Aravindh, Esipenko, Liem Le, Sarana Qualify For Esports World Cup Play-in

GMs Aravindh Chithambaram, Andrey Esipenko, Liem Le, and Alexey Sarana were the four players to qualify, through DreamHack Atlanta 2026, for the 2026 Esports World Cup Play-in. There, they will face the four other players who finish at the top of the Last Chance Qualifier (an event in August) for two spots in the Group Stage of the main event, where they will compete with stars such as world number-one GM Magnus Carlsen.

The Group Stage, once all have qualified, will have 16 players in total. Only three spots are left to be filled, as the following players are confirmed:

Already Qualified For EWC Group Stage

The following graphic shows all the ways players can qualify for one of the 16 spots. The qualification methods still open are India Rising and the Last Chance Qualifier (which will then lead to the Play-in).

Chess was a part of the Road to EWC series of live events that qualify players directly to the EWC. In addition to chess, Road to EWC featured Street Fighter 6, TEKKEN 8, and Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves. The venue was loud, but not everyone was there for the game on 64 squares; next to the chess were fighting games, with the main DreamHack stage next to that, and only a few hundred feet further was IEM (Intel Extreme Masters) for Counter-Strike, routinely one of the biggest esports tournaments in the world in terms of viewership, enthusiasm, and prizes.

DreamHack, which came to Dallas in 2025, took place in Atlanta this year. For chess, the four qualification spots were the most important prize, and just qualifying for the event opens the door to generous prizes, even for players who don't reach the Group Stage. Even still, $15,000 for first place in this event is a solid bonus. The total prize purse was $50,000.

The tournament had two stages: a Group Stage followed by the Playoffs. There were two groups, Group A and B, which each featured an 18-player double-elimination bracket. Four players from each group advanced to the Playoffs to make a total of eight—the top two from the respective groups went directly to the Upper Bracket Semifinals and the bottom two directly to the Lower Bracket Round 1. All games were played in-person but on computer, and players wore noise-cancelling headphones so that they could hear neither the audience nor the commentary.

All games were played with the 10+0 time control, and each match was a best-of-two with armageddon as a tiebreaker.

Chess.com provided an over-the-board freeplay area nearby, so that chess enthusiasts and the chess-curious could participate as well.

The four players who qualified from Dallas last year all returned; and while Aravindh and Sarana qualified a second time, the two others didn't make it through. GM Oleksandr Bortnyk, last year's champion, will have to play in the Last Chance Qualifier in August, as well as GM Andrew Tang, if they are to qualify for the EWC. Bortnyk made it past the Group Stage but was ultimately eliminated by Esipenko in the Lower Bracket Round 1, while Tang was eliminated even earlier, by GM Jules Moussard in the Group Stage Lower Bracket Quarterfinals.

Other grandmasters in the field of 36 were Awonder Liang, Ray Robson, Christopher Yoo, David Anton, Mikhail Kobalia, Volodar Murzin, and Andrew Hong.

Aravindh, who reached the Upper Bracket Final in 2025, came first in the Playoffs this year. Last year, the Indian GM lost against Bortnyk in the Upper Bracket Final; and he got his revenge this year in the Upper Bracket Semifinals of Group B. 

Aravindh won the first game and was on the better side of a draw in the second, which was all he needed to win the two-game match. In that first encounter, Bortnyk had only 46 seconds (without increment) to find the bailout 36...Qd1+, and he played the wrong check. Not 10 moves later, his king was caught in a mating net.

Aravindh would continue his run in the Playoffs with match wins over Yoo (2-1 after armageddon) and Sarana. It took three matches to overcome Sarana, as Aravindh won the Upper Bracket Final 2-1 (in armageddon), then lost the Grand Final 0-2, but then won 1-0 in the Grand Final Reset, which was a single armageddon game.

Aravindh won the first match against Sarana 2-1; after two draws, Sarana made no progress in a must-win armageddon game and self-destructed rather than make a draw.

The Serbian GM, who had already beaten Le 2-1 in the Upper Bracket Semifinals, dropped down to the Lower Bracket and played Le again in the Lower Bracket Final, winning that encounter 1.5-0.5. He scored his win in the second game with a startling (and temporary) queen sacrifice.

Both players having already qualified for the EWC, Aravindh and Sarana now played for the $15,000 prize. Sarana won both games of their second match, with the first being a shining example of why chess players like to say, "A knight on the rim is dim."

In the second game, Aravindh reached a winning position (two pawns up) but lost on time. But because Aravindh had won the Upper Bracket Final (and hadn't lost a match yet), he was entitled to yet another match with Sarana.

The Grand Final Reset was a single armageddon game, and indeed Sarana created his winning chances. 29.Nxc6!! would have been a brilliant win, but given the time constraints, he didn't find it and Aravindh went on to convincingly win a game he only needed to draw.

Despite losing that final game, Sarana still walks away with $7,500 and a spot in the EWC Play-in.

Le and Esipenko took the last two spots from the Lower Bracket, and Le won their direct encounter 2-0 to win the Lower Bracket Semifinals. The Vietnamese GM won the first game by applying time pressure in a theoretically drawn pawn-up rook endgame, and in the second game his defense led to a swift win. 21...Ne3! was a clutch tactic that helped him slip out of a much-worse position.

Le earned $5,000 in third. Before that match he had also defeated Moussard 2-0. Esipenko, in fourth, earned $3,500 and had himself defeated Bortnyk and Yoo before his encounter with Le.

The next EWC qualifying event to watch out for is India Rising 2026, which features a $30,000 prize and a single spot in the EWC. The qualifiers are currently taking place May 18-24, and the Live Finals are in Mumbai, India on July 4.

DreamHack Atlanta 2026, which took place from May 15-17 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta, allowed participants to battle for four spots in the 2026 Esports World Cup. The tournament consisted of a group stage followed by a double-elimination bracket, with all games played at the 10+0 time control (except for potential armageddon tiebreaks). The total prize fund was $50,000.

Previous coverage:

• • DreamHack Atlanta To Start On May 15 With 4 Esports World Cup Spots For Grabs