Ukraine at the 2026 Esports Nations Cup: UESF has been named an official partner of the historic national team tournament

Ukrainians will compete for their country for the first time on the largest international stage.

The Ukrainian Esports Federation (UESF) has officially become a National Team Partner of the first-ever national team tournament – Esports Nations Cup 2026 (ENC). Ukraine passed the selection process, joining the list of partners among more than 630 applications from around the world.

This opens new opportunities for Ukrainian players, as they will represent their country on the international stage for the first time alongside more than 150 national teams.

The selection process for the tournament was extremely competitive: among more than 630 applications from over 150 countries and territories submitted to the Esports World Cup Foundation, Ukraine became one of the official partners of the inaugural edition. The NTP status assigns UESF full responsibility for forming national teams, running qualifiers, and coordinating player participation.

“This is a landmark moment for Ukrainian esports. We are very excited about this opportunity and will do everything possible to present the strongest rosters across all disciplines. This will be a major challenge for both the Federation and the players. Qualifiers, competitions, victories, and defeats.

I call on the Ukrainian esports community to support our national team: watch, cheer, and share news and content. More information will follow very soon!” – Andrii Hryshchenko, CEO of the Ukrainian Esports Federation (UESF).

“The Esports Nations Cup is built on a simple idea: players should have a reliable path to represent their country, and fans should have a national team they can truly support.

From the very beginning, we focused on the quality of partnerships and the structure behind this pathway, as well as the scale required to build a global event. The response from our partners worldwide gives us confidence that ENC is not just another tournament, but an innovative model of national esports – the beginning of a new chapter in the industry,” – Hans Jagnow, Director of National Teams, The Esports Foundation.

The first Esports Nations Cup 2026 will take place in November in Riyadh and will feature 16 disciplines, including Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, VALORANT, League of Legends, Rocket League, EA Sports FC, Rainbow Six Siege, PUBG, Apex Legends, Honor of Kings, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, PUBG Mobile, Chess, Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves, Trackmania, and others.

The prize pool is distributed across disciplines: Dota 2, VALORANT, and League of Legends will each receive $1.5 million, while Counter-Strike 2 and Rainbow Six Siege will each have $1.32 million. The competition will run in waves from November 2 to 29, and ENC is planned as a recurring series with the host country rotating every two years.