Mumbai to host Global Esports Games World Finals from March 19 with 23 countries competing in Dota 2 and Clash Royale

Esports arena tournament stage with dramatic lighting

The Global Esports Games Mumbai World Finals run from March 19 to 22 at the MMRDA Grounds in Bandra Kurla Complex, bringing together more than 70 athletes from 23 countries and territories. The two competitive titles are Dota 2 and Clash Royale.

Who is playing?

India compete as the host nation alongside teams from Argentina, Australia, the United States, Great Britain, Indonesia, Turkey, Portugal, Serbia, Hungary and 13 others. Countries as varied as Cuba, Mongolia, Benin and Kazakhstan will also send squads. Each Dota 2 roster consists of five players and a coach.

Belarus are listed as "Team #worldconnected" rather than under their national flag, continuing a designation used at previous Global Esports Federation events.

What else is happening?

The opening day doubles as GEFcon26, the Global Esports Federation's annual summit. Government officials, industry executives and sports administrators will gather for panels and discussions before competition begins. The event is organised by Eflag Corp and the Global Esports Federation with backing from the Government of Maharashtra.

Organisers expect the broadcast to reach more than 40 million viewers worldwide.

Why it matters for Indian esports

This is the first time India has hosted the Global Esports Games. It arrives during a busy stretch for the country's competitive gaming scene. Honor of Kings launched in India on March 11 with a 100 million INR investment in local infrastructure and a city tour already planned for Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi. Registrations for the BGMI Upthrust Esports India Rising Series opened on March 14 with a 10 lakh INR prize pool.

India are also preparing for the Asian Games 2026, where esports will feature as a full medal sport for the second time. The ESFI ran NESC 2026 qualification through early March to select the national squad.

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Team Soul top BGIS 2026 semi-finals as eight teams punch tickets to Grand Finals in Chennai

Four days, 16 matches, and a lot of nerves. The BGIS 2026 semi-finals wrapped up on Sunday in Hyderabad, and Team Soul walked away with the top spot after a dominant run that reminded everyone why they are still the biggest name in Indian BGMI esports.

Soul's dominance in numbers

Team Soul piled up 172 points across their 16 semi-final matches, racking up three Chicken Dinners and 116 eliminations. That kind of consistency across four days of competition is rare. They did not just qualify; they sent a clear message to every team heading to Chennai.

Orangutan finished second with 150 points and two Chicken Dinners, building on their strong form from the earlier rounds. Genesis Esports (143 points, two Chicken Dinners) rounded out the top three, while Learn From Past (137 points) and Reckoning Esports (129 points) also secured their spots comfortably.

The full list of qualified teams

Eight teams have booked direct entry into the Grand Finals:

Notable absences from the top eight include Team GodLike, who finished with 105 points just outside the cutoff. They will need to fight through the Survival Stage on March 16 and 17 alongside 15 other teams competing for the remaining eight Grand Finals berths.

All roads lead to Chennai

The BGIS 2026 Grand Finals will take place from March 27 to 29 in Chennai. Sixteen teams will compete for the title and the lion's share of the prize pool. For the eight direct qualifiers, the next week and a half is about rest and preparation. For the 16 teams heading into the Survival Stage, the pressure ramps up immediately, with elimination on the line over two days of play.

Team Soul's semi-final performance makes them the team to beat. But as anyone who follows BGMI knows, tournament form and LAN form can be very different things. Chennai will have its own story to tell.

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iQOO Orangutan take control of BGIS 2026 semi-finals after dominant Day 3

Six matches were played on Saturday in a round-robin format pitting teams from different groups against each other. The maps cycled through Erangel, Miramar and Rondo, and by the end of Match 18 the picture at the top had shifted considerably from where it stood 24 hours earlier.

Orangutan pull clear at the top

iQOO Orangutan have been building momentum through the semi-finals and Day 3 was their strongest showing yet. Their 120-point total gives them a seven-point cushion over iQOO SOUL in second on 113 points, with Genesis Esports close behind on 111. iQOO Reckoning Esports sit fourth on 110 points, making the race for direct Grand Finals qualification a tight four-way contest.

Learn From Past, who had led after Day 2, dropped to fifth with 108 points. HeroXtreme Godlike round out the top six on 100.

