20 teams from Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor compete July 30–Aug. 8 at EWC 2026 on a custom Season 15 tournament patch.
The Honor of Kings World Cup at the Esports World Cup 2026 (KWC at EWC26) began July 30 in Paris, France, running through August 8. The event brings together 20 teams spanning Honor of Kings (HoK) and Arena of Valor (AoV) in what the publisher described as a cross-title international competition.
According to the announcement, this year’s field adds regional representation from India, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Taiwan region. Teams listed include title defender AG.AL, Kuaishou Gaming, Team Flash, Buriram United Esports, Team Vitality, Virtus.pro, Nongshim RedForce, and Indian qualifiers S8UL Esports and Revenant XSpark, among others.
The tournament is played on a dedicated Esports World Cup tournament patch built on Honor of Kings Season 15. The publisher said 111 playable heroes will be unlocked for the event, enabling wider draft options than standard competitive play.
KWC at EWC26 is structured across three stages: an eight-team Play-In (BO3, double elimination), a 16-team Group Stage (BO3, double elimination), and an eight-team single-elimination Playoff (BO7, with a BO5 third-place match). Global Ban & Pick is used throughout, with Ultimate Battle applied during the Playoffs.
Alongside the tournament, Honor of Kings announced Honor of Kings: ACE, described as “the official strategy hero card battler” set in the Honor of Kings universe with cross-platform progression across mobile and PC. The company also said all four Honor of Kings titles will be shown together for the first time at gamescom 2026, where attendees can play Honor of Kings and Arena of Valor, see the latest build of Honor of Kings: World, and go hands-on with Honor of Kings: ACE. Outside gamescom, Honor of Kings will also participate in Worlds of Play: The Game Art Exhibition with an Eastern fantasy-inspired installation featuring Dunhuang-themed artwork and a Li Bai “White Phoenix” sculpture, according to the announcement.
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