
Top 5 games and tournaments driving regional eSports growth - Middle East Business News and Information
Here are five of MENATech's most impactful projects in the MENA region that highlight the breadth and ambition of its work: GAMERGY MENA, Cairo, Egypt
MENATech's debut of GAMERGY in Cairo marked the largest regional event of its kind, drawing over 40,000 attendees over three days. Egypt's 40 million-strong gaming community, including 7 million esports competitors, found a new home in a festival that combined high-stakes tournaments with influencer activations and live entertainment. The event featured top-tier competitions across Valorant, PUBG Mobile, League of Legends (LoL), and Rocket League, with winners sharing a prize pool of over EGP 2 million. With backing from the Egyptian Ministry of Youth & Sports, IMKAN Misr, Samsung, and Red Bull, GAMERGY MENA set a new standard for what large-scale esports events in the region could look like. UNIVERSITY Esports Masters
UNIVERSITY Esports Masters, the leading esports project for students in the MENA region, was a talent discovery engine. Over 1,300 students from 50+ universities competed for USD 12,500 in prizes. Kamikaze UAE and PifthePaf took home titles in LoL and VALORANT, respectively, advancing to MENA finals. Through in-person campus tours, career talks, and workshops, MENATech connected students with real career pathways in broadcasting, event production, and digital marketing, turning competitive gaming into a launchpad for the future. Emirates Esports Federation Partnership
The 2024 edition of the UNIVERSITY Esports Masters tournament took the collegiate model regional. MENATech partnered with the Emirates Esports Federation, a government-established body dedicated to advancing esports in the UAE by coordinating local activities and representing the country internationally. The collaboration gave university students a platform that extended beyond national borders, positioning esports as a driver of both competition and community across MENA. Featuring top university teams from the UAE, KSA, Egypt, and Morocco, it showcased high-calibre gameplay and the power of cross-border collaboration. AppGallery Gamers Cup Qatar
GGTech and Huawei Mobile Services MENA organized the AppGallery Gamers Cup Qatar, a high-impact, action-packed PUBG MOBILE tournament culminating in a LAN final in Doha in December 2024. Held under the guidance of the Qatar Esports Federation, the event featured a single-elimination format with intense online qualifiers. The top four teams advanced to the in-person finals, competing for a total prize pool of $20,000.
GGTech Studios and Crema expanded the beloved Temtem universe with Temtem: Swarm, a twin-stick shooter roguelite that introduced fast-paced multiplayer action to the franchise. The game exceeded 100,000 units sold and continued to evolve with regular updates, including 2025's Omninesia Overrun patch, which added new content and gameplay mechanics, and the Endless Inferno patch that added a challenging map, new Temtem, co-op features, new gear, techniques and in-game achievements, and gameplay modes like Endless Mode and Hasty Mode. This project cemented GGTech's depth as a game developer capable of bringing IPs to life for a global player base.
Powering the Region's Gaming Evolution
The MENA region is entering a golden age of gaming, driven by youth demographics, mobile-first adoption, and state-backed investment. With national plans to develop 30+ competitive games in Saudi Arabia and position Dubai among the world's top 10 gaming hubs by 2033, the opportunity is enormous.
MENATech Entertainment is helping to define this momentum. Whether it's bringing 40,000 fans together in Cairo, launching new IPs, or embedding career pathways in university tournaments, the company is building the foundation for a globally relevant, regionally rooted esports future.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Mid East Info
5 hours ago
- Mid East Info
Top 5 games and tournaments driving regional eSports growth - Middle East Business News and Information
The MENA region is home to 377 million gamers, nearly half the region's population. Governments across the GCC are pouring billions into national strategies to position gaming and esports as key growth sectors, with Saudi Arabia alone targeting a US$13.3 billion economic impact. In this context, MENATech Entertainment (a GGTech company) is leading this charge through a mix of competitive tournaments, collegiate engagement, and immersive gaming platforms. Here are five of MENATech's most impactful projects in the MENA region that highlight the breadth and ambition of its work: GAMERGY MENA, Cairo, Egypt MENATech's debut of GAMERGY in Cairo marked the largest regional event of its kind, drawing over 40,000 attendees over three days. Egypt's 40 million-strong gaming community, including 7 million esports competitors, found a new home in a festival that combined high-stakes tournaments with influencer activations and live entertainment. The event featured top-tier competitions across Valorant, PUBG Mobile, League of Legends (LoL), and Rocket League, with winners sharing a prize pool of over EGP 2 million. With backing from the Egyptian Ministry of Youth & Sports, IMKAN Misr, Samsung, and Red Bull, GAMERGY MENA set a new standard for what large-scale esports events in the region could look like. UNIVERSITY Esports Masters UNIVERSITY Esports Masters, the leading esports project for students in the MENA region, was a talent discovery engine. Over 1,300 students from 50+ universities competed for USD 12,500 in prizes. Kamikaze UAE and PifthePaf took home titles in LoL and VALORANT, respectively, advancing to MENA finals. Through in-person