Alliance and EXO Clan take Apex Legends by storm at Esports World Cup

Sweden's Alliance topped the Apex Legends Group B alongside the UK's EXO Clan at the Esports World Cup. (Supplied)
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Updated 03 August 2024
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Alliance and EXO Clan take Apex Legends by storm at Esports World Cup

  • Rainbow Six Siege is set for the semifinal stage on Saturday at Boulevard Riyadh City, while Honor of Kings features quarter-final action

RIYADH: Swedish side Alliance and UK outfit EXO Clan topped the Apex Legends Group B table at the Esports World Cup on Friday.

Alliance were the only team to hit more than 100 points in their group, scoring 107, while EXO Clan concluded on 88 at the SEF Arena at Boulevard Riyadh City. The Last Chance series of Apex Legends takes place on Saturday, with the much-awaited finals on Sunday.

In other week five contests at the largest gaming and esports festival in the world, which features 22 global competitions in 21 leading games and runs until Aug. 25, Rainbow Six Siege is set for the semifinal stage on Saturday. Team Liquid will be facing w7m esports, while FURIA Esports will go head-to-head against Team BDS. Honor of Kings, meanwhile, features quarter-final action at Boulevard Riyadh City on Saturday. 

The Esports World Cup has a prize pool of $60 million, the largest in the history of esports.


US invests in counter-drone tech to protect FIFA World Cup venues

Updated 13 January 2026
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US invests in counter-drone tech to protect FIFA World Cup venues

The US will invest $115 million in counter-drone measures to bolster security around the FIFA World Cup and ​America’s 250th Anniversary celebrations, the Department of Homeland Security said on Monday, the latest sign of governments stepping up drone defenses.

The FIFA World Cup will be a major test of President Donald Trump’s pledge to keep the US ‌secure, with over ‌a million travelers expected ‌to ⁠visit ​for ‌the tournament and billions more watching matches from overseas.

The threat of drone attacks has become a growing concern since the war in Ukraine has demonstrated their lethal capabilities. And recent drone incidents have worried both ⁠European and US airports.

“We are entering a new era ‌to defend our air ‍superiority to protect our ‍borders and the interior of the ‍United States,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. Defense companies are developing a range of technologies aimed at countering drones, including ​tracking software, lasers, microwaves and autonomous machine guns.

The DHS did not specify ⁠which technologies it would deploy to World Cup venues. The announcement comes weeks after the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which sits under DHS, said it granted $250 million to 11 states hosting World Cup matches to buy counter-drone technologies.

Last summer, New York Governor Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, called on Trump, a Republican, to bolster federal support for ‌defending against drone attacks.