The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) unveiled on Thursday new rules for the
Esports Nations Cup scheduled for November 2026 in Riyadh. The $45 million tournament is expected to bring together players and national teams from all continents, competing across 16 different titles such as
Counter-Strike 2, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, and
VALORANT,
which Sheep Esports recently reported. Here, and unlike club competitions, the
ENC imposes specific nationality and structural criteria for each team competing in the event.
Participation is, unsurprisingly, conditioned by citizenship. Players must hold the passport of the nation they represent for at least one full year prior to the roster lock, set for April 30 at 11:59 PM AST. For players holding multiple nationalities, the EWCF states that they may represent only one country throughout the entire process. Coaches have to be selected before March 29, 2026.
Limits to competitiveness
The organization specifies that national teams must be entities distinct from professional clubs and managed by a national team manager. As previously partially outlined, five players from the same organization cannot be selected within the same national team, for example, all T1 players for South Korea in League of Legends — unless LoL is still not announced as part of the competition.
The ENC now clarifies the full rule, explaining that for 5v5 titles such as VALORANT, Dota 2, CS2, and Honor of Kings, among the games already announced, only three participants may come from the same club, and teams are allowed two substitutes.
For games based on four-player teams, likely PUBG or PUBG Mobile, although they have not yet been announced, only half of the lineup may come from the same organization, with up to two substitutes permitted. The same applies to trio titles, with Apex Legends expected in the lineup, where the ENC limits teams to two players from the same tag and allows one substitute.
Across all 16 titles, and without providing full details, the organization behind the Nations Cup states that minimum age requirements range from 13 to 18 depending on the game and that this point will need to be checked manually in each specific rulebook.
