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Maltese Government Pours €12.5 Million into Esports — Was It Worth It?

Alex R Nomad
3 weeks ago
2 min read
Maltese Government Pours €12.5 Million into Esports — Was It Worth It?

The Government of Malta has invested an astounding 8 digit figure in a short timeframe. But was it worth the money?

In response to a Parliamentary Question on the 15th October 2024, Malta’s Minister for the Economy, Enterprise and Strategic Projects, Hon. Silvio Schembri informed Parliament that Malta had invested €12,481,024 across five years, 2019 until 2023.

Where did the money go?

The same document also identifies the recipients of those funds, namely:

  • GMR
  • Eden Esports
  • ESL Gaming GmbH
  • World Pro Racing
  • QLASH Esports Ventures S.A.
  • Level Academy
  • Malta Counter-Strike League

The €12.5 million likely refer to the beneficiaries of funds distributed by the GamingMalta Foundation over the last several years, and through whose patronage, numerous events were organised in Malta.

Since then, both the Malta Esports Association, and Velocity Esports Racing also seemed to enjoy some lucrative Government cash.

Pinnacle Cup: Malta Vibes was a Dota 2 event organised by Eden Esports and sponsored by GamingMalta in 2023

Beneficiary events listed

We’ve attempted to construct a list of esports events in Malta that benefitted from this funding:

EventOrganiserYearGame Title
Malta Esports AwardsMalta Esports Association2025
GamingMalta Ultimate MastersVelocity Esports Racing2025F1
Asphalt KingsVelocity Esports Racing2025Sim Racing
Malta GT3 ChampionshipVelocity Esports Racing2024Sim Racing
V1 Malta SeriesVelocity Esports Racing2024F1
MOZA GT CupVelocity Esports Racing2024Sim Racing
Maserati GT ChallengeVelocity Esports Racing2025Sim Racing
Playcon 2024GMR2019, 2022, 2023 2024Various
Malta ePremier LeagueGMR2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024EA Sports FC
Malta RoyaleGMR2019, 2022Fortnite
Malta Esports Festival 2018GMR2018Various
Malta Esports Festival 2019GMR2019Call of Duty, Tekken 
Malta Cyber Series VIIIGMR2025Rainbow Six: Siege
Malta Cyber Series VIIGMR2023, 2024Rainbow Six: Siege, Tekken 7
Malta Cyber Series VIGMR2022Tekken 7
Malta Cyber Series VGMR2019Call of Duty, Tekken
Pinnacle Cup: Malta VibesEden Esports2023Dota 2
European Development ChampionshipEden Esports2020, 2021, 2022, 2023CS:GO
Malta Esports ArenaEden Esports2022Various
Quickfire – The Hotshot SeriesEden Esports2018CS:GO
SuperNova Malta 2018 Eden Esports2018CS:GO
Champions CupEden Esports2019CS:GO
Eden Arena: Malta VibesEden Esports2020CS:GO
Malta Vibes Knockout SeriesEden Esports2021, 2022CS:GO
Malta National LeagueEden Esports2020, 2021CS:GO
CCT Season 1 Central Europe Malta FinalsEden Esports 2023CS:GO
Malta National Sim Racing ChampionshipWorld Pro Racing2019, 2022, 2024Sim Racing
GamingMalta Summer Series/SummerslamLevel Academy2020, 2021, 2022Various
GamingMalta Autumn SeriesLevel Academy2021, 2022Various
GamingMalta Winter SeriesLevel Academy2023Various
GamingMalta Spring SeriesLevel Academy2023Various
LAVA SeriesLevel AcademyValorant
ESL Pro League Seasons 11-20ESL2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024CS:GO
Playcon Community ChallengeESL2019CS:GO
ESL Malta MadnessESL2023, 2024League of Legends, Rocket League
QLASH BootcampQLASH2019Tekken, FIFA
MCL Season 2MCL2024CS:GO
Malta Tekken National Cup 4Visionary Iron Team2024Tekken

*This is not an exhaustive list of events sponsored by GamingMalta, but an indicative one.

Malta hosted the ESL Pro League for several years, making Malta a hub of CS2 competition for several years

Is it worth it?

Do we think that this money is well spent?

Alex R Nomad

Alex R. Nomad is a contributing author used to publish submissions by individuals who prefer to keep their identity private. When anonymity matters, Alex speaks for them.

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