Queer messages, characters, and storylines being censored in media in certain territories is nothing new, but just because it’s a regular occurrence, that doesn’t make it any less disheartening when it happens. The latest offender is an Amazon Prime documentary, Level Up, which follows several subjects involved with the Riyadh-based Esports World Cup. The second episode follows Team Liquid, the Netherlands-based esports organization with branches based in games like League of Legends, Overwatch 2, Apex Legends, and many others. In the episode, the group took time to discuss its inclusive values, only to find the segment was removed from the show in Saudi Arabia.
Team Liquid co-CEO Steve Arhancet talks extensively in the segment about his life growing up as a gay man in a conservative area of Virginia and how gaming gave him a place to belong when he wasn’t finding it elsewhere. The documentary goes on to address how Team Liquid’s participation in the Esports World Cup, which is based in Saudi Arabia where same-sex relationships are criminalized, was the subject of an overwhelming public backlash for the team. One segment shows Arhancet revealing bespoke jerseys that have the team’s horse logo adorned in Pride colors, which the team was permitted to wear at the event in 2024. Arhancet called it a “statement” about what the group believes in. However, the Saudi Arabian version of the documentary doesn’t include this segment at all.
ReaderGrev, the news site of former Washington Post video game journalist Mikhail Klimentov, reports that this section of the episode has been removed from streaming in the territory, and the Pride logos have been blurred out throughout the show. In a statement to ReaderGrev, Team Liquid said it has reached out to the documentary’s production team and Amazon to investigate.
“We are disappointed to learn, upon your request for comment, that the Saudi broadcast of Esports World Cup: Level Up has been altered to remove images of our Pride jersey, as well as important parts of our Co-CEO Steve Arhancet’s story as a gay man in esports,” Team Liquid wrote in its statement. “While we understand that streaming services may change content to comply with local regulations or content policies, we disagree with this kind of censorship and we have reached out to the Level Up production team and Amazon to look into the matter. Progress doesn’t happen overnight, but we are hopeful in our conversations around the topic, and we will continue to wear our jersey with pride across the globe, including at the Esports World Cup.”
At the moment, it doesn’t seem clear which party was responsible for censoring the episode. As ReaderGrev points out, Prime Video’s content policy guidelines say it can restrict titles “where the sale or distribution of that content would violate that country’s or region’s laws, cultural norms, or sensitivities or for any other reason at our discretion.”
From the beginning, the Esports World Cup was criticized as a sportwashing effort by Saudi Arabia, which is why organizations like Team Liquid and developers like Respawn were under heavy scrutiny when they announced they’d be participating in the event. The event’s second annual tournament began yesterday, July 8, and will last until August 24. Team Liquid is once again participating in the tournament this year.