The 2026 World Series of Poker main event began July 2 at the Paris Las Vegas and Horseshoe Las Vegas and is streaming live on ESPN+. Check daily for updates as the field grows and then shrinks to the final table, which will air on ESPN live Aug. 3-5. Doug Greenberg and Lance Bradley have the updates all tournament long.
July 12: Todd Brunson builds his own poker legacy as 62 players remain
By Lance Bradley
Fifty years ago, Doyle Brunson won the World Series of Poker main event for the first time. On Saturday, his son Todd put himself in position to win the 2026 WSOP main event and add to his own poker legacy.
Todd Brunson, who has one WSOP bracelet and is a member of the Poker Hall of Fame, finished Day 6 with 17 million in chips, the eighth-best stack heading into play Sunday. Brunson is part of a tightly packed group at the top of the chip counts led by 35-year-old Tyler Gaston, who holds 21 million and was the only player to bag more than 20 million.
The remainder of the top five is Blake Barousse (19,375,000), Mario Boos (17,950,000), Hossein Ensan (17,775,000) and Rami Hammoud (17,400,000). Ensan, who won the 2019 WSOP main event, is looking to become just the fifth player to win multiple main event titles, joining Johnny Moss (three), Stu Ungar (three), Doyle Brunson (two) and Johnny Chan (two).
With just 62 players remaining, the number of notable players still in the field has dwindled. Nine-time WSOP bracelet winner and 2026 Poker Hall of Fame finalist Shaun Deeb moved onto Day 6 with 8,725,000. He is joined by Brock Wilson (12,650,000), Greg Mueller (10 million), Romain Lewis (13,900,000), Patrick Leonard (6,100,000) and Michael Gagliano (11,675,000).
Four women were still in the hunt when play began on Saturday but following the eliminations of Lara Eisenberg (156th, $65,000), Sarah Lee (126th, $65,000) and Caitlin Comeskey (105th, $65,000), Congya Zhang is the only one remaining. She finished Day 6 with 1,350,000.
The 112 eliminations on Saturday included Matthew Salsberg (135th, $65,000), Japanese sensation Masato Yokosawa (124th, $65,000), Farid Jattin (82nd, $90,000), Terrence Reid (76th, $105,000), Daniel Hachem (73rd, $105,000) and Dutch Boyd (66th, $125,000).
Each remaining player is now guaranteed to earn a minimum of $150,000.
Day 6 action resumes at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday with the ESPN+ livestream airing from 3 p.m. until 7 p.m. ET before taking a two-hour break and resuming at 9 p.m. until 3 a.m. ET.
July 11: Mizrachi's bid for repeat ends, 174 players remain
By Lance Bradley
There will be a new poker world champion this year after reigning World Series of Poker main event champion Michael Mizrachi took his chip stack through a roller coaster of a Day 5 on Friday before ultimately bowing out in 241st place.
Friday's play began with 533 players and ended 10 hours later with just 174 remaining in contention for the $10 million first-place prize and title of world champ. Leading the way is Zhao Liu with 10,150,000 in chips. Liu finished in 161st place last year and seems poised to best that result this time around.
Liu was the only player to finish above the 10-million chip mark. The chase group includes Dhiraj Sharma (9,840,000), Xingyu Liu (9,040,000), Allan Sannier (8,680,000) and Sachin Joshi (8,385,000).
Shaun Deeb, who sits third in the WSOP Player of the Year race, finished the day with 4,305,000 in chips, while two other POY contenders were eliminated Friday. Current POY leader Alex Foxen went out in 263rd place, and Josh Arieh, who sits fourth, hit the rail in 198th place.
With Mizrachi's elimination, Hossein Ensan is now the only former WSOP main event champion remaining in the field. The 2019 winner finished the day with 3,450,000 in chips, just above the average stack of 3,175,172. Former champions Greg Raymer and Ryan Riess were also eliminated.
Other notables who navigated their way through Day 5 include Greg Mueller (4,415,000), Todd Brunson (3,690,000), Masato Yokosawa (3,200,000), Patrick Leonard (2,860,000), Dutch Boyd (2,845,000), and Caitlin Comeskey (1,420,000). Daniel Hachem, son of 2005 WSOP main event winner Joe Hachem, is on to Day 6 with 3,895,000 in chips.
Each remaining player is guaranteed a payout of at least $57,500.
Saturday's livestream on ESPN+ runs from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET and then resumes from 9 p.m. to 3 a.m ET.
July 10: Mizrachi survives to Day 5 as Moneymaker busts on money bubble
By Lance Bradley
The bubble burst early on Day 4, with 2003 WSOP main event winner Chris Moneymaker among three players eliminated simultaneously on the third hand of play.
