Evo Hands Power to Players for 2026: Fans Now Decide the Finals

Evo is changing how its tournaments work next year. For the first time, players and fans will influence the 2026 events, including which games reach the Arena Finals in both Japan and Las Vegas.

Early bird registration opens today for Evo Las Vegas and Evo Japan, and the new nomination process for the Evo Awards powered by Qiddiya is now live.

Players Decide the Arena Finals in 2026

Evo announced that both Japan and Las Vegas will feature 12 games each, an expanded lineup mixing legacy titles and new entries.

In a major shift, the six games with the highest player registrations will earn spots in the Arena Finals.

The remaining titles move to the Showcase Stage, which still features full production value. Evo Las Vegas will also include a minimum guaranteed prize pool of $500,000 across all titles.

Fans can watch the announcement show on Twitch, YouTube, and TikTok.

Evo Leadership Speaks

“Evo is defined by its global community, and we want fans worldwide to have an active voice in the experiences available at our events this year,” said Rick Thiher, GM for Evo. “2025 saw record-setting events from Evo across the globe, and that passionate response inspires our team to continue creating and expanding opportunities for the FGC in the years ahead.”

SonicFox and Arslan Ash Eye Records

Dominique “SonicFox” McLean is one win away from tying Justin Wong’s Las Vegas record of nine titles.

Pakistan’s Arslan “Arslan Ash” Ash could tie Evo’s all-time record with clean sweeps in Japan, Las Vegas, and France.

Evo Japan 2026 Lineup

Evo Japan returns to Tokyo Big Sight on May 1–3, its largest footprint ever with more than 8,600 square meters of space. The lineup includes:

• Capcom’s Street Fighter 6 – 5th appearance at Evo
• Riot Games’ 2XKO – 1st appearance at Evo
• Bandai Namco Entertainment’s TEKKEN 8 – 4th appearance at Evo
• Arc System Works’ Guilty Gear -Strive- – 6th appearance at Evo
• Cygames’ Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising – 4th appearance at Evo
• SNK’s Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves – 3rd appearance at Evo
• Sega AM2’s Virtua Fighter 5: REVO World Stage – 1st appearance at Evo
• Arc System Works’ Under Night In-Birth II Sys:Celes – 3rd appearance at Evo
• SNK’s THE KING OF FIGHTERS XV – 3rd appearance at Evo
• Lasengle’s Melty Blood Type Lumina – 4th appearance at Evo
• Capcom’s Vampire Savior: The Lord of Vampire – 1st appearance at Evo
• Sega’s Hokuto No Ken – 1st appearance at Evo

Evo Las Vegas 2026 Lineup

Evo Las Vegas returns June 26–28 at the Las Vegas Convention Center with Chipotle® back as a presenting partner. Titles include:

• SNK’s Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves – 4th appearance at Evo
• Cygames’ Granblue Fantasy Versus Rising – 5th appearance at Evo
• Arc System Works’ Guilty Gear -Strive- – 7th appearance at Evo
• Riot Games’ 2XKO – 2nd appearance at Evo
• Capcom’s Street Fighter 6 – 6th appearance at Evo
• Bandai Namco Entertainment’s TEKKEN 8 – 5th appearance at Evo
• Sega AM2’s VirtuaFighter 5: REVO World Stage – 2nd appearance at Evo
• Skybound Games’s INVINCIBLE VS – 1st appearance at Evo
• Arc System Works’ Under Night In-Birth II Sys:Celes – 4th appearance at Evo
• Aether Studios’ Rivals of Aether II – 2nd appearance at Evo
• Arc System Works’ Blazblue Centralfiction – 2nd appearance at Evo
• Capcom’s Vampire Savior: The Lord of Vampire – 1st appearance at Evo

Fan Activations and Exhibits Return

The Evo Museum returns in Japan after last year’s major Las Vegas display.

Las Vegas will feature a new statue and collectibles exhibit. Both events expand cosplay contests, while the Evo Showcase will include panels and keynote sessions.

More details arrive in the coming months.

Evo Awards Nominations Now Open

The Evo Awards Show returns on March 28, 2026, in Los Angeles. Fans can nominate players, creators, moments, and matches across 20 categories now through January 9.

Winners will be announced during the show.

Registration Details

Early bird registration runs now through February 2 for both Evo Japan (evojapan.gg) and Evo Las Vegas (evo.gg). Regular registration is open February 3 to May 4, with late registration running until May 25.