The Honor of Kings World Cup at the Esports World Cup 2026 (KWC at EWC26) began on 30 July 2026, bringing together 20 teams from Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor for international competition. The tournament runs from 30 July to 8 August in Paris as part of the Esports World Cup, with new regional representation from India, Thailand, Vietnam and the Taiwan region. The tournament will be played on a dedicated Esports World Cup patch built on Honor of Kings Season 15, developed specifically for competitive play.
KWC At EWC26 Tournament
KWC at EWC26 is structured across three stages: the Play-In Stage features eight teams divided into two groups, competing in best-of-three double-elimination matches. Four teams advancing from the Play-Ins join 12 already-qualified teams to form a 16-team Group Stage, also played in a best-of-three double-elimination format, with the top two teams from each group progressing to the Playoffs.
The Playoffs consist of eight teams competing in a single-elimination format with best-of-seven matches, except for the third-place match, which will be played as a best-of-five. The Global Ban and Pick system will be used throughout the tournament, with the Ultimate Battle format applied during the Playoffs.
Participating teams include title defender AG.AL, along with Kuaishou Gaming, Buriram United Esports, Team Flash, Deep Cross Gaming, Team Vitality, Team Nemesis, OG Esports, Aurora Gaming, Geekay Esports, ROC Esports, BOOM Esports, Titan Esports Club, Blacklist International, MIBR.LOS, Influence Rage, Virtus.pro, Nongshim RedForce, S8UL Esports and Revenant XSpark.
Onsite activities during the tournament include a KPL Dream Team Showmatch, a Honor of Kings Global Influencers Showmatch, KPL team meet-and-greet sessions, and Honor of Kings IP trials at the EWC Fanfest.
Honor of Kings: ACE & gamescom Plans
Separately, a new game has been announced under the HoK IP, titled Honor of Kings: ACE, serving as a strategy hero card battler set within the Honor of Kings universe, featuring cross-platform progression across mobile and PC. Official social media channels for the title have launched, with further updates to be shared across Honor of Kings channels.
The announcement also confirmed that all four Honor of Kings titles will be featured together for the first time at gamescom 2026. At the event, attendees will be able to access Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor, try the latest build of the upcoming title Honor of Kings: World, an Eastern fantasy multiplayer action role-playing game, and go hands-on with Honor of Kings: ACE. Attendees can interact with all four titles, meet cosplayers representing each game, take part in booth activities and stage challenges, and collect event giveaways.
Honor of Kings will also participate in Worlds of Play: The Game Art Exhibition, alongside more than 20 game studios. The exhibition will include an Eastern fantasy-themed installation featuring Dunhuang-inspired artwork, a sculpture depicting the poet Li Bai referred to as “White Phoenix,” and a collection of statues and concept art related to the Honor of Kings universe. Note that space is limited for the event, so organizer Tencent advises those interested to register early.
Pokdepinion: It probably won’t be too long until HoK get into the TCG business proper.