Stoyan Madanzhiev, winner of the 2020 WSOP online main event, and Zhaken Seitbekov, also hit the rail, with the trio splitting the payout for 1,382nd and 1,383rd place, earning $10,000 each.
Among the 533 players still in contention for the $10 million first prize is 2025 World Series of Poker main event winner Michael Mizrachi, though with 440,000 in chips, he has a long way to go to pull off an improbable repeat.
Sam Sweilem is the chip leader with 3,800,000, which puts him just ahead of Steven Onan (3,600,000), Artur Martirosyan (3,495,000), Kyle Mart (3,490,000), and Chih Wei Fan (3,365,000) to round out the top five.
Two players chasing WSOP Player of the Year honors each have a healthy stack heading into Day 5. Current POY leader Alex Foxen has 1,695,000 chips, while Shaun Deeb, who sits third in the POY standings, has 1,500,000. The average stack is 1,040,000.
Moneymaker was not the only former main event champion to hit the rail on Thursday. Joe Hachem, Scott Blumstein and John Cynn all made their way into the money before being eliminated.
Other notables who were sent packing Thursday include Jesse Lonis, Darren Elias, Kristen Foxen, Chance Kornuth, Jesse Sylvia, JC Tran, Kathy Liebert, Chris Moorman, Chris Brewer, Jeremy Ausmus and Erick Lindgren.
The Day 4 livestream on ESPN+ runs from 3 p.m.-7 p.m. ET and then resumes at 9 p.m. until 3 a.m.
July 9: Sasha Liu leads in chips, Mizrachi still alive as money bubble looms
By Lance Bradley
The 2026 World Series of Poker main event is down to 1,389 players after Wednesday's Day 3 action and sits just seven eliminations away from leaving the remaining 1,382 players in the money. The bubble will burst early Thursday afternoon and will be featured in the ESPN+ livestream.
Sasha Liu finished Day 3 with the chip lead after accumulating 2,364,000 in chips. She is the only player to bag more than 2 million in chips. Martin Zamani sits second after narrowly missing out on the 2 million mark with 1,965,000. He's followed by Levon Khachatryan (1,745,000), Robert Gill (1,604,000) and Robin Kleinbeck (1,558,000).
Reigning world champion Michael Mizrachi finished the day with 600,000 in chips, keeping his hopes of defending his title alive. Other former main event winners still in contention include Hossein Ensan (1,280,000), John Cynn (927,000), Ryan Riess (573,000), Scott Blumstein (438,000), Greg Raymer (326,000) and Chris Moneymaker (221,000).
Some of the more familiar faces still alive include Chris Hunichen (1,055,000), Erick Lindgren (1,000,000), Shaun Deeb (938,000), Alex Foxen (845,000), Jesse Lonis (402,000) and Josh Arieh (302,000).
Poker power couple Alex and Kristen Foxen both survived Day 3. Alex, the WSOP Player of the Year front-runner, finished with 845,000 while Kristen made it through with 86,000. The average chip stack is 400,000.
There were 1,905 players who saw their main event hopes shut down Wednesday, including 17-time bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth Jr. and his oldest son, Phil Hellmuth III. The youngest Hellmuth, Nick, squeaked through to Day 4 with 53,000.
Other notables eliminated include $50,000 Poker Players Championship winner Benny Glaser, Mike Matusow, Brian Rast, Scott Seiver, Viktor Blom and Shiina Okamoto. Former main event champions Huck Seed, Greg Merson, Joe Hachem and Joe McKeehen also failed to advance.
Day 4 begins at 2 p.m. ET and the ESPN+ livestream airs 3-7 p.m. ET and 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. ET.
July 8: Michael Rossitto holds chip lead in fourth-largest field
By Lance Bradley
Michael Rossitto finished Day 2D of the 2026 World Series of Poker main event with the chip lead after bagging 770,500 in chips at the end of Tuesday's action. Four other players joined Rossitto with more than 700,000: Jeff Fenster (747,000), Yannick Schumacher (738,000), Robert Gill (728,500) and Joseph Baghdalian (705,000).
There were 820 players who took advantage of the latest possible moment to register on Tuesday to push the total field to 9,208, creating a prize pool of $85,634,400, making the 2026 edition the fourth-largest WSOP main event field in history.
Each of the nine players who make the final table will walk away with at least $1 million, with the eventual champion earning $10 million. The top 1,382 finishers will cash, with a minimum cashout worth $15,000.
