The WSOP Europe is arguably one of the most prestigious live poker events. Since its birth in 2008, the prestigious poker bonanza has regularly attracted some of the biggest names in the game. This year’s edition was no exception; in fact, it was perhaps one of the most hyped ones ever. The 2026 WSOP Europe saw the event visiting a brand-new venue on brand-new dates, with some of the most legendary names in poker paying the Czech Republic a visit. All eyes were on the Main Event, in which one of Lithuania’s biggest poker players ultimately emerged victorious, claiming his second WSOP bracelet and a hefty €2,000,000 first-place payout.
One Bracelet is One Too Few
It’s hard – some might even say impossible – to find a more recognizable brand in poker than WSOP. While it may have originated in the States and is most known for the legendary $10,000 Main Event, the series expanded across the sea many years ago, and the brand has since then become global and grown bigger by every full moon.
The excitement for the inaugural WSOP Europe was high back in 2008, and the entire poker elite traveled to London with the sole mission of writing new chapters in poker history. John Juanda claimed the Main Event title, overcoming tough opponents such as Daniel Negreanu, Ivan Demidov, and Josh Arieh. The WSOP Europe was born, destined to age like a fine wine.
Since 2017, King’s Resort, Rozvadov, Czech Republic, has been the home of the WSOP Europe. The global poker community was surprised to learn that the 2026 WSOP Europe would be held at King’s Casino in Prague. Not only was it a sudden switch of venues, but the dates were new as well; the WSOP Europe has always been played in the fall, but now it was the beginning of April. Considering the event overlapped with another legendary live poker festival, the Irish Poker Open, many were worried that attendance would drop for both events.
That would prove not to be the case, seeing as both festivals’ Main Events set new records in terms of entries. The €5,300 Main Event of the 2026 WSOP Europe attracted a whopping 2,617 entries, creating a €12,561,600 prize pool; surpassing the €10,000,000 guarantee by some margin.
The Main Event was a six-day affair, demanding tenacity and mental strength from all competitors. Eventually, only nine players remained, set to take their seats at the final table on Friday, April 10. The event may have been in Prague, but the presumptions were fetched directly from Hollywood; the lineup was absolutely marvelous, including some of the most prominent players in the world of poker.
Finland’s Joona Nyholm was arguably one of the most inexperienced live poker players at the final table. He was also the shortest stack beginning Day 6; that being said, Nyholm had proved throughout the tournament that he belonged at the final table, and he was chasing to convert his eight Big Blinds into something extraordinary. Unfortunately, he did become the first victim of the final day. He opened to 2,000,000 on Blinds 200,000/400,000 (with a 400,000 Ante) in the Hi-jack with K♦10♣, leaving himself with 275,000 behind. Chris Hunichen made the call from the Cut-off, and he then called an all-in from Nyholm on the 7♠A♦7♦ flop. Hunichen was ahead with 8♠8♥; the Q♦ turn gave Nyholm many more outs, but the 3♠ river eventually sealed his fate. For his ninth-place finish, Nyholm was awarded €140,000.
Perhaps, Brandon Sheils was one of the most exciting names out of the eight left. There are very few poker players who’ve had as good a start to 2026 as Sheils; the Brit began his year by winning the £2,500 High Roller during the 2026 GUKPT London for £49,560. The very next day, he won the £1,250 Main Event of the same festival, claiming another £88,760. As if that wasn’t crazy enough, he claimed two SCOOP titles in March. It’s fair to say Sheils was in fine form coming to Prague, and beginning the final table as third in the chip counts, Sheils was one of the favorites to claim the title.
- Read more: 2025 WSOP Circuit Nottingham Day 9: Obadun Takes the Main Event, Sheils Finally Gets His First Ring
Sheils wasn’t off to the best of starts at the final table, though, and eventually, his journey came to an end in eighth place for €185,000. After an initial min-raise to 1,000,000 from chip leader Hengtao Zhu from UTG+2, Nikolay Bibov three-bet to 2,700,000 from the Hi-jack. Sheils looked down at A♦Q♥ in the Big Blind, and decided to go for it. He four-bet shoved for 8,200,000 and was called by Bibov’s A♣K♦. Sheils was dominated, and he couldn’t produce a miracle on the 10♦4♠9♣3♦J♥ board. A humble Sheils shared his thoughts on Instagram after the tournament: “As much as it hurts to be so close yet so far to something truly life changing and career defining, I’m an extremely lucky person, and I’ll be back!”
Thomas Eychenne, perhaps most known for winning the €5,200 Main Event during the 2025 EPT Barcelona, was the sole Frenchman at the final table. After a min-raise to 1,200,000 from Marius Kudzmanas from UTG+1, Eychenne three-bet to 2,700,000 with K♥K♦. When action came back to Kudzmanas, he forced his opponent all-in for 9,500,000 in total, and Eychenne comfortably made the call. Kudzmanas was trailing with 9♥9♦, but he took a commanding lead on the 9♠6♠3♠ flop. Eychenne was unable to reclaim the driver’s seat on the 2♣10♦ runout, and he went out in seventh place for €245,000 while Kudzmanas claimed the chip lead.
