As money dried up in the Tier 2 Overwatch scene (Overwatch Contenders), players and coaches began to regularly take opportunities with Saudi Arabian teams in Saudi eLeague, operated by the Saudi Esports Federation (SEF) and with Saudi organizations competing in Overwatch Contenders. In Season 2 of the 2023 Saudi eLeague, all but one team had the maximum number of non-Saudi players on their roster. Players like Checkmate, Hadi, HeeSang, Ir1s, JunBin, sHockWave, and SOMEONE have all spent stints with Saudi organizations. Why wouldn’t they, when European import talent can fetch salaries of several hundred dollars per month with top Korean talent earning even more? With Saudi opportunities even more present with Saudi-owned FaceIt’s involvement in Overwatch 2 and the Saudi-funded Esports World Cup on the horizon, Saudi organizations deserve increased scrutiny.
Triple Esports was a Saudi Arabian esports organization that competed at a Tier 1 level in Fortnite, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, and at a Tier 2, regional level in Overwatch 2, VALORANT, League of Legends, PUBG Mobile, and Rocket League. In the Overwatch esports ecosystem, fans might remember them placing third in Overwatch Contenders 2023 Spring Series: Europe. Like many Saudi organizations, Triple attracted top players by offering salaries in the range of $500 per month, something scarce in Overwatch Contenders. Among the players they employed were former Paris Eternal tanks Daan and Vestola, former Los Angeles Valiant player Shax, and Overwatch World Cup Team United Kingdom player WMaimone.
Wheats’ experience
Along with top players, Triple was also able to employ future and former Overwatch League coaches. One such coach was Eric “Wheats” Perez, an accomplished American coach who built American Tornado into a dynasty and led Illinois State University to years of success in collegiate and Contenders competitions with multiple generations of rosters. In July 2023, Perez was brought in to coach Triple Esports for Contenders Summer Series and was offered $500 per month for his services, which extended for two months ($1000 total).
Months later, he has still not been paid.
He was sent a Google Form which asked for his personal information and bank details, presumably so a contract could be sorted, but he says a contract was never sent. He tried contacting the manager (the team manager, who was not someone who worked for the organization) but the manager was being equally stonewalled. In conversation with Kryix, the manager described the higher-ups’ communication as “very unprofessional.” For the young players and staff that Triple employed, $1000 can be the difference between making and not making monthly rent.
Systemic Wage Theft
A former Triple Esports roster member told Kryix that after he spoke to other individuals behind the scenes about late payments, Triple came to him on WhatsApp complaining about “reputational damage.” Only when he said they “could fix their reputation by paying” did the organization follow through.
One source speculates that Triple may have run out of money, and only honored contracts that were enforceable under the law, meaning coaches who agreed to salary via verbal agreement like Perez were completely out of luck. This explanation, while speculative, is compelling because it lines up with how the SEF operates. Saudi eSports organizations register with the SEF and compete in SEF-operated tournaments like Saudi eLeague across multiple games. This accreditation process is not simple, as indicated by an Instagram post from 55 Esports, who currently compete in the Overwatch 2 Saudi eLeague, celebrating their registration after “three years of diligence.” The more titles a team participates in, the more funding they receive.
The SEF requires registered clubs to have all players and staff under contract, but they do not care what clubs do in non-SEF events like Overwatch Contenders and clubs do not receive SEF funding for participating in them. This may be why it took so long for Triple Esports to be sanctioned for their wage theft. A former Triple player says that he and his teammates were all under contract for Contenders 2023 Spring Series and Summer Series, raising the question of why Wheats was not similarly contracted for his services.
Contract or no contract, players and staff say that Triple habitually failed to pay wages, and often only did when the wage theft was exposed publicly. Dutch Support player Aron “ANJ” de Jong said in a tweet, “It appears the only way to get payments from Triple is by posting on social media.” ANJ spent four months with the organization. He says his Contenders winnings were delayed 7-8 months because Triple Esports never informed Blizzard of the player/organization prize pool split included in his contract. He’s still missing one month’s salary ($550) and multiple non-Contenders tournaments’ prize winnings. Sources describe gross mismanagement and systemic wage theft at Triple Esports, to the point where it becomes difficult to distinguish incompetence from malice.
While Triple Esports is not indicative of how most Saudi organizations operate (sans Chimera Esports, who also competed in both eLeague and Contenders and failed to pay players), one source describes “many problems every year due to lack of competence” in the Saudi eLeague resulting from a lack of institutional knowledge. While Saudi teams have the money to bring in top players, for whom the alternative is playing for peanuts and pennies, the same cannot be said for administrative talent, who are mostly already employed by big esports publishers. This “lack of competence… causes a shit ton of problems.” In 2024, SEF-accredited clubs were not told how much funding they would receive until after their seasons had already begun, resulting in late payments across the board.
The Fallout
ANJ says he was put in contact with an ex-owner of Triple who would help him take legal action against the organization but has not heard anything for months. Perhaps this is because Triple Esports functionally no longer exists. An Instagram post from Mobile Legends: Bang Bang’s MENA esports account translated for Kryix by Sahar Allabban reveals that Triple Esports was issued a suspension by the SEF for violations of their guidelines. Triple was additionally suspended from Mobile Legends, the team’s most successful title, for one year. While only a year-long suspension, the nuking of Triple’s social media accounts and website indicates that the organization has functionally liquidated.
While details are sparse, this may be indicative of a wider sustainability problem in Saudi esports, with dozens of organizations artificially propped up by SEF payments. Once these payments go away, the organization collapses, and another one invariably takes its place. Sources indicate that Triple is “in court,” but Kryix has been unable to verify the details of these court proceedings. The situation is similar to Chimera Esports, whose owner, ANJ heard, “basically took the money and disappeared.” To the Saudi Esports Federation’s credit, the action taken against Triple Esports was decisive, but it also came after months of systemic wage theft by Triple.
At this time, there appears to be no recourse for the players and staff owed thousands in wages and winnings, something the affected individuals have bitterly accepted.
Kryix would like to thank Sahar Allabban for her translations and Helen Ehrlich for her editorial assistance.
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