The cut line is getting crowded

Only the top eight teams after four days of competition will earn a direct spot at the BGIS 2026 Grand Finals in Chennai, scheduled for March 27 to 29. The rest face a survival stage with no margin for error. As it stands, MYTH Official hold the eighth and final qualifying spot on 94 points. iQOO Revenant XSPARK sit ninth on 87 points, currently outside the direct qualification places.

Further down, Troy Tamilan Esports and NONX Esports are level on 83, with EVOX Esports on 82 and Vasista Esports on 80. Any of them could force their way into the top eight with a good final day. At the other end, 4Wolf x DOD trail badly on 33 points and their campaign looks over barring something extraordinary.

Day 4 decides everything

The semi-finals wrap up on Sunday, March 15, with another six matches. The final round-robin rotation will pit Group AB teams against each other. One day of BGMI remains before the field is split between those heading to Chennai and those facing elimination.

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Learn From Past storm to first place after BGIS 2026 semi-finals Day 2

The BGIS 2026 semi-finals saw a shake-up on Day 2 at the Sandhya Convention Center in Hyderabad, with Learn From Past climbing from second to the top of the overall standings. The team finished the day on 92 points after nine matches, including two Chicken Dinners, to open up a clear gap on the rest of the field.

Meta Ninza lose their grip on first

Meta Ninza had looked comfortable at the end of Day 1, topping the leaderboard with 53 points and a Chicken Dinner. But Day 2 told a different story. They could only manage 25 additional points across their matches, finishing the day on 78 points and dropping to second. Reckoning Esports matched that tally of 78 to sit level on points.

Learn From Past, by contrast, exploded on Day 2. Starting from 52 points, they added 40 more in a single day of play, picking up their second Chicken Dinner in the process. That kind of consistency across nine games is rare at this stage of the tournament, and it puts them in a strong position heading into the final two days.

The chasing pack stays tight

Behind the top three, the margins are small. iQOO Orangutan sit on 77 points, MYTH Official have 68, and Troy Tamilan Esports are right behind on 67. With two more days of competition remaining, any of the top eight or nine teams could still push for a Grand Finals spot.

Some bigger names had quieter days. iQOO SOUL and iQOO Revenant XSPARK both sit on 48 points, well outside the automatic qualification spots but not yet out of contention. The middle of the table is packed tight enough that one strong day could change everything.

Grand Finals on the horizon

The semi-finals run until March 15, after which the qualifying teams head to Chennai for the BGIS 2026 Grand Finals on March 29. The total prize pool stands at INR 4 crore, making this the biggest BGMI tournament of the year so far. For Learn From Past, the task now is to maintain their form across two more days and book their ticket without needing to rely on results elsewhere.

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Meta Ninza top BGIS 2026 semi-final standings after dominant Day 1 in Hyderabad

The BGIS 2026 semi-finals got underway at the Sandhya Convention Center in Hyderabad on Thursday, with 24 teams split into three groups of eight competing in a double round-robin format. Each side will play 16 matches over the coming days, with the top eight in the overall standings advancing directly to the Grand Finals in Chennai.

After six matches on Day 1, Meta Ninza sat at the top of the table with 53 points. They kicked things off with a chicken dinner on Erangel in Match 1 and stayed consistently aggressive throughout the day, racking up 39 knocks, 7,276 total damage, and an average survival time of nearly 22 minutes across their games.

Learn From Past keep it close

Just one point behind, Learn From Past picked up 52 points and claimed their own chicken dinner on Miramar in Match 2. Genesis Esports (41 points) rounded out the top three after winning Match 3 on Rondo.

The rest of the top eight, which is currently the qualification cutoff for the Grand Finals, reads: iQOO Orangutan (37), HeroXtreme Godlike (34), EVOX Esports (33), iQOO Soul (32), and NONX Esports (32). Those margins are razor-thin, and with three more days of competition ahead, one poor session could drop a team several places.

Chicken dinner winners

Six matches produced six different winners on Day 1, a sign of how competitive this stage is. Meta Ninza took Erangel, Learn From Past won Miramar, Genesis Esports and EVOX Esports split the two Rondo maps, iQOO Soul claimed Miramar in Match 5, and iQOO Revenant XSpark closed the day with a chicken dinner on Erangel in Match 6.

