Ubisoft postpones Rainbow Six tournament in United Arab Emirates after fan protests

To date, Ubisoft had planned to hold a “Six Major”, a competition event for Rainbow Six Siege Players in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates. After a massive fan protest on social media, the publisher has now decided to move the tournament to another “region”.

Ubisoft’s position was that “an enthusiastic, competitive Rainbow Six Siege scene has emerged in MENA [Middle East and North Africa] Region, a community of local players and fans that we wanted to highlight and celebrate.” And to address the elephant in the room given the possible clashes between the esports community and a government with little regard for basic human rightsUbisoft also believed that a “collective bargaining agreement” between the publisher, the local esports partner and the UAE would result in an event “where everyone, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, cultural background or other individual characteristics, would be included and welcome”.

However, fans and players had none of it. Some of the most prominent members of the community quickly backed a petition calling for the tournament to be relocatedwhich was signed by over 13,000 people:

The UAE or United Arab Emirates has documented serious LGBTQ+ rights issues over the past year where homosexuality has been criminalized, resulting in floggings, fines, deportation, chemical castration, forced conversion therapy, honor killings, vigilante executions and more.

With R6:S Talent’s inclusion of LGBTQ+ members, we as a collective believe this decision is short-sighted, dangerous, and backward to the evolving ideology of esports, Rainbow Six: Siege, and its community.

Just 24 hours later, Ubisoft responded by announcing that the tournament would be postponed, “Loud and clear that members of the international siege community are questioning this choice”. In a statement, the editor said:

Last Sunday we announced our plans to organize a Six Major in the United Arab Emirates. Over the past 6 years we have seen the emergence of an enthusiastic, competitive Rainbow Six Siege scene in the MENA region, a community of local players and fans that we wanted to highlight and celebrate.

We want to emphasize that the safety and well-being of our event’s attendees and staff is always our primary concern, and we are proud of what Rainbow Six Siege represents as a world where diversity, inclusion and acceptance are at the core. The choice of this venue for a Six Major was the result of extensive discussions with our local teams in the region, the UAE Government and our local esports partners and their shared commitment that a Six Major in Abu Dhabi would be an event where everyone, of all gender identities, sexual orientations, cultural backgrounds or other individual characteristics would be welcomed and welcomed, as has been the case at other humorous events around the city.

With that in mind, we are also hearing loud and clear that members of the international Siege community are questioning this choice, and we have made the decision to move the August 2022 Six Major to a different Rainbow Six Esports region, with the exact location is still known. In the spirit of nurturing all of our local communities around the world with all their diversity, dedication and passion for the game, we will continue to develop and structure our competitive activities in MENA through local and regional tournaments and activations. The MENA region has quickly become a major hub for video gaming in the world and we have been impressed with the dedication, support and dedication of both our local fans and the talented staff of our MENA teams and Abu Dhabi development studio . Reflecting the determination and ambition of our teams in the region over the past 10 years, we are dedicated to investing in our burgeoning local esports scenes to help them reach their full potential and embrace them as part of the global Rainbow Leveraging the Six Siege community.

According to the statement, while the tournament has to be relocated, a replacement city has yet to be determined.