Meanwhile, Zhu’s big stack had been reduced to a third by losing some chips here and there. On Blinds 500,000/1,000,000, he opened to 2,000,000 from the Hi-jack with A♠K♦, and Kudzmanas decided to make the call from the Big Blind. Kudzmanas proceeded by check-calling a 1,500,000 bet from Zhu on the J♦9♠4♠ flop. Both players checked the 3♦ turn, and after a 1,700,000 bet from Kudzmanas on the 3♠ river, Zhu pulled the trigger. He moved all in for 11,000,000 in total, putting Kudzmanas in front of a tough decision. After a minute’s worth of consideration, Kudzmanas made the call with 5♣4♣. Doing so, he sent Zhu to the rail in sixth place for €320,000.
Kudzmanas now had a commanding chip lead. The same couldn’t be said about Antonio Garcia. Judging by The Hendon Mob, he, too, was one of the more inexperienced live players at the table with “only” €9,415 in total live earnings going into the tournament. Action folded to Garcia in the Cut-off, who moved all in for 6,400,000 – his last six and a half Big Blinds – with A♦3♠. Akihiro Konishi made the call on the Button with A♠Q♦; Garcia was in rough shape, and things didn’t exactly look better on the Q♣6♣7♦ flop. The Q♥J♣ runout didn’t produce a miracle for Garcia, who bid farewell in fifth place for €425,000.
The next one to go was Bulgaria’s Nikolay Bibov, going out in fourth for €575,000. Bibov opened to 2,500,000 on Blinds 600,000/1,200,000 with A♣Q♦, and Kudzmanas three-bet to 14,000,000 from the Small Blind. Bibov moved all in for 27,000,000, and Kudzmanas made the call, having his opponent called by the smallest of margins. Kudzmanas (who, by the way, had lost a big chunk of his chips after losing an all-in situation against Hunichen moments earlier) was the underdog holding A♥J♣, but his rungood would prove to continue, as he paired his jack on the 8♠5♣J♠ flop. The 6♠7♠ runout offered zero consolation to Bibov, who, even though experiencing a bad beat, scored his biggest live cash by far.
Even though securing a triple-up earlier, Hunichen was the short stack with three players remaining. Seated in the Small Blind, Hunichen open-shoved 9,000,000 (seven and a half Big Blinds) with [invalid notations]. Japan’s Akihiro Konishi, who was the current chip leader, made the call from the Big Blind with K♦J♣. Hunichen failed to connect on the 10♥3♦3♣2♦A♥ board, and he was eliminated in third place for €800,000. It’s an educated guess that Konishi and Kudzmanas both were happy to see Hunichen go; having more than $18,500,000 in total live earnings and a WSOP Bracelet to his name, “Big Huni” was – and still is – a force to be reckoned with.
As such, the stage was set for a heads-up showdown between Kudzmanas and Konishi. Konishi held the chip lead, playing 97,000,000 compared to the 57,000,000 of Kudzmanas. Kudzmanas didn’t have a WSOP Bracelet to his name for nothing, though, and displaying sublime skills of patience and controlled aggression, he ate his way into the duel, ultimately working his way up to a decent chip lead. He extended it even further when he successfully picked up on a bluff from Konishi, who had missed his flush. Having nearly a three-to-one chip lead on his opponent at the first break of the heads-up, Kudzmanas could now taste victory.
When he was down to 16 Big Blinds, Konishi managed to survive one all-in and call-encounter, as his Q♣Q♠ stood the test of time against Kudzmanas’ 8♦7♦. Faith didn’t leave Kudzmanas, though, not even when Konishi eventually managed to get the stacks back to even. Kudzmanas kept playing his game, and, soon enough, he had reclaimed a solid lead.
Soon came what would prove to be the death blow for Konishi. He looked down at K♠K♣ and made it 3,600,000 on Blinds 800,000/1,600,000. Kudzmanas made the call, and the dealer revealed a 4♥5♦7♠ flop. After an initial check from Kudzmanas, Konishi fired a 3,000,000 continuation bet. Kudzmanas then completed a check-raise move to 9,500,000. Konishi responded by moving all in for 36,000,000 in total. Kudzmanas made the call and tabled 7♦6♣, hoping to improve his hand in order to claim the title. Said and done, he improved to trips on the 7♥ turn. Konishi was now looking for one of the last two kings on the river, and the J♦ wasn’t it. As such, Konishi finished in second place for €1,200,000, while Kudzmanas could celebrate with his rail. For winning the record-breaking 2026 WSOP Europe Main Event, Kudzmanas took home a staggering €2,000,000 and his second WSOP Bracelet.
2026 WSOP Europe – Final Table Results
| Place | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Marius Kudzmanas | Lithuania | €2,000,000 |
| 2 |  Akihiro Konishi | Japan | €1,200,000 |
| 3 |  Chris Hunichen | United States | €800,000 |
| 4 |  Nikolay Bibov | Bulgaria | €575,000 |
| 5 |  Antonio Garcia | Spain | €425,000 |
| 6 |  Hengtao Zhu | Finland | €320,000 |
| 7 |  Thomas Eychenne | France | €245,000 |
| 8 |  Brandon Sheils | England | €185,000 |
| 9 | Joona Nyholm | Finland | €140,000 |
That wraps up the 2026 WSOP Europe. It was quite the event, where Kudzmanas’ win has to be considered the icing on the cake. Now, it’s time for all bracelet hunters to prepare mentally for the 2026 WSOP, which will be played May 26-July 15 at Paris/Horseshoe, Las Vegas. It’s the legendary live poker event that all players have dreamt of winning, and in just a couple of months, more players will have etched their names into eternal poker history.