Wildcard favourites slip

Nebula Esports, who topped the Wildcard stage standings heading into the semi-finals, had a tough opening day and sit 17th with just 19 points. They will need to recover quickly over the remaining three days if they want to avoid the Survival Stage.

The semi-finals continue through March 15, with the top eight qualifying directly for the Grand Finals and the remaining 16 teams heading to a Survival Stage for one last shot.

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BGIS 2026 semi-finals begin March 12 in Hyderabad with 24 teams chasing Grand Finals

Twenty-four teams will descend on Hyderabad's Sandhya Convention Center from March 12 for the BGIS 2026 semi-finals. The field includes some of the biggest names in Indian BGMI esports: Godlike Esports, Team Soul, Nebula Esports and Orangutan all have spots, and every one of them will need to perform across four days of LAN play to keep their Grand Finals hopes alive.

Format and schedule

The 24 teams have been split into three groups of eight. Sixteen qualified directly from the Quarter Finals, and the remaining eight earned their spots through the Wildcard Stage that wrapped up over the weekend with Nebula Esports topping the leaderboard. The format is a double round-robin, meaning each team plays 16 matches between March 12 and March 15. The top eight on the combined standings at the end of that run will advance to the Grand Finals. The other 16 get one more shot through a Survival Stage on March 16 and 17.

Group breakdown

Group A pairs Nebula Esports with Hero Xtreme Godlike, Madkings and MYTH Official among others. Nebula's momentum from the Wildcard could carry them deep, but Godlike will want to make a statement on LAN.

Group B features iQOO Orangutan alongside K9 Esports, Genesis Esports and Phoenix Esports. Orangutan have been consistent all season and will expect to finish near the top of this group.

Group C is arguably the toughest, with iQOO Soul and iQOO Revenant XSpark drawn together. Victores Sumus and The Vanguard round out a group where every match matters.

Where to watch

All semi-final matches will be streamed live on the KRAFTON India Esports YouTube channel. With LAN play and a Grand Finals berth at stake, Hyderabad should deliver the kind of high-pressure BGMI competition fans have been waiting for since the quarter-finals.

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Nebula Esports lead eight teams into BGIS 2026 semi-finals after Wildcard stage wraps up

The Wildcard stage saw 32 teams fight for eight semi-final spots over four days. Nebula Esports, who had led from day two onwards, were never seriously challenged and finished 37 points clear of second-placed The Vanguard.

The eight qualifiers

The Vanguard claimed second place on 112 points, followed by NONx Esports on 108. K9 Esports and Victores Sumus both finished on 107, with Phoenix Esports just behind on 106. iQOO Reckoning Esports and Myth Official rounded out the qualifying places, both on 105 points.

The cut was tight. Infinix True Rippers missed out on 102 points, just three points off the pace. iQOO 8Bit and Riotnationz, both on 98, were also eliminated. Kalinga Esports finished on 91.

Nebula's dominance

Nebula had topped the standings after Day 2 and Day 3 as well, building their lead steadily through consistent top-five finishes across matches. Their 149-point total set a comfortable buffer, meaning they went into the final day with qualification virtually sealed.

What comes next

The eight qualifying teams now advance to the BGIS 2026 semi-finals, where they will join teams from earlier qualifying rounds. The semi-final stage will narrow the field further before the Grand Finals decide India's BGMI champions for 2026.

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Nebula Esports pull clear at the top after BGIS 2026 Wildcard Day 3

Nebula Esports are running away with the BGIS 2026 Wildcard stage. After six more matches on Day 3, played across Erangel, Rondo and Miramar, they sit on 123 points with two Chicken Dinners and a tournament-leading 89 eliminations. Nobody else is close.

Top eight standings after Day 3

Victores Sumus are second on 95 points with one Chicken Dinner. K9 Esports, who have matched Nebula's two Chicken Dinners but trail badly on placement points, sit third with 89 points. The fight for the remaining spots in the top eight is where the real tension sits heading into the final day.

NONX Esports hold fourth on 87 points. The Vanguard are a single point behind on 86. Myth Official and Infinix True Rippers are both locked on 82 points with two Chicken Dinners apiece, and Phoenix Esports round out the provisional qualification zone on 76 points.

Day 4 will decide everything

That eighth spot is the one every team outside the top eight will be eyeing on the final day. With three matches left on Day 4, there is still enough room for a squad on the fringes to force its way in, but anyone significantly below 70 points will need something special. Only the top eight from the overall standings advance to the semi-finals.