campus tours, career talks, and workshops, MENATech connected students with real career pathways in broadcasting, event production, and digital marketing, turning competitive gaming into a launchpad for the future. Emirates Esports Federation Partnership The 2024 edition of the UNIVERSITY Esports Masters tournament took the collegiate model regional. MENATech partnered with the Emirates Esports Federation, a government-established body dedicated to advancing esports in the UAE by coordinating local activities and representing the country internationally. The collaboration gave university students a platform that extended beyond national borders, positioning esports as a driver of both competition and community across MENA. Featuring top university teams from the UAE, KSA, Egypt, and Morocco, it showcased high-calibre gameplay and the power of cross-border collaboration. AppGallery Gamers Cup Qatar GGTech and Huawei Mobile Services MENA organized the AppGallery Gamers Cup Qatar, a high-impact, action-packed PUBG MOBILE tournament culminating in a LAN final in Doha in December 2024. Held under the guidance of the Qatar Esports Federation, the event featured a single-elimination format with intense online qualifiers. The top four teams advanced to the in-person finals, competing for a total prize pool of $20,000. GGTech Studios and Crema expanded the beloved Temtem universe with Temtem: Swarm, a twin-stick shooter roguelite that introduced fast-paced multiplayer action to the franchise. The game exceeded 100,000 units sold and continued to evolve with regular updates, including 2025's Omninesia Overrun patch, which added new content and gameplay mechanics, and the Endless Inferno patch that added a challenging map, new Temtem, co-op features, new gear, techniques and in-game achievements, and gameplay modes like Endless Mode and Hasty Mode. This project cemented GGTech's depth as a game developer capable of bringing IPs to life for a global player base. Powering the Region's Gaming Evolution The MENA region is entering a golden age of gaming, driven by youth demographics, mobile-first adoption, and state-backed investment. With national plans to develop 30+ competitive games in Saudi Arabia and position Dubai among the world's top 10 gaming hubs by 2033, the opportunity is enormous. MENATech Entertainment is helping to define this momentum. Whether it's bringing 40,000 fans together in Cairo, launching new IPs, or embedding career pathways in university tournaments, the company is building the foundation for a globally relevant, regionally rooted esports future.


Mid East Info
7 days ago
- Mid East Info
Wamda and Inc. Arabia Collaborate to Strengthen Startup Storytelling in MENA - Middle East Business News and Information
Dubai, UAE – August, 2025 — Wamda , the platform dedicated to supporting entrepreneurship and innovation in the Middle East and North Africa MENA, has entered into a collaboration with Inc. Arabia , the official Middle East edition of the US-headquartered , which is published by 7awi Media Group , to broaden and enrich journalistic coverage of the region's startup ecosystem. This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to inclusive storytelling and media access for founders, entrepreneurs, and ecosystem enablers across the Arab world. By combining Wamda's regional network and ecosystem insights with Inc. Arabia's editorial reach and publishing capabilities, both entities aim to highlight the people and ideas shaping the MENA's innovation economy. 'At Wamda, we believe in the power of consistent and credible storytelling to support ecosystem growth. This collaboration with Inc. Arabia is a practical step toward expanding the visibility of entrepreneurial voices and contributing to a more informed and connected regional narrative,' said Fadi Ghandour, the CEO of Wamda. The collaboration will focus on co-publishing selected stories, exploring opportunities for research-based content, and ensuring broader reach for under-represented voices in the regional ecosystem. It also opens the door for potential joint initiatives that can deepen the media's role in supporting economic and social development through entrepreneurship. 'Inc. Arabia has always championed bold ideas and brave founders. This partnership with Wamda helps us go further—unearthing and amplifying stories that matter across the startup ecosystem,' said Anas (Andy) Abbar, CEO of the UAE-headquartered 7awi Media Group. 'Together, we're building the region's most powerful media engine for innovation and entrepreneurship.' In a region experiencing rapid digital transformation and an increasingly active startup landscape, both Wamda and Inc. Arabia see value in working together to provide high-quality, accessible coverage that informs, supports, and reflects the realities of entrepreneurship in the MENA. About Wamda: Wamda is a leading platform tracking and supporting entrepreneurship and innovation across the Middle East and North Africa. Through its news coverage, research, and community programmes, Wamda provides in-depth insights into the region's startup ecosystem while fostering connections between founders, investors, corporates, and policymakers. About Inc. Arabia and 7awi Media Group: Launched in the MENA region in 2023, Inc. Arabia is the official Middle East edition of Inc. Business Media—an award-winning US-based multimedia brand for entrepreneurs that aims to inform, educate, and elevate the profile of risk-takers, innovators, and go-getters who are creating the future. Inc. Arabia is part of 7awi (pronounced 'Hawi') Media Group , a leading MENA-based group that has been creating engaging, meaningful content across its publishing platforms for the past 12 years.


