Esports Nations Cup 2026 Announces Street Fighter 6 Invites

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (June 29, 2026) - The Esports Foundation (EF) today announced the direct invites to the Street Fighter 6 tournament at the Esports Nations Cup 2026 (ENC), the global nation-based esports competition set to debut in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia from November 2-29, 2026.

A total of 24 teams will compete in the Street Fighter 6 tournament at ENC 2026, utilizing the increasingly popular team-based format embraced by the wider community. 12 teams will be directly invited based on the ENC Rankings, which aggregate points earned by players based on their placements in a selection of SF6 tournaments. A country or territory’s score is calculated by combining the points of its three highest-ranked players.

Each invited country or territory’s team consists of the top-ranked player from the 2026 World Warrior Ranking, joined by the three highest-ranked players according to the ENC Rankings. Those teams* are:

1. JAPAN - Sahara, Fuudo, Higuchi, TBD (confirmed by July 5)
2. REPUBLIC OF KOREA - Leshar, NL, Armperor, DakCorgi
3. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - Punk, Dual Kevin, NoahTheProdigy, JAK
4. PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA - XiaoHai, Vxbao, Zhen, XiaoZhai
5. DOMINICAN REPUBLIC - MenaRD, CrossoverRD, Caba, Bryan-D
6. CHILE - Craime, Deiver, Agxxs, Blaz
7. FRANCE - Kilzyou, Mister Crimson, Kusanagi, Alphen
8. HONG KONG, CHINA - Micky, Chris Wong, Rainpro, HotDog29
9. GREAT BRITAIN - EndingWalker, LinkNova, ZaiLis, Problem X
10. CHINESE TAIPEI - Oil King, Hope, ZJZ, Asuka
11. CANADA - Thunder DeLangis, Mikex, Hali, Riddles
12. NORWAY - Phenom, Veggey, Banja, Dreamstate

Spearheading a stacked roster for Japan is 21-year old prodigy and Capcom Cup 12 champion Sahara, who competed in Fortnite and VALORANT before finding his path to stardom through Street Fighter 6. Joining him is two-time EWC participant Higuchi, and a Japanese legend with a decade and a half of experience and achievements across Street Fighter, Fuudo. But standing in their way is the pride of the Dominican Republic: the four-time EVO winner MenaRD fresh off his most recent trophy in Las Vegas, who will lead his team into Riyadh.

Leshar, the winner of Combo Breaker, CEO, and EVO France in 2025, will lead Korea into ENC, flanked by Armperor, NL, and DakCorgi. On the team representing the United States is NoahTheProdigy, who grabbed the spotlight years ago at just eight years old, reaching the top 48 at EVO 2011 in Marvel vs. Capcom 3. Now 23 years old, he will compete with American fan favorites in JAK, Dual_Kevin, and EVO 2024 champion Punk. And with two EWC championships to his name already, and eyeing a third in Paris this summer, XiaoHai looks to add more to his trophy cabinet alongside his team for the People’s Republic of China.

With 12 teams now invited directly to the Street Fighter 6 main event at ENC 2026, we now turn to regional online qualifiers, through which 10 teams will qualify. Qualifiers will be double-elimination bracket solo player tournaments to make them more accessible to Street Fighter players all over the world. The winning player of each regional qualifier will secure a slot for their country or territory, as well as a spot for themselves on the roster. Those qualifiers will be held in North America, Central America, South America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, South + East Asia, and Oceania. The final 2 slots are attributed to Wildcard slots.

*Invited players, countries, and territories may be subject to change based on invite acceptance and the successful verification of citizenship documentation.

About the Esports Nations Cup

The Esports Nations Cup (ENC) is a biennial global esports competition created by the Esports Foundation (EF) that brings national pride to the world stage. Launching in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in 2026, the ENC will feature the world’s best players competing not for their clubs, but for their countries and territories, across a lineup of leading esports titles. Built in collaboration with game partners, clubs, and esports organizations, the ENC establishes the first recurring, large-scale platform for national teams in esports. Beyond competition, it aims to fuel fandom, inspire heroes, and provide sustainable pathways for nations, players, and partners to grow within the global esports ecosystem. esportsnationscup.com

Esports Nations Cup media contact:

[email protected]