First Ever Sviten Ring Event at the 2025 WSOP Circuit Tallinn

Players are gearing up for some fun and excitement with the 2025 WSOP Circuit Tallinn, powered by OlyBet Poker, heading to the luxurious surroundings of Olympic Park Casino and the Hilton Tallinn Park in less than two weeks from July 25 to August 3. This will be the third consecutive year the Estonian capital will host the WSOP Circuit, and if it’s anything like the previous events, there is a lot to look forward to.

One of the strongest selling points of the WSOP Circuit Tallinn is the diversified tournament schedule. It’s a paradise for mixed-game lovers, with disciplines such as PLO4/5/6, H.O.R.S.E, and Deuce to Seven Triple Draw. This year will be even more special for mixed-game lovers, with history being made, as for the first time in poker history, a WSOP gold ring will be on tap for the popular Scandinavian game Sviten Special.

OlyBet Making History With Sviten Special Ring

The 2025 WSOP Circuit Tallinn is undoubtedly one of the highlights in the international live poker calendar. Like last year, the festival features 12 WSOP Circuit ring events, highlighted by the €1 million guaranteed WSOP Circuit Tallinn €1,500 Main Event.

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While the Main Event will attract many hold’em lovers, mixed game enthusiasts are welcomed to a robust schedule with daily mixed-game events as they have become accustomed to at major festivals at Olympic Park Casino. However, a special treat is in store for mixed-game enthusiasts with a new and unique ring event. For the first time, the popular game Sviten Special will be a ring event of its own. The €555 Sviten Special is a two-day event on August 1-2. The first day of this 6-handed tournament will be played down to 15 percent, and the survivors will be reunited with their stacks the following day at noon until the inaugural Sviten Special ring winner is crowned.

While this is the first time the Scandinavian game has received ring status, Sviten Special events have been on the tournament schedules of the earlier WSOP Circuit Tallinn editions. Last year, Riku Koivurinne won the €250 Sviten event for €6,330. Naturally, this year’s prize pool will be exponentially larger due to both the increased buy-in and the number of participants who will chase a prestigious ring.

What is Sviten Special?

Sviten may be one of the most niche poker disciplines and is not known by the wider masses, but those familiar with the game know that it offers unparalleled action. The game is not too complicated in terms of understanding the rules, but it takes a lot of time and effort to become a great player (as is the case with all poker games, obviously).

The most straightforward explanation is that Sviten is a hybrid between five-card PLO and five-card draw. Each player is dealt five cards, and then it’s time for the first betting round: a standard pre-flop betting round, just like in Texas Hold’em and Pot-Limit Omaha. It’s worth mentioning, however, that Sviten is typically a pot-limit game.

The dealer then deals the flop (without burning a card). After the betting round on the flop, every player gets to choose an amount between zero and five cards from their hand, discard these, and get new cards from the dealer. As a twist from its sister game, Drawmaha, played in places like Las Vegas, if a player selects to exchange one card, it will be face-up for the entire table to see. The player then has the option to exchange this card as well. If they choose to do so, it will be face down.

After the discard, the dealer deals the turn, and the third betting round begins. Then comes the river and the final betting round before the showdown.

To see an example of how a Sviten hand could look, check out the video below from last year’s WSOP Circuit Tallinn, where Sviten legend Peter La Terra breaks down this iconic game.

History and Variants

The game was allegedly invented by Swede Anders “Bengan” Bengtsson. According to the story, he and three friends had a few drinks at a poker club in Stockholm with the name—you guessed it—Sviten, and they were trying to invent new games with as much action as possible. They tried everything they could come up with, and eventually, Sviten Special was born and named after its place of origin.

A special rule is commonly used regarding the draw between the flop and the turn. If a player chooses to discard only one of their five hole cards, the dealer shows the player (and all the other players at the table, for that matter) one card faced up. The player can choose not to take that card, and then gets a new one face down instead. This rule is only used if a player discards one card.

A wide variety of cash games involving Sviten Special, sometimes just shortened as Sviten, can be witnessed across Europe, especially on the island of Malta. Over the years, they have added a six-card variant, a high-low variant, and a low-ball variant, amongst others, in a dealer’s choice affair.

Sviten is becoming more popular every year across Europe. The game is getting the recognition it deserves by becoming a WSOP Circuit ring event, and undoubtedly, many players will take their shots at claiming the inaugural title.

2025 World Series of Poker (WSOP) Circuit Tallinn Schedule