Egypt Independent
7 days ago
- Egypt Independent
Apple got a much-needed iPhone and China boost, but expects a $1.1 billion tariff hit this quarter
Apple reported strong iPhone sales and rebound in revenue from China, giving a much-needed boost to two parts of the company's business that had struggled over the past year. That better-than-expected performance reassured Wall Street investors that key parts of its business are holding steady as Apple struggles to keep pace with rivals in the artificial intelligence race and navigates President Donald Trump's looming tariffs. Apple could incur $1.1 billion in tariff-related costs in the September quarter, CEO Tim Cook said on a call with analysts, which would be up from the $800 million this past quarter. The iPhone generated $44.5 billion in revenue for the quarter that ended in June, beating analyst expectations of $40 billion and last year's results of $39.3 billion for the same period. Overall revenue came in $94 billion in the quarter, marking a 10 percent increase year-over-year. Sales of iPhones also grew in China, where the company has underwhelmed recently, growing from $14.7 billion in the third quarter of 2024 to $15.3 billion this past quarter. Apple shares were up a little more than 2 percent in after-hours trading. But that's a much smaller boost than tech giants Microsoft and Meta, which saw there shares surge by nearly 7 percent and over 9 percent respectively on Wednesday thanks to their AI investments. Apple has woefully underperformed its rivals. The stock is down nearly 15 percent this year, missing out on the market's big rally over the past several months. There was a time when surging iPhone sales would have been enough to excite Wall Street. But analysts pressed Apple CEO Tim Cook about the company's vision for how AI will shape future products and how the company views the iPhone's relevance in the AI age. But Cook believes the iPhone will continue to be essential even as AI plays a bigger role in everyday life. 'It's difficult to see a world where iPhone's not living in it,' he said in response to a question about how Apple is preparing for a scenario in which people rely more on voice assistants and less on screens. 'And that doesn't mean that we are not thinking about other things as well, but I think that the devices are likely to be complementary devices, not a substitution.' Big quarter for the iPhone The iPhone generates more revenue than any other Apple product, making it the company's most important business in Wall Street's eyes. Apple CEO Tim Cook said on a call with analysts that the company set a June quarter record for iPhone sales, growing 13 percent year-over-year. But Trump's whipsaw tariff policies have required Apple and other tech giants to rethink how they manufacture and ship devices like smartphones and computers. Investors are also eager for Apple to make a bigger splash in artificial intelligence as other tech behemoths like Google, Meta and Microsoft push forward. Apple shifted most production of US-bound iPhones from China to India earlier this year to avoid Trump's tariffs. Smartphones were exempt from the previous reciprocal levies on China that would have increased the tariff rate to a staggering 145 percent, but Trump has also said companies like Apple and Samsung could face a 25 percent tariff unless they make their smartphones in the US. A temporary trade deal between the two powerhouse economies will keep tariffs at 30 percent until August 12, while Trump threatened India with tariffs as high as 25 percent earlier this week. When asked about how the company is handling its product assembly based on the tariff situation, Cook said there hasn't been a change since last quarter; the 'vast majority' of iPhones sold in the United States have India as their country of origin. He also reiterated that Apple has a strong presence in the United States, with roughly 19 billion chips coming out of the US currently. AI struggles Beyond tariffs, Apple faces broader challenges to the future of its business. Apple is perceived to be behind in artificial intelligence, a critical technology that many believe will impact the economy and change the way people work, communicate and find information. The company indefinitely delayed a major upgrade to Siri that would have brought it up to speed with modern AI agents like OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini. Cook said on the call with analysts that Apple was making 'good progress' with its upgraded Siri and that it plans to release the new version next year. In the meantime, Apple's suite of AI features includes functions spread across various features and apps – such as a custom emoji maker, the ability to summarize text and an image generator – tools that provide some convenience but are far from being as impactful as a service like ChatGPT. 'We are also significantly growing our investments,' Cook said during the call. 'Apple has always been about taking the most advanced technologies and making them easy to use and accessible for everyone. And that's at the heart of our AI strategy with Apple Intelligence.' Apple has also been losing key AI researchers to Meta in recent weeks as the social media giant aggressively expands its AI efforts, according to Bloomberg. Cook said the company is reallocating 'a fair number of people to focus on AI.' 'We have a great, great team, and we're we're putting all of our energy behind it,' Cook said. Apple has also been acquiring companies in the AI space; Cook said it's bought seven companies this year, although not all of them are AI-related. Two analysts from Lightshed Partners made waves earlier this month when they questioned whether Apple should replace Cook with a more product-oriented CEO. 'He's a supply chain guy. They need a tech visionary,' Ted Mortonson, managing director and technology sector strategist at financial services company Baird, previously told CNN. 'I think they're in a lot more trouble than some people think.'