GeoGuessr, the popular geography game that tests players’ world knowledge, has announced its decision to pull out from participation in the Esports World Cup in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in a statement posted by CEO Daniel Antell.

On May 16, it was announced that GeoGuessr would be added to the Esports World Cup Festival. It was set to take place during Week 3 (July 21–27), a last chance tournament with a $20,000 prize pool and two spots on the line for the GeoGuessr World Championship in Copenhagen on August 29–30.

However, after fairly significant backlash from its players and community, the team at GeoGuessr have decided to pull out of the event.

In a statement posted to GeoGuessr’s official social media accounts, Antell explained: “I’ve seen your reactions over the past few days regarding our decision to participate in the Esports World Cup in Riyadh. When we made that decision, it was with positive intentions. To engage with our community in the Middle East and to spread GeoGuessr’s core mission of let everyone Explore the World.

“That said, you – our community – have made it clear that this decision does not align what GeoGuessr stands for. So, when you tell us we’ve got it wrong we take it seriously. That’s why we’ve made the decision to withdraw from participating in the Esports World Cup in Riyadh.”

The 2025 GeoGuessr World Championship is to be the third consecutive crowning event for the popular online game, after its first World Championship tournament started in 2023. It is unclear how those final two qualification spots will be allocated at the time of writing.

The Esports Radar has reached out to the Esports World Cup Foundation for comment.