The 2025 Festival Bratislava Has Officially Kicked Off

Although there may only be a couple of weeks left of 2025, there are still some great live events taking place all over the world. One of the highlights for the end of November on European soil is the 2025 Festival Bratislava. The event kicked off today (November 18), and all visitors are in for a seven-day treat. The circus kicked off with several events, including the first flight of the world’s first-ever Chicago European Championship and the first flight of The Hendon Mob Championship.

Mixed Games, THMC, and Much More

Rozvadov, Malta, and now Bratislava. It’s safe to say the crew behind The Festival, with Martin “Franke” von Zweigbergk at the helm, has been working hard this year to improve what was already a stellar live poker series. Apart from the three mentioned bigger stops, there’s also been one weekend edition of The Festival (which took place in Tallinn in July, focusing on the game Sviten Special), as well as two online editions.

• Read more: Bratislava Last Stop for The Festival in 2025; Here is the Schedule
• Read more: Norwegian Tournament Win, Birthday Party Participation, and The Festival Bratislava: Busy Weeks for Martin “Franke” von Zweigbergk

Now, the final event is here, and presumably, many Mixed Games enthusiasts will be traveling to the Slovakian capital and partaking in the fun between November 18-24. The Festival loves Mixed Games, and the 2025 Festival Bratislava Schedule features Razz, H.O.R.S.E., Open-face Chinese Pineapple, Sviten Special, Deuce-to-Seven Double Draw, and much, much more.

One of the highlights of the event will surely be the €125 Chicago European Championship. As far as this poker journalist is aware, this is the first time ever that there is a regulated Chicago tournament that is open for all players (it’s worth mentioning that the Swedish Poker Federation has arranged the Swedish Chicago Championship ever since 2016). Chicago is the Swedish household card game; I used to play it myself against my grandma (who had a real knack for it). Hats off to Franke and his team for introducing the game to a broader crowd.

According to The Festival commentator and host Andreas “Wiseguy” Höglund, the Day 1a flight of the tournament attracted eight entries; there’ll be a total of eight starting-day flights prior to Day 2 (which will be played Saturday, November 22), and roughly 30 players have won €125 tickets for the tournament. Next week, poker.pro will deliver a dedicated Chicago article highlighting the first-ever European Chicago Championship winner; it’ll be exciting to see if a non-Swedish player can beat the Scandinavians at their own game.

Even though The Festival is a paradise for Mixed Games players, there are, of course, a lot of Texas NLH tournaments on the schedule as well. The first flight of the €250 Hendon Mob Championship was also played during the inaugural day. “THMC” is always one of the most popular tournaments, and many players seem eager to chase the unique flag that those who make it in the money will receive on their profile on The Hendon Mob. The relationship between The Festival and The Hendon Mob is a strong one; during the 2025 Festival Rozvadov, the tournament (which then held a shy €150 buy-in) scored 2,417 entries, and the €300,000 guarantee was surpassed as the final prize pool read €304,542. Haik Tougu claimed the €51,300 first-place payout and the victory in the world’s largest edition of THMC.

• Read more: Haik Tougu Makes Poker History, Wins Largest THMC Event Ever

Of course, the €550 Main Event must be mentioned as well. Featuring a €500,000 guarantee, many contestants are expected to chase eternal glory in this crown jewel of a poker tournament. Ondrej Mar (Rozvadov) and Nuno Morais (Malta) are the two previous Main Event winners this year; time will tell who will join them in the Hall of Fame.

Personally, I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to work with The Festival crew once (during this year’s stop in Rozvadov). To say it’s a dedicated team is an understatement; they really don’t like to take things slow (or to sleep, for that matter). Hats off to everyone who is working day and night all year to make The Festival the sublime event that it is. The 2025 Festival Bratislava is destined to be yet another slam-dunk, and it’ll be interesting to see how they will raise the bar even higher in 2026.

Make sure to follow The Festival on all their social media channels, and don’t miss out on the live blog from Bratislava, managed by Patrick Cole.

The 2025 Festival Bratislava – Tournament Schedule