Hi everybody. It’s me your favourite esports personality writing a rare blog post to keep you up to date with what has been going on in my life and what the future holds. Before we get to that though I want to just talk openly about why I got into esports and why the industry means so much to me. Esports is a truly global industry where people from all backgrounds, of all identities, can come together unimpeded through a shared love of video games and support each other in a pursuit to be the best. The esports community has made it clear that there is no room for any discrimination or prejudice of any kind and we’ve all come together to make sure EVERYONE with an American centric viewpoint feels welcome. I’ve been so fortunate to have been a part of that down the years and now have the privilege of earning six figures despite having no tangible life skills. However, I have to say that at times this space hasn’t felt so welcome.

In the past you may have noticed I simply couldn’t shut the fuck up about US politics and how bad the Trump years were. I’m sure you saw and interacted with many of my viral tweets during that time. While I really did appreciate every single validating comment you gave some people did say at the time that I should stop posting about those things especially as my “takes” were supposedly hysterical and exaggerated. Of course they didn’t realise we had LITERAL fascists in the White House and despite me not even living in America, nor even knowing what the electoral college is, it was clear that we were all in danger from Cheeto Hitler and his demented policies. People’s lives were at stake as basic human rights were ignored and even though I might “only” work in esports it was vitally important I used my platform to speak out about those things so that we could push for real change by you telling me how right I was. Standing with those who face real oppression is not something I will ever back down from and if you cannot accept that then maybe I’m not a person you should be following.

Anyway, with all that said, I’d like to share with you all the exciting announcement that I will be working at the upcoming Khashoggi Masters in Riyadh. This event is going to have one the largest prize pools in esports history and truly represents the cutting edge of the industry. It must be said that I, possibly like you, did have some concerns about contributing to a Saudi Arabian state owned esports event as I had heard disturbing allegations about their human rights record. After looking at some of the literature sent to me by their parent company I found that actually no-one has been imprisoned or executed for being LGBTQIA+ and claims to the contrary are just Western propaganda designed to generate clicks from bigots. In fact when you look at the statistics the Riyadh police rarely ever has to imprison or execute anyone unless they are guilty of something called “deviant beliefs” which Saudi Arabia seems to have had a surge of recently.

It’s also disappointing that so many don’t know about the huge strides made in women’s rights in the country. For example did you know that the guardianship laws that required women to have a male chaperone at all times now only applies to the under 18s as of last year? And while women still legally require a male guardian’s permission to marry someone or leave prison even after a sentence has ended – what system is perfect? – they are allowed to drive now. It really is safe to say that they’ve had their own “girl power” revolution.

Now don’t get things misconstrued. I had said some silly things in the past (who hasn’t) about Saudi Arabia when the NEOM sponsorships came into esports. These comments were made before I had the opportunity to work this event and in no way reflect my views today. They were made in ignorance. For example I didn’t know that the Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (blessed be his name) is himself a massive gamer with tens of hours in Call of Duty. I also didn’t know that they will pay up to ten times the going rate for appearance fees without even attempting to haggle. Once I became aware of this and just how engaged the Saudi fans were in esports I simply couldn’t turn down the opportunity to go there.

To round out what is going to be a busy year for me I will also be participating in the Uyghur Reeducation League (URL) finals in Xinjiang. China represents the largest market in esports and has so many fans all wanting to be part of the epic entertainment that games developers bring. The URL will see many competitors from the region including Tibet China, Taiwan China and Hong Kong China who will all come together to compete for the largest prize pool in the region. It is an honour to be a representative of the values of diversity and inclusiveness One China Policy and I look forward to meeting those fans that aren’t under strict curfews.

I’m not naive and even though I find myself very comfortable with the decision to participate in these events this is the internet. Some of you will probably notice some trolls in the comments calling me names such as sellout, hypocrite, shill or grifter. These hurtful words are thrown around liberally by a negative minority, often astroturfed by troll accounts, but I’m a realist and accept some of these comments will be made in misguided earnest. As such I will be making a donation of $10,000, a whole day’s work, to the first LGBTQIA+ charity I find when Googling.

In addition to that I also make a solemn pledge to every esports fan across the world that I will continue to speak out on the issues that matter to you. I, like you, very much want the cultural capital that vehemently stating mainstream opinions brings and will never fail to stand up for the values of diversity and inclusiveness in the safe environment we have constructed for ourselves. We must also be aware that this is an ever evolving industry and sometimes to really help the people you love, like my children for example, you have to be flexible with those values and know when to fight. After all, who would be best served by me refusing to work a significant portion of the esports calendar? Not me. Not you. Not the fans in those countries who want so desperately to see my work in person for what might be the first time and potentially last time depending on how they identify.

I look forward to seeing so many of my respected colleagues on the road in the coming weeks and hope you’ll all be tuning in to the broadcasts and showing your support. It truly is great to see the esports industry finally find financial support from those who truly value its reach and message and we should all be grateful. Never forget – esports is for everyone.

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