Epic Games has announced that Fortnite will hold a $2.5m (~£1.86m) Reload Elite Series competition next year, which will conclude at the 2026 Esports World Cup (EWC).
The series is part of the gaming publisher’s partnership with the Esports World Cup Foundation, which will see Fortnite and Rocket League featured in next year’s event in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Unlike the Fortnite Championship Series (FNCS), the new circuit centres around the game’s Reload mode, a fast-paced 40-player battle royale where teammates respawn so long as one member of the squad is alive.
According to Epic Games, the series will begin with the four qualifiers running between January and June, each of which will be split into four different stages.
Each qualifier begins with two Open Rounds, featuring 12 matches per Open. Regional advancement to the Play-Ins varies between regions.
- EU: Top 2,000 duos
- NAC: Top 1,000 duos
- OCE, ASIA, ME, BR, NAW: Top 500 duos
Play-Ins will see the remaining teams compete in 24 matches across two rounds, where the top 80 move onto heats. The next stage will see duos divided into four heats, featuring eight matches per heat. The top five squads from each heat will then move on to the Finals.
Only 20 duos, consisting of the best Fortnite players, will remain in the Finals for each region, where the remaining teams will compete in eight matches for a place in the Reload Elite Series Championship in EWC.
Advancements will vary between each region:
- EU: Top 3 teams qualify for EWC
- NAC: Top 2 teams qualify for EWC
- NAW, OCE, ASIA, ME, BR: Top team in each region qualifies for EWC
The first qualifier for the Fortnite Reload Elite Series will begin with Open 1 on January 8th, and end with the Finals on February 8th, 2026.
Fortnite Heads to EWC 2026
The Reload Elite Series will feature a $1.5m (~£1.12m) in prize pool funds spread across the regions, with first-place winners claiming as much as $30,000 (~£22,400) in EU.
An additional $1m in prize funds will be up for grabs in the world championship at EWC
Fabian Scheuermann, Chief Games Officer of the Esports World Cup Foundation, commented: “Fortnite has established one of the largest global player communities and continues to influence gaming, entertainment and digital culture far beyond the competitive space.
“Hosting the Fortnite Reload Elite Series Championship at EWC introduces a new global, multi-year competitive ecosystem at the world’s biggest esports event.”
Epic Games will also see its popular football car-racer game, Rocket League, featured at the Esports World Cup next year. Both games will join the 20 other titles already revealed for the global event organised by the Saudi Arabian government-supported Esports World Cup Foundation.
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