Current WSOP Player of the Year front-runner Alex Foxen has 493,500 in chips, while reigning POY Shaun Deeb finished the day with 368,500. Other notables to make it through the day include Erick Lindgren (297,500), Jesse Lonis (266,500), Viktor Blom (238,500), Kristen Foxen (143,000) and Shiina Okamoto (69,600).
John Cynn, 2018 main event winner, finished with 403,000 in chips to lead the group of past main event winners advancing to Day 3. Cynn is joined by Ryan Riess (395,000), Hossein Ensan (236,600), Chris Moneymaker (221,000), Joe Hachem (135,000), Joe McKeehen (102,500) and Scott Blumstein (21,800).
A number of familiar faces failed to make it through Day 2D play, including Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey, Nick Schulman, Gus Hansen, Jason Mercier, Jeff Madsen, Bryn Kenney, Eli Elezra and Ethan Yau.
The 2,034 players who survived Day 2D will now combine with the 1,260 players who made it through Day 2ABC on Wednesday beginning at 2 p.m. ET. The Day 3 livestream on ESPN+ begins at 8 p.m. ET.
July 7: Chip leaders emerge, reigning champ Mizrachi grinds through first flight of Day 2
By Lance Bradley
Argentine Gaspar Fernandez secured a narrow chip lead after Day 2ABC of the 2026 World Series of Poker main event, stacking 754,000, with American Mason Vieth nipping at his heels with 730,000. Lithuanian Arturas Astrauskas (646,500), American Michael Banducci (630,000) and Daan Mulders (629,500) of the Netherlands complete the top five.
Reigning world champion Michael Mizrachi made it through Day 2ABC with 202,500. Mizrachi is looking to become the first player to win back-to-back main event titles since Johnny Chan won the 1987 and 1988 titles. The main event fields were significantly smaller at that point in time.
The player who prevented Chan from a three-peat, 1989 champ Phil Hellmuth, finished with 173,000. Three other former main event champions also survived, led by 2004 champion Greg Raymer, who amassed a stack of 291,000. Huck Seed, 1996 champion, bagged 83,000 and 2012 winner Greg Merson finished with 79,000.
Other notables who made their way through Monday include Brian Hastings (490,000), Tony Dunst (479,000), Freddy Deeb (383,000), Scott Seiver (282,000) and Chris Moorman (265,000). Spanish footballer Gerard Piqué finished with 144,000.
The 1,260 players who survived the five two-hour levels of play on Monday will have Tuesday off before joining the remaining players from Day 2D on Wednesday.
Former main event champions Joe Cada, Damian Salas and Daniel Weinman were all part of the 1,519 players eliminated on Monday. Jason Koon, Antonio Esfandiari, Nick Rigby, Adam Hendrix and Faraz Jaka were also among the group of players who did not advance.
Another 312 players registered on Day 2ABC to push the total field to 8,389 players. Registration for the main event will officially close after two levels on Tuesday. In 2025, 776 players registered on Day 2D. The prize pool will be announced after that.
Day 2D starts Tuesday at 2 p.m. ET with action streaming on ESPN+ beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
Beginning Thursday, July 2, the World Series of Poker (@WSOP) is back on ESPN platforms for the summer ♦️♠️♥️♣️
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) June 24, 2026
Full Main Event & Final Table broadcast schedules are now available, with 100+ hours of comprehensive, network coverage
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July 6: Field nearly doubles with Day 1D registrations as nine former champions ante up
By Lance Bradley
Nearly 5,000 players showed up for Day 1D of the 2026 World Series of Poker main event on Sunday in Las Vegas with Taylor von Kriegenbergh topping the field with 312,800 chips.
Right behind Von Kriegenbergh were Michael Comisso (293,000), Sean Costa (292,600), Michael Rossitto (289,300), Terrence Burke (287,000).
Nine former main event champions played Sunday, hoping for another shot at poker immortality. Leading that group is 2005 champion Joe Hachem with 110,500, just ahead of Jonathan Tamayo (2024) with 109,300, Ryan Riess (2013) with 106,800, and Scott Blumstein (2017) with 105,600. Joe McKeehen (2015), Hossein Ensan (2019), Chris Moneymaker (2003), Robert Varkonyi (2002) all survived with less-than-average stacks.
The only one from the group eliminated was 1998 winner Scotty Nguyen, though one crossover star, former Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight champion Sean O'Malley was also in the field on Sunday but was knocked out late in the day.
The 4,694 entries on Day 1D pushed the overall total to 8,077, which makes it the sixth largest of all-time. To reach last year's field size, 1,658 players will need to join on either Day 2ABC on Monday or Day 2D on Tuesday. Last year, 1,041 players took advantage of the Day 2 registration.
