Indian sports wrap, February 8: Esports Nations Cup 2026 adds chess to its lineup
CHESS
Esports Nations Cup 2026 adds chess to its lineup
Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) on Sunday announced chess as the latest of 16 titles that national teams and players will compete in at the inaugural Esports Nations Cup 2026 (ENC), set to debut in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from November 2 through 29.
The chess tournament at ENC will begin on November 2 and will conclude with the playoff final on November 8.
The opening portion of the tournament will consist of 128 players competing in a round-robin group stage, featuring 16 groups of eight players. The top four players from each group will advance to the next stage.
The second stage will consist of 64 players competing in a single-elimination playoff bracket.
All group stage matches will be best-of-two. All Round of 64 and 32 matches will be best-of-two, while the quarterfinals and beyond will be best-of-four. Armageddon games will be used as tie-breakers.
The event will be played in a Rapid 10+0 time control format.
A total of 64 players from 64 nations will be directly invited based on the official Champions Chess Tour (CCT) rankings, 56 players will qualify through regional qualifiers and players will receive wildcards.
Chess will feature two regional qualifiers in each region, taking place on June 6-7 and June 13-14. Each Qualifier will consist of two stages; a Swiss stage and a double-elimination stage, with four players from each qualifier making it to ENC, giving a total of eight players per region. Qualifiers will be operated by Chess.com, and hosted in North America (8 slots), South America (8), Africa (8), Western Europe (8), Eastern Europe (8), Middle East + India + Central Asia (8), and East Asia + Southeast Asia + Oceania (8).
Every nation can have up to two representatives at the event.
“Playing for Gen. G at the Esports World Cup was a great experience for me. The energy there was amazing and unlike any chess tournament I’ve played before. It’s really exciting to see chess becoming part of the esports world and reaching so many new people. I’m looking forward to the Esports Nation Cup and can’t wait to start competing again.” said India No. 1 Arjun Erigaisi.
– Team Sportstar
Published on Feb 08, 2026