Sources: KAKA set to coach India on League of Legends at Esports Nations Cup 2026

According to sources close to Sheep Esports, India has made its decisions for several of the coaches who will lead its national teams at the Esports Nations Cup. For League of Legends, Pankaj “KAKA” Upadhyay is expected to take on the role of head coach, while Rahul "Ayogi" should fill that position for PUBG Mobile. Shuvajyoti “Mcg!LLzZz” Chakborty is set to lead Counter-Strike 2. Sheep Esports had already reported the appointment of Abhishek "GodspeedxD" Bajaj as head coach for VALORANT.

Currently listed as a substitute for S8UL Esports on LoL, the most prominent and followed organization in the country, KAKA does not appear to have had much activity as a player, at least none documented on major reference wikis. However, his team still delivered strong results in 2025, including a win at the Legends Ascend South Asia, a tournament featuring India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives, which granted access to the Wild Card Playoffs of the LCP promotion event.

While India had initially announced it would not participate in the League of Legends competition, in an initial communication released shortly after the announcement of the various national managers and partners, the country has ultimately reversed its decision. Nodwin Gaming, appointed by the Esports Foundation to oversee India’s participation, has since revealed its intention to field teams across all titles featured at the event.

Fresh off winning the Battlegrounds Mobile India Series 2026, Ayogi has been coaching S8UL Esports since 2024, one of the top domestic teams in the title. The mobile version of the well-known battle royale PUBG, PUBG Mobile is not authorized in India and has been banned for several years due to geopolitical tensions between the country and China. BGMI is instead used, a localized version developed directly by Krafton, the studio behind the PC version, while the global mobile version is handled by Tencent. Indian authorities notably raised concerns over player data security, alongside implementing additional restrictions.

On the CS2 side, Mcg!LLzZz is expected to be responsible for selecting the players representing India, following a long competitive playing career. He is also familiar with international national team competitions, having participated in two editions of the IESF. It is worth noting that both Mcg!LLzZz and KAKA will need to finalize their respective rosters of five players and two substitutes before the end of April, which is the deadline set by the Esports Foundation. Additionally, a maximum of three players, including substitutes, can come from the same professional organization.

Scheduled from November 2 to 29 for its first edition in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, the nation-based competition, the largest in esports history, is expected to bring together thousands of players from around a hundred countries, competing across nearly 16 games. Alongside the League of Legends tournament, set to take place from November 21 to 29, there will also be nation-based competitions in VALORANT, Counter-Strike, Rocket League, and Rainbow Six: Siege. For Riot Games’ MOBA title, around 32 teams, each representing a nation, will compete on site.

Before that, the participants still need to be decided. The Esports Foundation, which oversees the ENC and the Esports World Cup (two separate events), has decided that 16 teams out of the 32 will qualify directly for the final tournament, based on the results of their representatives in Riot Games’ official competitive circuits. The other participants will have to go through seven regional qualifiers, each offering two spots. The remaining two slots will reportedly be allocated by the ENC in the form of wildcards, likely at the discretion of the event organizers.