2026/07/12 13:48

The French capital Paris cut the ribbon of the first international edition of the 2026 Esports World Cup, where the first titles of the Esports World Cup were recorded in the name of team "NAVI" following the crowning of its Mexican player Luis Guadalupe Castillo Gomez, known as "DarkAngel", as champion of the "FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves" competitions, simultaneously with the crowning of the Japanese team "UNLIMIT" as champion of the ALGS Year 6 Split 1 Playoffs finals in the game "Apex Legends" after a historic and exciting comeback.

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And "DarkAngel" took advantage of the early exit of the most prominent contenders, specifically 2025 champion Japanese Goichi Kishida "GO1" who withdrew for health reasons, and last year's runner-up Chinese Shao Hai "Xiao Hai", player of the Saudi Falcons club, who was eliminated in the group stage, to impose his style using the character "Terry Bogard" and achieve his first major title in his competitive career after finishing third in the 2025 edition. "DarkAngel" commented on his crowning saying: "I am extremely grateful and happy, and I thank my team NAVI and all my followers in Latin America for their continuous support. I have learned a lot from everyone I faced whether in victory or defeat, and I am grateful to everyone who helped me in my career." The champion received a cash prize of $250,000 from the total tournament prizes of $1 million, in addition to direct qualification for the finals of the World Championship (SNK World Championship 2026), granting his team "NAVI" a huge tally of 1,000 points in the Club Championship standings. In the match for third and fourth places, Japanese "Nemo" secured a win with a score of (5-2) against his compatriot "Laggia", earning 500 points for his club "Saishunkan Sol Kumamoto".

Regarding the "Apex Legends Global Series: Split 1 Playoffs" competitions, the tournament witnessed an unforgettable dramatic comeback by the Japanese team "UNLIMIT" consisting of the trio (Yulariman, Xtsuvi, and Peace). After a shaky start in the first 6 out of 10 rounds in the final, where the team did not exceed ninth place, the trio managed to snatch 3 amazing wins in the last four rounds, jumping to the lead and surpassing favored teams like "Sentinels" and "Team Vision". The title was decided in the tenth round through a decisive encounter (3 vs 2) against the local competitor "ZETA DIVISION", where player "Peace" took advantage of the high ground to eliminate the opponent and secure the title, and thereby won the "Sony" award for best player in the tournament (MVP) after recording 39 eliminations, 35 assists, and 50 knockdowns throughout the tournament. "Peace" expressed his joy at this victory saying: "At first I thought it was just a dream after our win in the last round, but the dream became reality. I thank my family, friends, my team management, and everyone who supported us," while his teammates "Xtsuvi" and "Yulariman" praised the great fan support that inspired them to achieve this achievement.

With these outstanding final results of the first championships of the Esports World Cup in Paris, teams "NAVI" and "UNLIMIT" currently share the top of the overall standings of the "Club Championship" with 1,000 points each, while "Virtus.pro" placed in an advanced position with 750 points earned by its player "mi2ha4". Attention now turns to continuing the first weekend competitions of the tournament, which conclude with the "VALORANT" final today, Sunday, July 12.