The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) has announced the full competition structure for its new nation-versus-nation tournament, providing clearer pathways for national teams to qualify. The newly released details outline how the inaugural Esports Nations Cup (ENC), scheduled for November 2026 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, will operate its team and solo competitions across 16 game titles.
This announcement solidifies the framework for what the EWCF describes as the first recurring, large-scale event of its kind, aiming to establish national pride as a key narrative in global esports.
According to the foundation, the ENC Finals will feature team competitions with 24 to 48 national teams per title, while solo competitions will include between 32 and 128 players. A key rule stipulates that each competing nation can field only one official national team per game title and a maximum of two players in solo events.
To ensure the event does not simply replicate existing club rivalries, full Club rosters will be prohibited from competing as national teams. Instead, national squads must be formed as distinct line-ups, combining a country’s top eligible players.
Half of all participating slots will be allocated via direct invitations, based on the competitive performance of players from each country across the preceding esports season. The remaining spots will be filled through open regional online qualifiers. The EWCF has confirmed that all players and teams reaching the Finals will be guaranteed to play at least three matches.
In a statement, the foundation said this approach “ensures that national teams are built around merit, diversity of representation, and national identity—rather than replicating existing club structures.”
The event will be held every two years, beginning with a fixed host city of Riyadh in 2026 before transitioning to a rotating host-city model. The EWCF, the organiser behind the annual Esports World Cup, developed the ENC in collaboration with official game partners including Ubisoft, Electronic Arts (EA), Chess.com, Tencent, and Krafton.
The ENC is highly anticipated across the esports industry, a sentiment reflected in The Esports Radar‘s 2026 predictions and echoed by sector leaders in the Reflections series. Expectations are that the initiative will strengthen national esports structures by developing a framework for selecting and organising representatives, while offering audiences a novel competitive narrative that could drive broader popularity for the sector.
Further details on specific qualification pathways, the full title lineup, and country-level representation requirements are expected to be announced in the coming weeks.
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