JioBLAST names global partners for India Rising finals in Mumbai

JioBLAST announced that stc, Qiddiya City, Aramco, Sony, Hilton and Secretlab will partner on India Rising: Road to EWC, a new esports competition and fan festival. The partners are part of the Esports World Cup ecosystem and will support open qualifiers and the offline finals in Mumbai.

The first edition will focus on chess. Open qualifiers will be held across India to identify players who will advance to the Mumbai finals, organizers announced. The event will combine competitive matches with a public fan festival that includes creator activities and entertainment experiences.

stc is one of the largest telecommunications companies in the Middle East. Qiddiya City is a planned entertainment and sports mega-city in Saudi Arabia and recently became sole proprietor of the Evolution Championship Series after acquiring NODWIN Gaming’s share. Aramco is the Saudi Arabian Oil Company and has expanded into sports and esports partnerships. Sony will participate through its entertainment and gaming businesses. Hilton will provide hospitality support and Secretlab will contribute gaming hardware and seating solutions.

Programming around the chess finals will include exhibition matches in VALORANT and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, creator events and other live experiences. The offline format in Mumbai will provide a physical venue for finals, fan events and related activities after the nationwide qualifiers.

Separately, JioBLAST is running the Brawl Stars Challengers 2026 circuit across South and Southeast Asia in partnership with Supercell. That circuit is not part of the India Rising qualifiers and will continue regional competition ahead of larger international events linked to the Esports World Cup.

India Rising is part of the Esports World Cup ecosystem, which creates qualifying pathways into the broader EWC program and brings together global brands and regional organizers to stage events across multiple markets.