“What did we say about having Worlds in the US?” — Fans react to ZUIAN being ruled out due to visa issues

This Tuesday, Top Esports announced that Cheng "ZUIAN" Zi-Hao will be unable to participate in the 2026 World Championship in the United States after having his visa applications rejected twice. Bai "369" Jia-Hao will therefore return to the club's toplane, having not played since early March, while TES will make a third visa application in an attempt to bring ZUIAN to the United States.

This is not the first time that visa issues have affected pro players trying to travel to the United States. Frankie "Zamudo" Lin unsuccessfully tried to join LYON on several occasions in 2026, while Christian "KryRa" Rahaian also encountered issues when arriving at Disguised.

LYON's substitute toplaner Cho "Castle" Hyeon-seong also had visa issues, as he revealed in an interview with Sheep Esports in late July ahead of a return to the LCS for the Summer Split. Worth mentioning the Wolves Esports Rainbow Six Siege roster, who withdrew from the BLAST R6 Major Salt Lake City 2026 after their U.S. visa applications were denied.

The same happened during last year's FIFA World Cup in June and July, when the entire Iranian team had to adapt its logistics and establish itself in Mexico due to difficulties obtaining long-term visas for its delegation and players who were scheduled to play their matches in the United States. Somali referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan was also denied entry into the United States and had to withdraw from the competition, which sparked significant discussion.

Following the news, many voices spoke out to react to the situation and criticize the fact that the event is being held in the United States. LPL caster Alex "Nymaera" Hapgood said: "ZUIAN was deservedly first team all pro this split, what a tragedy for him and TES…" and it's hard to disagree, as ZUIAN's year has been impressive. Joining TES and the LPL in Split 2, he immediately made it to the grand final and competed at his first international event at the MSI in South Korea, and would have been a major breakout player to watch at Worlds.

LPL caster Yanni Harakidas also reacted to the news: "This is so sad. Zuian DESERVES this Worlds appearance. He played great this year. I suppose there are worse subs than 369, I do wonder what sort of form he's in currently." And that is the big question: what kind of form will 369 be in, having not played for more than seven months? The situation creates clear competitive concerns between the participating teams, as no other team has had visa issues so far.

Staying on the LPL side, caster AlkBattery also shared his thoughts: "While I want to see ZUIAN at Worlds, I think 369 COULD be an in-game leader and prevent another MSI26 event from occurring. That being said, he looked mid during Split 1 this year before he swapped to positional coaching ZUIAN so I am hoping the meta isnt top focused." TES were eliminated from MSI by Team Secret Whales, an upset and a major failure for the Chinese organization.

When the Worlds being held in the US were first announced, many fans questioned how the competition would be affected by the country's immigration policies under President Donald Trump. Last February, Sheep Esports contacted Riot Games to discuss the issue, to which Riot's Global Head of LoL Esports, Chris Greeley, responded:

"We work directly with all potential Worlds-qualified teams to gather the necessary documentation and materials to support their visa applications well in advance of Worlds. We’ve successfully navigated visa processes for dozens of international events over the last decade+ and are closely monitoring the visa-approval landscape. As always, we’re planning proactively and will be ready to adapt if needed to ensure the best possible experience for players and fans, but we’re confident in our ability to support teams and players."

Last March, Riot’s responsible also publicly addressed the issue during a press conference: "I can’t remember an international event in the last couple of years where there weren’t some visa or immigration concerns right up until the event. If one or two teams are having trouble, we’ll continue working directly with those teams, along with our agencies and any government contacts we can leverage. We’ll work with teams, third-party agencies, and government contacts, and we hope that all qualified players for Worlds will have a smooth entry into the US and be able to fully participate and enjoy the experience."

Today, the community’s reactions are therefore highly critical. "Riot had assured that this would not happen, despite all the backlash since the beginning of the year, particularly regarding Canadians in the LCS,” French caster Guillaume "Zerotick" Moya wrote. "It's so embarrassing"; "What did we say about having Worlds in the US?"; "When we saw what a mess it was for the FIFA World Cup…"; "Great idea to host the tourney in the US"… Fans were quick to react to the announcement, with many lamenting Riot’s decision to keep Worlds in the US despite the circumstances.

ZUIAN therefore appears to still have one last chance with the third attempt mentioned by TES, but making the situation public and putting 369 in the team's starting lineup could be a bad sign for the 21-year-old toplaner. This is a situation to follow closely, as Worlds begins on October 15, although TES are directly qualified for the Main Stage, which begins on October 23. Even if he manages to arrive in time, however, the disadvantage in terms of adapting to the time zone, food, and training would be unfair to both TES and ZUIAN.