Six regions.
16 spots.
One weekend.
The EWC regional qualifiers run June 13-14. Sixteen seats in Paris are still up for grabs across six regions. Here is who is in each field, what the Elite Cup record says about them, and who ApexTM thinks comes through.
Eight players already hold EWC spots via DreamHack Birmingham. Eight more qualified through the Elite Cup season standings. That leaves 16 seats to be filled across six regional qualifiers this weekend, bringing the field to 32 of 32 — the full Paris roster decided.
Europe gets the most slots at 6, reflecting the depth of the region. North America gets 3, Oceania 3, South America 2, Asia 1, and MENA 1. For most players in the smaller regions, this qualifier is their only path to Paris.
Participant lists below reflect the latest available information ahead of the qualifier start. Final rosters may differ. This article will be updated once confirmed lists are locked.
Europe — 6 Slots
Europe is the one region where six slots genuinely feels tight. The field is over 40 players and a large chunk of them have real Elite Cup form. The French contingent alone accounts for close to half the participants, but nobody walks in here with a guaranteed seat.
Tona (rank 21, 832 pts), Richie1308 (rank 24, 770 pts), Xerar (rank 22, 820 pts), and Melioo (rank 23, 772 pts) all just missed the Elite Cup top 8 (excluding the King of Birmingham and the remaining 7) and enter as clear favourites. That raises the floor for everyone else considerably.
Four points. That is what separated Cocow from having his EWC seat already locked – four points off the Elite Cup top 8 at the final standings. He is ranked 15th globally with 1,004 points, the highest of any player in any qualifier field this weekend. His standout result was 2nd on South Korea (700 pts), and he played all ten Elite Cup events. He does not need to do anything exceptional here. He just needs to show up at his level.
Weibo Gaming is one of the bigger org names in TM esports right now, and Heav carries that into this qualifier. On the Elite Cup he sits rank 28 with 588 points – further down the table than the backing might suggest. His best result was 6th on China (300 pts), solid without ever threatening the top tier. The qualifier format rewards players who can spike on a given day. Whether Heav has that in him is the question this weekend answers.
Neon is 16. He is already on the Elite Cup circuit, rank 44 with 246 points, competing against the best players in the world. His best result was 12th on Germany (84 pts) – above what most players his age could expect from a full Elite Cup season. He has no org, no safety net. The numbers say he is a long shot for one of six spots in a 40-player field. But if he qualifies, it is the story of the weekend.
Virtus.pro, 716 points, rank 26. Pusztitopako is the most established Hungarian player in this cycle and his Elite Cup season had a clear high point: 5th on Hungary (400 pts) on home soil (kind of), which pushed him up the standings in one hit. Most of his other results were in the solid-but-unremarkable range. He comes into this qualifier with momentum and proper org infrastructure behind him. One of the more straightforward picks in the European field.
GodLike have been building out their TM roster quietly, and Stufts is their European lead. He sits rank 17 with 952 points, plays most events, and his 4th on Australia (500 pts) or 7th on Germany (200 pts) are the kind of outlier results that tell you the ceiling is higher than the average suggests. Most of his other finishes are in the 50-200 point range. He is not flashy but he is there every week, and in a qualifier format that is worth something.
No org, rank 34, 412 points. Tween has been putting up results across ten events this season, with 10th on Germany (92 pts) and 7th on Hungary (200 pts) as his two best Elite Cup finishes. But the result that actually defines where he is right now is Comic Con Baltics 2026 in May – a LAN in Vilnius with a strong European field, where he reached the Grand Final and built a 26-point lead on mime before losing it. He came third, walked away with €800, and had the title in his hands. That kind of performance, in front of a live crowd against players ranked above him on the circuit, says more about his level than any circuit points total does. He is also Slovakia’s best shot at EWC representation. If he gets through, it is the country’s first seat in Paris.
North America — 3 Slots
North America RegionalThree slots, twelve players. NA’s TM scene is growing but still building its footing on the international circuit. Most of this field has limited Elite Cup exposure, and the few who do are clustered at the top of the pecking order. Three spots leaves room for some surprises, but not many.
S8UL’s Trackmania presence is relatively new, and Neal’s Elite Cup appearances have been selective – rank 66, 128 points across several events. He has been testing the water on the circuit rather than grinding it hard. This qualifier is different. S8UL has genuine reach in content and streaming, and a player who makes it to EWC gives the org something real to build TM coverage around. No partial commitment this weekend.
Team Heretics, rank 51, 190 points. Kakne’s Elite Cup season has been thin – his best result was 17th on Brazil (64 pts) and his other results are spread lightly across events.. Whether the level is there this weekend is the question. A qualification would be the first real proof of that bet.
The highest-ranked player in the entire NA field by some distance – rank 30, 450 points, with a 6th on South Korea (300 pts) as his standout result. GodLike also have Stufts in the European qualifier this weekend, so the org could walk away with players from two regions in Paris. L1ngo is the clearest pick to qualify in any NA field this year. The circuit form says so plainly.
South America — 2 Slots
South America RegionalTwo slots from a six-player field. On pure math, SA is one of the more accessible qualifiers this weekend. The question is less “who gets through” and more “is there anyone who can bump Charles or Noiszia off the top two spots.” On Elite Cup form, the answer is probably not. But that is what the qualifier is for.
Rank 48 globally, 212 points, ten Elite Cup events played – all ten. Charles is the most internationally active SA player on the circuit by a margin, and nobody else in this field comes close to matching that. His results have been steady without peaks, no top-5 finish, just mid-pack scoring across the whole season. That profile makes him the benchmark. With two spots available, he would have to have a very bad weekend for someone to knock him off. The safer call is that he is through, and the second spot is where the real competition is.