Some of the notables who survived Day 1D on Sunday include Kathy Liebert (245,000), Viktor Blom (217,100), Shiina Okamoto (170,200), and Chance Kornuth (103,400),
WSOP Player of the Year contenders Benny Glaser (103,400) and Shaun Deeb (69,300) also managed to move on to Day 2.
Husband and wife Alex and Kristen Foxen, both of whom won a WSOP bracelet earlier this summer, each made it through Day 1D. Alex finished with 156,300 while Kristen bagged up 99,800.
Poker villains Martin Kabrhel and Will Kassouf are also on to Day 2 with 202,200 and 73,000 chips respectively.
The offspring of three former main event champions also played on Sunday. Paul Mizrachi, son of reigning champ Michael Mizrachi accumulated 197,200 chips. Joe Hachem had two sons play and make it to Day 2. James wound up with 162,200 and Daniel finished with 69,900. Phil Hellmuth III finished with 65,700.
There were 1,056 players sent packing on Sunday. Gus Hansen, Doug Polk, Jeff Madsen, Alan Keating, John Juanda, Matt Berkey and Nate Silver were among the notables who failed to advance to Day 2.
Day 2ABC, which is the combination of all players who survived either Day 1A, 1B or 1C, will play five two-hour levels on Monday beginning at 11 a.m. PT and streams on ESPN+ starting at 5 p.m. PT.
July 5: Bogdanov, more familiar names make it through Day 1C
By Lance Bradley
The third of four starting flights of the 2026 World Series of Poker main event proved to be the largest so far with 1,573 players joining the field on Saturday. Bulgarian poker pro Yulian Bogdanov finished with 315,000 and the overnight chip lead.
Just behind Bogdanov is Lithuanian Arturas Astrauskas (296,700).
A trio of Americans round out the top five with Lawrence Brandt (292,800), Rahul Gangan (291,600) and Jourdan Baptiste (281,600) deciding to forego July 4 fireworks on the strip to spend their Independence Day accumulating chips.
There were more than a handful of familiar names that managed to make it through Day 1C with a better-than-average stack including Freddy Deeb (267,800), Matt Salsberg (205,999), Brian Hastings (178,100), Chino Rheem (171,300), Josh Arieh (158,200), Christopher Moorman (148,600), and Poker Hall of Famer Brian Rast (119,100).
A trio of former main event champions were among the 387 players eliminated on Saturday. Martin Jacobson (2014), Qui Nguyen (2016) and Jamie Gold (2006) will all need to wait until next year for a chance to claim a second main event win.
The total number of entrants stands at 3,383 with Sunday's Day 1D expected to draw nearly 5,000 players. Players can register until the end of the second level on Day 2ABC (Monday) or Day 2D (Tuesday). This year's event is on pace to be at least the fourth-largest main event of all time behind 2024 (10,112), 2023 (10,043) and 2025 (9,735).
The 2,467 players who made it through Day 1A, 1B, or 1C now get Monday off and will return to action on Monday for Day 2ABC.
Day 1D starts Sunday at 2 p.m. ET with action streaming on ESPN+ beginning at 8 p.m.
July 4: German leads after Day 1B, Mizrachi survives
By Lance Bradley
More than 1,000 players showed up for Day 1B of the 2026 World Series of Poker main event Friday, and the international flavor of the tournament is on full display in the end-of-day chip counts. Each of the five biggest stacks represents a different country, with Germany's Konstantin Held at the top with 724,500 chips.
American Noah Freedman (649,000), Wenzhi Fei of China (639,000), Frenchman Guy Pariente (420,000), and Brazilian Osmar Rockenbach (286,900) complete the top five.
Reigning and defending main event champion Michael Mizrachi, who finished Day 1B last year as one of the chip leaders, survived Day 1B this year with 73,200 in chips, not far off the average stack of 82,000.
Gerard Pique, a member of the Spain team that won the 2010 FIFA World Cup, ended the day with 86,700 from a starting stack of 60,000.
Other notables who navigated their way through the day include 2004 WSOP main event winner Greg Raymer (122,300), Justin Young (157,000), Joao Simao (134,000), Josh Reichard (81,400), Nick Rigby (75,700), and Antonio Esfandiari (34,300).
Poker Hall of Fame finalist Mike Matusow was among the 279 players who saw their tournament end Friday. The four-time bracelet winner was joined by Jean-Robert Bellande, content creator Brad Owen, and Circa Survivor VI co-winner Galen Hall.
The 759 players who made it through Friday's five two-hour levels will now wait along with the 542 remaining players from Day 1A and the survivors from Day 1C on Saturday, until Monday for Day 2ABC.