All 32 teams have now played nine of their twelve scheduled matches. The margins are tight enough from fourth to eighth that one strong match day could reshuffle the entire bottom half of the qualification zone.

Day 4 action streams live on the Krafton India Esports YouTube channel.

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Nebula Esports hold top spot after BGIS 2026 Wildcard Day 2 as Myth Official climb into contention

Day 2 of the Battlegrounds Mobile India Series (BGIS) 2026 Wildcard Stage wrapped up on Friday with Nebula Esports holding their position at the top of the overall standings on 101 points.

Thirty-two teams are competing across four days from March 5-8 for just eight semi-final spots, and the second day produced some big shifts in the table.

Myth Official make their move

The biggest story of Day 2 was Myth Official. The team grabbed two chicken dinners across Friday's six matches and jumped into fifth place in the overall standings with 69 points. After a quiet opening day, they looked like a completely different outfit.

Nebula Esports reinforced their grip on first place with a chicken dinner in Match 8 on Erangel. NebulaAadi alone racked up 8 finishes in that game, with the team totalling 20 finishes from a single match.

The Vanguard won the penultimate match of the day and sit third overall on 80 points, just two behind Victores Sumus in second place on 82.

The race for the top eight

Only the top eight teams at the end of the Wildcard Stage will advance to the Semi-Finals, scheduled for March 12-15. After two days and 12 matches, Nebula Esports (101) have built a comfortable lead at the top. Victores Sumus (82) and The Vanguard (80) hold second and third. NONx Esports (73) and Myth Official (69) complete the top five.

Higg Boson Esports (61), iQOO Reckoning Esports (59), and K9 Esports (48) currently sit in the remaining qualifying positions. But the gap between eighth-placed K9 and ninth-placed Tenzen Esports (45) is just three points. Two more days of matches could easily change the picture.

What comes next

Day 3 continues on Saturday with another six matches in the round-robin format. Teams outside the top eight will be desperate to close the gap, particularly iQOO 8Bit on 35 points in 13th and Lastade Esports on 34 in 14th.

The Wildcard Stage wraps up on Sunday, with the eight qualifiers heading into the Semi-Finals. The Grand Finals will be a LAN event at the Chennai Trade Centre from March 27-29, with a total prize pool of ₹2 crore.

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NESC 2026 registrations close March 7 as ESFI picks India's Asian Games esports squad

The clock is ticking for Indian esports athletes. Registrations for the National Esports Championship 2026 close on March 7, leaving just two days for players to sign up for what could be their route to the Asian Games.

What is NESC 2026?

The NESC 2026 is the official qualifier run by the Esports Federation of India to select the country's squad for the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. The Games run from September 19 to October 4, and esports will feature as a full medal event for the second time, following its debut at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games.

India will field athletes in 10 of the 13 esports titles on the programme, competing across eight medal events with a theoretical maximum of 24 medals up for grabs.

The 10 games on the programme

The titles span PC, mobile and console. Street Fighter 6, Tekken 8 and The King of Fighters XV make up the fighting game cluster. League of Legends and Naraka: Bladepoint cover the team-based PC side. Gran Turismo 7 will be played on PS5, while eFootball runs on both mobile and PC. Pokemon Unite sits on mobile and Nintendo Switch, and Puyo Puyo Champions rounds out the PC lineup.

The big one for Indian mobile gamers is BGMI. Because PUBG Mobile has a separate Asian Games version, ESFI will use Battlegrounds Mobile India for selection and evaluation. India has opted out of Honor of Kings, Identity V and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.

How to register

Registrations are handled through ESFI's Linktree and its Discord server. Players choose their game, fill in personal details and gaming ID, and submit. The process is open to all Indian citizens regardless of gender, though minors need parental consent.

After the national championship wraps up, selected players move to Asian regional qualifiers between May and July before the final squad is confirmed for Japan.

Beyond prize pools

India's esports scene has grown fast, but international medal chances at multi-sport events remain rare. The Asian Games offer a platform that goes well beyond prize money, with government recognition and Sports Authority of India backing on the line. For competitive players across fighting games, shooters and strategy titles, NESC 2026 is the one qualifier that matters this year.

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