WoW esports returns to the BlizzCon stage: $600,000 at stake in the AWC and MDI finals

World of Warcraft's two major competitive circuits are returning to the BlizzCon stage for the first time since 2019. Four Mythic Dungeon International teams and six Arena World Championship teams will decide their champions in Anaheim on September 12 and 13. The two tournaments share a combined prize pool of $600,000 USD.

The MDI broadcast begins on Saturday, September 12 at 12:45 p.m. PDT. The AWC pre-show starts on Sunday, September 13 at 10:45 a.m. PDT, with both championship matches scheduled later in their respective broadcast days.

MDI: four teams in a single-elimination bracket

The Mythic Dungeon International field consists of Dignitas, Big Lucky, Liquid and Mandatory. The semifinals are best-of-three series, followed by a best-of-five championship match. Season 2 dungeons, tougher keystones and tightly optimized routes leave little room for recovery: one failed pull can decide a short series.

Saturday's schedule in Pacific time:

• 12:45 p.m.: Dignitas versus Big Lucky
• 2:00 p.m.: Liquid versus Mandatory
• 5:30 p.m.: MDI championship match

Dignitas arrives as the defending 2025 champion after completing the Season 1 Finals weekend undefeated. Liquid fought through the lower bracket to return to the final. Mandatory features 2019 BlizzCon champions Gingi and Meeres, while Big Lucky brings Chinese representation and former Limit raider Shun to Anaheim.

AWC: six teams from three regions

The Arena World Championship field features Europe's Echo, StreamerzoneGG and Guild Bean, North America's Gators Back and F Tier, and China's One Lun Travel. The six-team single-elimination bracket uses best-of-five series before a best-of-seven Grand Final.

Sunday's schedule in Pacific time:

• 10:45 a.m.: AWC pre-show
• 11:00 a.m.: F Tier versus Guild Bean
• 12:00 p.m.: StreamerzoneGG versus One Lun Travel
• 2:00 p.m.: Echo versus an opening-round winner
• 3:00 p.m.: Gators Back versus an opening-round winner
• 5:00 p.m.: AWC championship match

Echo receives a bye into the second round and fields 2019 world champions Whaazz and Raiku. Defending 2025 champion Gators Back holds the other bye. F Tier became one of the season's biggest surprises by qualifying with unusual compositions, including Elemental Shaman, Feral Druid and Mistweaver Monk.

Where can you watch the finals?

Both tournaments will be shown on the official Warcraft Twitch and YouTube channels. For the first time, Blizzard is also allowing a selection of creators to costream the finals from inside the BlizzCon halls.

The MDI costream list includes Zerator in French, Kimuh in German, and Maximum, Megasett and Hopeful in English. AWC costreams include Kimuh in German, plus Pikaboo, Absterge and Xaryu in English. No Finnish-language costream has yet been officially listed.

Times remain subject to change. The current event programme, Opening Ceremony countdown and all of our event reporting are collected in the BlizzCon 2026 hub. Viewers can also earn World of Warcraft viewing rewards while eligible BlizzCon broadcasts are live.