Daniel Pidun Closes Book on Rozvadov With 2025 WSOP Europe Main Event Title

The World Series of Poker Europe first came to Rozvadov in 2017, bringing the poker world together in this small town along the Czech-German border as King’s Resort became one of the premier destinations in Europe. The last eight years have brought many memorable champions and moments, so it was only fitting, in the last WSOP Europe to be played here, that Daniel Pidun turned off the lights in style: with two aces.

Pidun was on the right side of a massive preflop cooler, his aces taking out Gerald Karlic’s jacks, as the German emerged victorious over the 659-entry field to win the 2025 WSOP Europe Main Event, his first WSOP gold bracelet, and €1,140,000 top prize.

“Great. Of course, it makes me feel great. Very good feeling,” Pidun said. “I had a feeling I was going to win it. I just had a feeling. I don’t know why.”

2025 WSOP Europe Main Event Final Table results

The way Pidun won was remarkable, but the fact that he was the one to prevail in one of the most prestigious tournaments on the poker calendar was even more so. Pidun won the EPT Berlin Main Event in 2013, earning at the time a career-best score of €880,000. In the 12 years since, though, he’s barely played poker at all. He has just five recorded cashes, the last a final table appearance in the €50,000 Diamond High Roller at the 2022 WSOP Europe. He also made the final table of the €100,000 Diamond High Roller in 2019. Pidun instead concentrates on the cell phone parts company he runs with his brother, Thomer.

“Actually, I play once a year. I don’t have time. Seems to be I’m doing something right,” Pidun said.

While Pidun had been without a major title in more than a decade, the same wasn’t true of his brother. Thomer won the €2,000 Eight-Game Mix in 2022, bringing home the first bracelet in the family. Daniel’s win today makes them the seventh siblings to each win a WSOP bracelet, joining the likes of the Mizrachis, Hinkles, Zamanis, and Les. “That’s great that we have two in the family,” Pidun said, his brother on the rail supporting him on his journey today.

Final Table Action

The final eight players returned to King’s today at 4 p.m. local time for the final table, each having secured €110,000 out of the €6,138,585 prize pool for making it this far. Pidun began fourth in chips with 9,850,000, behind chip leader Murilo Garcia (13,400,000). The headliner, though, was Max Neugebauer, the 2023 champion who sat in second place with 11,025,000 as he sought to become the first player to win multiple WSOP Europe Main Event titles.

Short stack Matthias Gude began the day with just six big blinds and quickly found a double up when his ace-seven outdrew Garcia’s ace-eight. His reprieve proved short-lived, however, as he soon after moved all in for 2,875,000 with ace-queen but ran into Garcia’s kings, hitting the rail in eighth place.

Catalin Pop then moved all in for 2,400,000 with ace-king and was racing against Teemu Jaatinen’s tens. The board gave Pop a straight draw along with his overcards going to the river, but the Romanian couldn’t connect and fell in seventh place.

Claudio Di Giacomo lost a big chunk of his stack when he called down Karlic with two jacks, but Karlic showed top two pair to win the pot. Left as an extreme short stack, Di Giacomo was all in for 1,325,000 with ace-three and up against Karlic’s ace-eight. Karlic’s eight-kicker continued to play until the river, which gave Di Giacomo a flush and the fortunate double up.

Neugebauer had his dream of a second title end when he was all in for 4,500,000 with ace-three and Karlic called with two nines. The board offered no help, and Neugebauer was sent to the rail in sixth place as Karlic began to open a big chip lead. A relentless display of aggression allowed Karlic to build his stack up past 30,000,000 until he jammed the button and Di Giacomo called for 4,325,000 with ace-jack. Karlic had king-five and flopped a flush draw, and the river gave him his flush to bust the Italian veteran in fifth place.

The remaining four players went on a short break with Karlic leading 34,250,000, while Garcia (18,450,000) and Pidun (9,025,000) followed far behind and Jaatinen brought up the rear with 4,200,000. Jaatinen then got in his last chips with ace-eight, but Pidun had him dominated with ace-jack and Jaatinen, who qualified through a €20 satellite, turned that investment into a €370,000 payout for his fourth-place finish.

Garcia, who only came all the way to Rozvadov from his native Brazil after having a dream of him sitting at a major final table, inched closer to Karlic until he three-bet to 3,000,000 in the small blind over a preflop raise from Pidun. Karlic four-bet to 6,600,000 in the big blind and Pidun got out of the way, but Garcia moved all in for 22,450,000 and Karlic snap-called with two tens. Garcia had been caught making a move with ace-three, and his dream was snuffed out when no miracle ace arrived on the board, sending him to the rail in third place.

Karlic led 49,850,000 to Pidun’s 16,075,000 at the start of heads-up, but his big lead lasted just one hand. On the first hand of their duel, Pidun turned a flush and moved all in for 14,275,000 on the river. Karlic tanked for a few minutes until he called with a set of fours as Pidun doubled up into a virtual tie atop the leaderboard.

The two players exchanged the chip lead over the next hour before Karlic turned a full house and raised to 16,000,000 on the river to take the pot and move back in front. Pidun opened a big lead when his turned pair of aces beat Karlic’s pair of jacks. Karlic then picked up two jacks and had his bet of 4,500,000 called by Pidun on the river to put him back in the lead.

Karlic turned two pair against Pidun’s pair and flush draw, jamming the turn over a bet of 3,500,000 while Pidun folded and fell down below 20,000,000. Karlic then picked up ace-king and raised to 1,100,000 on the button. Pidun called with queen-four and hit top pair with a flush draw on the flop. He check-raised to 2,050,000, and Karlic called. Pidun bet 4,000,000 on the turn and Karlic again called. The river improved Pidun to two pair and he shoved for 13,000,000. Karlic tanked before calling once again with just ace-high, handing over yet another double up.

Pidun led 47,200,000 to 18,700,000 as the two players left for what turned out to be the last break of the night. Soon after returning, Karlic moved all in for 15,500,000 with ace-five and held against Pidun’s queen-ten to double up, pulling nearly even once again. But on the next hand, Karlic three-bet to 4,200,000 and Pidun four-bet to 10,500,000. Karlic shoved for 31,000,000 and Pidun shap-called. Karlic found out the bad news: his jacks were up against Pidun’s aces. Karlic had straight and flush draws going to the river, but Pidun held on to secure the title.

“It was tough. It was really tough. But I was hitting really good,” Pidun said about his three-hour-long match with Karlic. “I had good feelings, and I had good hands.”

Comparing his win today to his victory in Berlin 12 years ago, Pidun felt more prepared this time around. “I would say this time I was more confident. I just played my game. I wasn’t nervous at all,” he said.

Pidun’s Main Event triumph wasn’t the only news made today. The WSOP announced that, after eight years at King’s, the series is moving to the Hilton Prague in the Czech capital next year from March 31-April 12. Pidun promised he’ll be there to defend his title, even if he’ll miss coming here to Rozvadov.

“I’ve been here many times. I’ve played WSOP events. I’ve played Diamond High Rollers, everything already. Yeah, I love it. Great place. Really great place.”

The 2025 WSOP Europe wasn’t just brought to a close with Pidun’s rockets, but so was a chapter in the event’s history. A new one will begin next spring, and Pidun secured a place in WSOP history as the one who wrote the final page.

That concludes PokerNews‘ coverage of the 2025 WSOP Europe. The series will be back in its new home next March, but be sure to catch other exciting action from around the poker world.