The 1,038 entries Friday pushed the overall number to 1,810, with Day 1C on Saturday and Day 1D on Sunday still to come. Players can register through the end of the second level of play on Day 2ABC (Monday) or Day 2D (Tuesday).
Day 1C starts Saturday at 2 p.m. ET, with action streaming on ESPN+ beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
July 3: Phil Hellmuth makes grand entrance as play begins
By Lance Bradley
The 2026 World Series of Poker main event began Thursday in Las Vegas, and Rafael Mota of Brazil finished atop the 542 players who survived the five two-hour levels of play, holding 810,000 chips at the end of the day. Yungshen Sun (635,000), Leo Bernick (528,000), Jan Sanchez (517,000) and Ryuta Nakai (323,000) round out the top five.
The first of four starting flights drew 772 entrants, down 151 players from last year's 923.
The career leader in WSOP bracelets, Phil Hellmuth, made his grand entrance Thursday. He entered the ballroom at Paris dressed as a superhero and accompanied by his sons Nick and Phillip Hellmuth III. The elder Hellmuth finished with 66,700 while Nick ended with 45,800. Phillip Hellmuth III will play later this week.
Three-time NFL Pro Bowler Antoine Winfield Sr. finished with 24,600. All players started the day with 60,000 chips.
One year after becoming only the second woman in WSOP history to make the main event final table, Leonor Margets failed to make it through the opening day. Some of the more notable players who were also eliminated Thursday included six-time WSOP bracelet winner Adrian Mateos, 2012 WSOP main event champion Gregory Merson.
The second starting flight (Day 1B) begins Friday at 2 p.m. ET with action streaming on ESPN+ beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Players who survived Day 1A will return to action with the survivors from Day 1B and 1C on Monday.
The main event was the headline attraction Thursday but not the only tournament in play. Poker Hall of Famer Daniel Negreanu earned his eighth career WSOP bracelet by winning the $100,000 pot-limit Omaha event for $2,257,718. Negreanu is now tied with Nick Schulman for No. 10 on the career bracelets list.
July 2: Stage set for WSOP main event
By Doug Greenberg
Professional poker's most prestigious tournament gets underway from Las Vegas with potentially the most attention on it since the poker boom of the 2000s.
Michael "The Grinder" Mizrachi will look to defend his $10,000 World Series of Poker main event title when the 2026 competition begins Thursday. Mizrachi's triumph last summer gave him the eighth WSOP bracelet of his illustrious career and he added a ninth already this year when he won the $10,000 pot-limit Omaha championship just days before the main event.
Mizrachi isn't the only player coming in with momentum: professionals Benny Glaser and Shaun Deeb both won their respective ninth bracelets at WSOP events earlier this summer. The main event is poker's de facto world championship, bringing the superstars and amateur players alike out of the woodwork looking to claim the crown.
"It's the one no-miss tournament of the year. If you're available and you have the 10K [buy-in], you're going to show up and play," Jack Effel, SVP of poker operations at Caesars Entertainment, which runs the event, told ESPN. "Winning the main event is the absolute greatest title that any poker player can achieve and it's not even close."
Players can enter the tournament anytime from Thursday (Day 1A) through the end of the first two levels on either Day 2ABC or Day 2D, which take place on July 7, so the field -- and, thus, the prize pool -- won't be completely set until that time. Effel says that more players enter near the end of the flights than the beginning.
The WSOP main event peaked at 10,112 entrants in 2024 and a first prize of $12.1 million in 2023. Mizrachi earmed $10 million for his victory in 2025. While Effel won't put a number on the projected field and pot size, he expects this year's tournament to be at least in line with the last few years, especially given many of the structural changes surrounding the festivities in 2026.
For one, the WSOP constructed a new 25,000-square foot main stage inside Paris Las Vegas, complete with nearly 700 LED lighting fixtures and five state-of-the-art, custom feature tables. The tournament will also be shown on ESPN for the first time in over a decade, potentially opening up the game to a new audience as it did during the 2000s poker boom.
"We made a lot of organic changes and material things here to make the playing environment better and better and better," said Effel. "To be sitting there at one of those feature tables or be playing in that arena for $10 million, life-changing money, with the best players in the world, as a poker player, I don't think it gets any cooler than that."
Beginning Thursday, July 2, the World Series of Poker (@WSOP) is back on ESPN platforms for the summer ♦️♠️♥️♣️
— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) June 24, 2026
Full Main Event & Final Table broadcast schedules are now available, with 100+ hours of comprehensive, network coverage
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