Honor of Kings World Cup Opens with 20 Teams in Paris
The Honor of Kings World Cup began in Paris on July 30, 2026, bringing 20 teams into the Esports World Cup's first HoK and Arena of Valor cross-title tournament.
News summary
Twenty Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor teams are competing for a $3 million prize pool in the first cross-title KWC field.
The dedicated tournament patch is based on Honor of Kings Season 15 and unlocks 111 playable heroes.
Play-in and group-stage matches use best-of-three double elimination with Global Ban&Pick before an eight-team single-elimination playoff.
The August 8 grand final is a best-of-seven series using the Ultimate Battle draft mode.
Event overview
The field combines professional teams from the Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor ecosystems, with AG.AL entering as the defending champion.
Eight teams begin in two play-in groups, with the top two from each advancing into a 16-team group stage divided across four groups.
The top two teams from every group reach the playoffs, where all rounds use best-of-seven series except the best-of-five third-place match.
Key details
The Paris tournament runs for ten days across play-in, group-stage and playoff competition.
| Tournament detail | Official information |
| Event | Honor of Kings World Cup at 2026 Esports World Cup |
| Dates | July 30–August 8, 2026 |
| Location | Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, Paris |
| Teams | 20 |
| Prize pool | $3 million |
| Tournament patch | Season 15-based custom build |
| Playable heroes | 111 |
| Play-in | 8 teams; 2 groups; best of 3; double elimination |
| Group stage | 16 teams; 4 groups; best of 3; double elimination |
| Playoffs | 8 teams; single elimination |
| Grand final | August 8; best of 7; Ultimate Battle |
| Defending champion | AG.AL |
Source timeline
Honor of Kings published the 20-team field, $3 million prize pool and tournament format on July 1, 2026.
The Honor of Kings World Cup opened at the Paris Esports World Cup on July 30.
The competition moves through three stages before the August 8 best-of-seven grand final.