World Series of Poker Europe Ladies Event Added to Schedule

by Roy Brindley, 6 February 2026

A newly announced ladies’ event at the World Series of Poker Europe will clash directly with a similar championship competition at this year’s Irish Poker Open.

The winner of the WSOPE Ladies Championship will receive a WSOP gold bracelet with additional gemstones designed exclusively for its ladies’ events. © WSOP

Key Facts:

• A €1,000 Ladies Championship has been added to the WSOPE Prague festival program.
• Organisers say several standout players from across the globe have committed to play the €1,000 event.
• The new addition clashes with the Ladies High Roller Championship at the Irish Poker Open.

The World Series of Poker, purchased from Caesars Entertainment by GGPoker operator NSUS Group for $500 million in August 2024, has announced “a major addition to the highly anticipated 2026 WSOP Europe schedule.”

Hosted for the first time in Prague, with a spring slot on the poker calendar (another first), the WSOPE schedule was initially announced in October 2025. At the time, there was no mention of a ladies-only competition.

On Wednesday, the WSOP revealed that a €1,000 Ladies Championship has been added to its festival program. It is set to begin on April 4. In a statement, the organisation said: “This new event reinforces the WSOP’s commitment to growing the game and providing premier competitive opportunities for women on the world’s biggest poker stages.”

A Strawweight and the Heavyweights Are Committed to Play

Despite not being made public beforehand, the WSOP’s statement says, “the inaugural WSOPE Ladies Championship in Prague is already attracting the world’s best, with a lineup of elite international talent confirmed to participate.” It declares UFC Women’s Strawweight Champion Mackenzie Dern was the first player to register for the event.

The announcement also states “several other standout players from across the globe” have committed to playing. These include Leo Margets, Vanessa Kade, Kitty Kuo, Xuan Liu, Shiina Okamoto, Cecile Ticherfatine, Andrijana ‘Lijapoker’ Gligoric and American, Kasey Lyn Mills.

WSOP says the stakes for this championship go beyond its prize pool. Victory will be accompanied by a WSOP gold bracelet designed exclusively for its ladies’ events, featuring a custom setting with additional gemstones.

Poker’s Definitive Ladies Event by Definition

Ty Stewart, Chief Executive Officer of WSOP, is quoted as saying: “The Ladies Championship is always one of the most spirited and competitive environments of the summer in Las Vegas, and we are thrilled to bring that same energy and prestige to the heart of Europe. We want this to be the definitive Ladies Event on the continent.”

Stewart’s words appear carefully selected. As the Irish Open runs concurrently with the WSOPE Prague, Europe’s longest-running poker series, the Irish Open will be trying to maintain its ever-increasing attendance figures. Ireland is not part of continental Europe.

Nevertheless, Ireland is part of Europe, and the clash between the GGPoker’s World Series of Poker Europe and the PokerStars-sponsored Irish Open, as highlighted by Online-Casinos.com last year, does not appear “coincidental” to many observers.

In fact, with the Irish Open already choosing April 2 for its Ladies Championship event and April 5 for its €1,150 Ladies High Roller Championship, this latest move by GGPoker could possibly be described as an escalation in hostilities.