The Honor of Kings World Cup (KWC) 2025 — the mobile game’s midseason international tournament — is scheduled to take place from July 15th at the Esports World Cup 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
In total, 18 teams from across the world will compete for the lion’s share of a $3m (~£2.2m) prize pool. From participating teams, scheduling, formats and more, here is everything fans need know about the Honor of Kings World Cup 2025.
Honor of Kings World Cup Structure and Schedule
KWC 2025 will see teams progress through three stages using its Global Ban and Pick system: the Group Stage, Group Kings and Last Chance, and the Playoffs.
The Group Stage will run from July 15th to 19th, and will divide 16 teams into four groups. Each group will have a double-elimination bracket format, with games being best-of-three (BO3).
These are all the groups for KWC:
- Group A:
- Blacklist International
- BOOM Esports
- Gen.G Esports
- Paws Gaming
- Group B:
- Alpha7 Esports
- Dominator Esports
- Loops
- Team Vitality
- Group C:
- Black Shrew Esports
- Kagendra
- Nova Esports
- Twisted Minds
- Group D:
- ACT Esports Club
- Alpha Gaming
- Nongshim Redforce
- OG Esports
The four group winners will advance to the Group Kings stage, while the four runners-up teams will compete in the Last Chance stage, both of which will take place on July 20th. The Last Chance will see two BO5 matches, and is scheduled to follow the format A2 vs B2 and C2 vs D2. The winners of the match will then qualify for the Playoffs.
The Group Kings will see two Bo3 matches take place, with the matches being A1 vs B1 and C1 vs D1. The winners will be placed in pool one of the Playoffs. The losers will be placed in pool 2 and play against the two Last Chance winners.
The Playoffs will run from July 23rd to 26th, eight teams will compete in a single elimination bracket. This includes the six that progressed through Group Kings and Last Chance, alongside KPL Spring Champions AG.AL and ACL Champions TT Global.
The Grand Finals will be held on July 26th, with the match being BO7 and utilising the ‘Ultimate Battle’ draft mode.
KWC 2025 In Game Events
Several in-game events will also take place alongside KWC 2025, including its first esports tournament-themed Honor Pass. Running from June 24th to August 28th. the Elite Pass will be free for all players.
Completing missions will earn players experience and rewards. For example, at level 1 players receive the Nuwa–Syzygy Moonlight skin, and reaching Level 80 grants the exclusive Alessio KWC skin.
There are also other activities in the game, such as team support voting and quizzes for match predictions.