Leviatán, rank 55, 172 points. Noiszia is the second-highest ranked SA player on the Elite Cup and the most likely candidate for the second slot. His best result this season was 22nd on Germany (56 pts), with points spread across several other events. The gap to Charles is 40 points over a full season – not large. If both come through as expected, SA sends its two highest-ranked players to Paris. The only interesting scenario is if Mtat, Natz, or Rook1e have a weekend that nobody saw coming.
Asia-Pacific — 4 Slots
EWC Extra confirmed this week that the Asia and Southeast Asia/Oceania regions will be combined into a single qualifier for 2026. The merged field awards four EWC slots. The rationale: a stronger, more competitive qualification environment. The practical effect: Spark, Rakshiii, and Zack2301 now have to go through JSwag, Baiwack, and four other Oceania players to reach Paris.
Asia-Pacific RegionalSixteen players, four slots. The merge changed this significantly for both sides. Oceania players were originally looking at a half-the-field-advances scenario. Now it is four from sixteen, and they are up against Indian, Indonesian, Filipino, and Thai competition they would not have seen in a standalone qualifier. For Spark and the other Asian players, the path got harder: a three-person field became a sixteen-person one, with most of the Oceania group carrying more international circuit experience. AR_Mudda, rank 4 globally with 2,364 points, already has his EWC seat from DreamHack Birmingham. He set the ceiling for what this region can produce. None of the remaining field is anywhere near that level, which means four slots is achievable for the core Oceania group, but it is not a given.
Fnatic, rank 68, 112 points. JSwag is the most visible player in this field and the one with the biggest org behind him. His best result was 20th on USA (60 pts), with five events played this season. The merge makes his path somewhat easier on paper – the field got larger but four spots still advance, and the Asian players coming in have thinner circuit records. JSwag in Paris wearing Fnatic colours would be a notable moment for Trackmania’s reach beyond its core audience.
Sentinels, rank 108, 16 points from two events. Baiwack’s circuit record is the thinnest of anyone spotlighted in this article. The merged format gives him a slightly better shot – four slots from a larger field rather than three from six. Sentinels is one of the most recognised org names in esports globally. Whether the competitive output is there to back it up is what this qualifier will actually tell us.
Link (LinkMax) is rank 65 with 136 points and the highest-ranked Oceania player in this field after AR_Mudda. His best result this season was 13th on South Korea (80 pts) – one of the stronger single-event finishes in the entire Asia-Pacific field. He also ended up 39th pts on Canada and 43rd on Hungary across four events total, a selective schedule that fits who he is: someone returning to competitive play this season after years known primarily for Kacky and technical content. He is a member of Fastest Way Only, a clan addition that goes back to a shortcut on TMN Race I-9 – the kind of thing the TM old guard remembers (or not). He is not a career circuit grinder. He clearly still has the speed. This qualifier is the first real test of what that means at this level.
Spark enters this qualifier in a much harder spot than expected. His Elite Cup record is rank 95, 30 points, from a 40th on South Korea and a 62nd on China. What was originally a three-player Asian field is now sixteen players, most of the Oceania group with more circuit exposure. S8UL have players in NA, EU and Asia-Pacific this weekend – Neal, Whizzy and Spark – which tells you something about how seriously the org is taking TM across regions. If Spark qualifies from this field, it is against the odds. If he does not, the merge made the difference.
MENA — 1 Slot
MENA RegionalMENA has one of the larger fields for a single slot, and it is heavily Turkish. The broader field is dominated by players from Turkey with a representants across Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and the UAE. One slot means this is effectively a Turkish internal competition with a few outside challengers.
Worth noting: Cemkoo and Huso just came off a tense ENC qualification fight on Hungary where both were competing for Turkey’s single ENC spot. Now they are in the same qualifier again, this time for the only EWC seat MENA gets. They were rivals last week. They are rivals again this weekend.
By the numbers, this is Cemkoo’s slot to lose. Rank 36 globally, 320 points, nine of ten Elite Cup events played, 11th on Germany (88 pts) as his best result, and the ENC spot for Turkey already secured (#16). RRQ behind him. He is the highest-ranked player in the entire MENA field and the only one with an ENC qualification on his record. A win here means he goes to Paris representing Turkey in both competitions. The case for anyone else is an uphill one.
Cemkoo’s teammate at RRQ, rank 49, 194 points. Huso was on Hungary last week needing a strong finish to potentially take Turkey’s ENC spot from Cemkoo. It did not go his way. Now they are in the same qualifier again. His Elite Cup season is thinner – peak result 20th on Canada (60 pts), only five events played. The gap between them on the circuit is 126 points and Cemkoo has nearly twice the event count. On paper the gap is real. But this is a single qualifier event, not a season. One good weekend resets everything.
No org, rank 62, 154 points from eight events. Birdie has been showing up on the Elite Cup circuit all season without a standout result – best finish 29th on France (40 pts), most of the points from steady mid-field appearances. That puts him third in this field by circuit rank. In a region where the two most credentialed players are teammates at the same org, Birdie is the one who could complicate the obvious outcome. If he goes through, he does it entirely on his own.
Who qualifies this weekend
Based on Elite Cup form, field depth, and format – here is who ApexTM expects to come through each qualifier.
GodLike have Stufts in Europe and L1ngo in NA. S8UL have Neal in NA, Whizzy in EU and Spark in the Asia-Pacific qualifier. RRQ have Cemkoo and Huso both in MENA. If the predictions above land, each of those organisations walks away with players from multiple regions in Paris. For a game that has mostly been individual European players with no org backing, the scale of organised participation in this EWC cycle is worth paying attention to.
Qualifiers run June 13-14. Results coverage will follow on @ApexTM_ as they come in.