewsSport The six-day PMWI event, organized by the Saudi Esports Federation, or SEF, and PUBG MOBILE, kicked off with a three-day Allstars stage at Boulevard Riyadh City. Eighteen teams are battling it out for a $1 million purse and six coveted places in the main tournament, which runs from July 14 to 16, with an additional $2 million prize purse. Defending PMWI champions Vampire Esports from Thailand will be in action on the Allstars Stage alongside host country favorites R8 Esports. Sixteen other teams — from Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Iraq, Dominican Republic, Kazakhstan, China, Mexico, Brazil, Turkiye, Serbia, South Korea and Japan — have been either invited, or voted in by the global gaming community, and join the sides from Thailand and Saudi Arabia. The six best performers from the PMWI Allstars stage will join the Twisted Minds team from the Saudi eLeague for the main PUBG MOBILE World Invitational, along with the top teams representing China (invited), Japan (invited), Indonesia, Vietnam, Brazil, Turkiye, Mongolia and the Middle East. A battle for the $500,000 first prize and an additional regional slot for the league stage of PMGC 2023 is at stake. Faisal bin Homran, director of esports at the SEF, said: “Gamers8: The Land of Heroes is delighted to host some of the world’s best teams for the PUBG MOBILE World Invitational tournament at Boulevard Riyadh City. The quality of teams on show is another example of the elite level esports that we are bringing to Riyadh, and further establishing Saudi Arabia as a gaming hub. “The 2023 edition of Gamers8: The Land of Heroes is evidence of our country’s rapid evolution in the gaming space, and we are proud that Gamers8 is a festival and a destination that attracts elite esports champions and teams.”