Saudi Arabia's PIF Eyes Mega-Merger of EA and Savvy Games
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund has acquired Electronic Arts for $55 billion — and may already be planning its next move. Bloomberg (Sept 10, 2026) reports that PIF executives are weighing a merger between EA and their existing gaming conglomerate, Savvy Games Group. No final decision has been made, but the scale of what's being considered is striking: a single entity spanning blockbuster console franchises, the world's top mobile game publisher, and a major esports operator.
The deal so far
PIF completed the EA acquisition on August 4, 2026, taking a 93% stake alongside co-investors Silver Lake and Affinity Partners — the firm run by Jared Kushner. The $55 billion price tag made it one of the largest gaming transactions ever recorded. EA's biggest franchises — EA Sports FC, Battlefield, Apex Legends, The Sims, Need for Speed, and Mass Effect — now sit under Saudi sovereign control.
Savvy Games Group, which PIF already owns, has been quietly building a parallel empire. It acquired mobile publisher Scopely in 2023 for $4.9 billion, giving it Monopoly Go, Stumble Guys, and the Niantic games portfolio including Pokémon Go. It also controls ESL FACEIT Group, one of the world's largest esports organizations.
The hold-up
A merger cannot proceed until Savvy closes its separate $6 billion purchase of Moonton — the ByteDance-owned studio behind Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. That deal was announced in March 2026, and its completion is a prerequisite before any EA-Savvy combination moves forward. Regulatory filings in the UK and EU would follow, likely pushing any formal merger process into late 2026 or 2027.
The regulatory question
A combined EA-Savvy entity would be enormous by any measure, and regulators on both sides of the Atlantic are already watching PIF's gaming expansion closely. In the UK, gaming mergers above roughly £2.1 billion are subject to Competition and Markets Authority review; this combination would dwarf that threshold. The CMA and EU authorities may also apply additional scrutiny given that a foreign sovereign wealth fund would be the controlling party.
Neither EA nor Savvy has publicly commented on the merger discussions. PIF has also stayed silent. Until Moonton closes, the plan remains a consideration — not a commitment.
