<p>The Esports World Cup Foundation revealed details for its 2026 event on Jan. 20. The event is set to return with a $75 million total prize pool distributed across 25 tournaments and the Club Championship. The seven-week competition runs from July 6 through Aug. 23 in Riyadh, with 24 games including Fortnite and Trackmania as new additions.</p><p>While Trackmania is new, Fortnite was a part of the EWC until 2025. It’s back after a brief timeout, and Chess is still on the menu. In total, more than 2,000 players and 200 clubs from over 100 countries will compete across multiple venues, with several championships running in parallel throughout the event window.</p><div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The world’s best games, players, and clubs. One global stage where competition, culture, and community collide. <br><br>This is EWC 2026. <a href="https://t.co/sye9P5pg6b">pic.twitter.com/sye9P5pg6b</a></p>— Esports World Cup (@EWC_EN) <a href="https://twitter.com/EWC_EN/status/2014769839278006404?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 23, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><h2>The Club Championship</h2><p>The club Championship remains the most appealing part of the EWC for esports organizations. The format crowns a single cross-game winner, and the 2026 Club Championship features a $30 million prize pool for the top 24 clubs.</p><p>The winning club takes home $7 million, with expanded prize distribution across remaining positions. Last year’s event was fiercely competitive until the last minute, and organizations are likely to race each other to sign the most talented rosters for all games at the EWC, which are:</p><ul><li>Apex Legends</li><li>Call of Duty: Black Ops 7</li><li>Call of Duty: Warzone</li><li>Chess</li><li>Counter-Strike 2</li><li>Crossfire</li><li>Dota 2</li><li>EA Sports FC 26</li><li>FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves</li><li>Fortnite</li><li>Free Fire</li><li>Honor of Kings</li><li>League of Legends</li><li>Mobile Legends: Bang Bang</li><li>Overwatch 2</li><li>PUBG: Battlegrounds</li><li>PUBG Mobile</li><li>Rocket League</li><li>Street Fighter 6</li><li>Teamfight Tactics</li><li>TEKKEN 8</li><li>Rainbow Six Siege X</li><li>Trackmania</li><li>Valorant</li></ul><p>One notable title on the list is Chess, as it was first introduced in 2025. As avid fans of Web3 gaming, we would love to see this inclusion benefit variants like&nbsp;<a href="https://funjible.games/news/anichess-launches-CHECK-token-all-tge-tokenomics-details">Anichess, which launched its $CHECK token</a> in November 2025, and&nbsp;<a href="https://funjible.games/games/anichess">Anichess also</a>&nbsp;<a href="https://funjible.games/news/team-secret-join-checkmate-eco-with-nfts-and-check-integration">recently partnered with Team Secret</a>.</p><p>Overall, EWC 2026 has big shoes to fill, as the event’s 2025 variant reached 750 million viewers worldwide and 350 million hours watched. League of Legends peaked at 7.98 million concurrent viewers, while the event brought 3 million visitors to Riyadh across seven weeks.</p><div class="raw-html-embed"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It’s happening!<br>EWC 2026 tickets are LIVE right now! 🎟️ <a href="https://t.co/iYUFD5ox6T">pic.twitter.com/iYUFD5ox6T</a></p>— Esports World Cup (@EWC_EN) <a href="https://twitter.com/EWC_EN/status/2014352471225758098?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 22, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><p>EWC 2026 tickets went on sale Jan. 22 via esportsworldcup.com and partners Webook, India, Damai, and Tixr. Options include Weekly Access Passes, Premium Tournament Passes, and Hospitality Packages.<br>&nbsp;</p><div class="raw-html-embed"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zoNeL23pBe0?si=jTHOpt51hp6oHguD" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></div>

Anichess

Anichess is classic Chess with a twist—spells! Earn mana as you play and use it to teleport pieces, summon pawns, and cast powerful abilities.

Esports World Cup 2026 is Back with $75M Total Prize Pool

Anichess

Team Secret Join Checkmate Eco with NFTs & CHECK Integration

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