Across the global calendar, tournaments grew larger, deeper, and more competitive, not because guarantees were inflated, but because players showed up. Fields expanded organically. Iconic tours regained serious relevance. New destinations proved they weren’t novelties, but long-term fixtures (looking at you Jeju).
From Las Vegas to Jeju, from Prague to Barcelona, 2025 became the year tournament poker started pushing forward again.
Bigger Fields, Better Poker
The 2025 WSOP Main Event drew its third-largest largest fields in its history – 9,735 entries. No matter how crowded the global calendar becomes, the World Series of Poker Main Event still sits alone at the top — and 2025 reaffirmed that status.
The 2025 WSOP Main Event final table reminded us why this tournament still defines careers — not just winners, but players who prove they can survive the longest, deepest, and toughest structure in the game. And there was no better poker story in 2025 than Michael Mizrachi’s comeback.
Michael “The Grinder” Mizrachi’s win was a thing of legend (and plenty of luck). His bulldozing strategy worked wonders at the Final Table, even if he did need to spike a couple of cards to get there.
The numbers are in on the third largest Main Event field ever!
9,735 entries built a prizepool of $90,535,500.
1,461 players will make the money.
The min-cash comes in at $15,000 and 9 players will go home with at least $1,000,000!1st place: $10,000,000
2nd: $6,000,000
3rd:… pic.twitter.com/J2pRoBdELD— WSOP – World Series of Poker (@WSOP) July 8, 2025
Europe matched that energy. EPT Barcelona once again delivered a monster field and a prize pool approaching eight figures, while Monte-Carlo and Prague confirmed that the European Poker Tour is firmly re-established as the gold standard for international festival poker.
Asia’s Momentum Became Real
Asia surged as poker’s hottest destination in 2025, drawing whales with massive guarantees, luxury resorts, and gambler-packed fields—Jeju leading the charge. Triton Super High Roller Jeju shattered records in Event #1 $15K NLHE: 379 entries from 266 players created a $5.685M pool, paying 63 spots.
China’s Zhao Hongjun, a decade-long grinder playing “on the side” during golf trips, dominated three days—bagging double the chips early, cracking aces with set-over-set, and flipping stacks heads-up.
Heads-up deal with Yuzhu Wang left $818K for Zhao after ace-nine > ace-four clincher; Wang pocketed $975K, Zhen Chen $497K podium—all first-time Triton casters fueling the hype.
WSOP Europe Prague
While Vegas grabs headlines, WSOP Europe in Prague quietly delivered one of the most technically demanding tournament environments of the year.
The 2025 WSOP Europe at King’s Casino in Rozvadov featured remarkable hands, including Jan Kohl rivering quads to crack Martin Vittek’s flopped full house in Event #2, and Daniel Elhaiany’s ill-fated four-bet shove with 7-2 against aces. Shaun Deeb spiked a king on the river with A♠K♠ to double through Salih Atac’s top pair in Event #13, propelling him to his eighth bracelet.
Other highlights included Rene Schnitzler’s heroic call with two pair against a massive river shove and Iago Savino’s shocking elimination when Yuhan Wang hit quads on the river after Savino flopped two pair.
Why 2026 Already Feels Bigger
What makes 2026 compelling isn’t speculation — it’s continuity.
The Jeju Super Cup Main Event arrives shortly. The VAMOS Cyprus Poker Tour Final and Borgata Winter Poker Open Championship headline a growing class of tournaments that sit perfectly between mid-stakes accessibility and high-level prestige.
At the top end, the PokerGO Tour Kickoff, EPT Paris, EPT Monte-Carlo, and the inevitable pull of the WSOP ensure elite poker remains exactly where it belongs — visible, competitive, and relevant.
