New 2026 WSOP Tournament Rules + Changes From 2025

The World Series of Poker (WSOP) is the most prestigious and well-known poker festival in the world. In order to maintain its excellence and integrity, organizers sometimes tighten up the rules and enact new restrictions designed to keep the game fair and honest. New to 2026 are several rule changes that are intended to improve the player experience at this year’s WSOP.

Blinding Off Registered Players

Rule 35 of the official WSOP Tournament Rules makes it clear that participants who have registered before the start of an event are expected to be seated when the tournament begins. If anyone who registered prior to a tourney fails to show up on time, their stack will be put into play and blinded off until that individual arrives to take their seat.

Previously, players could register in advance for a tournament but then wait until they were good and ready before claiming their stack and beginning to play. It seems that the WSOP prefers that such players register late rather than joining early and biding their time.

Third-party Prizes

Rule 40e has also seen an update from 2025 to 2026. The way it read last year was:

Host Properties will penalize any act that, in the sole and absolute discretion of Host Properties, is inconsistent with these WSOP Official Tournament Rules or the best interests of the WSOP Tournament.

This is a bit vague and could apply to just about anything. However, the WSOP added a second sentence to this paragraph for 2026, which clarifies what its intent is:

Such act includes, but is not limited to, the Participant accepting any payment or prize from a third-party person or entity (e.g., pursuant to a promotion, product or service) based on the outcome or results of any WSOP Event, in which case the Participant shall forfeit all of the WSOP prize money; if the prize money has already been paid to Participant, then the Host Properties shall have the right to the return of all the prize money plus interest.

This added language makes it clear that this rule was established to deal with situations like the Millionaire Maker controversy in 2025. In that tournament, Jesse Yaginuma was eligible for a special promotional payout of $1 million from ClubWPT Gold if he won the event. He made it heads-up against James Carroll with a 9-1 chip deficit but managed to trounce his adversary.

Jesse Yaginuma (l) and James Carroll (r) Were Implicated in a Collusion Scandal

Both remaining individuals played unusually making bizarre raises and folds. Many observers concluded that they must have made a deal among themselves to have Yaginuma win the event, collect the normal prize money and the extra payout from ClubWPT Gold, and split the proceeds with his opponent.

The WSOP investigated and decided to not award the bracelet to either player while banning both of them. Nevertheless, the remaining prize pool was split between the two contenders, and ClubWPT Gold did make the promotional payment of $1 million to Jesse Yaginuma. Thus, the punishments handed out by tournament organizers seem to have had little negative impact on the two players.

One problem with the new rule as written is that it’s so broad as to encompass many innocuous activities routinely engaged in by WSOP competitors. Last longer bets, swapping action, side bets, and other similar fun wagers could technically run afoul of this rule. The WSOP probably wrote this rule much stronger than it will actually be enforced so that the host properties do possess the power to act decisively should the situation warrant it. Meanwhile, we foresee many possible infractions of this rule being ignored as long as they don’t threaten the integrity of any events.

Stalling

Rule 80 of the WSOP Tournament rules involves calling for the clock. The key portion of this rule, with the new amendment bolded, is as follows: “Participants unnecessarily calling the clock or stalling, including purposely depleting time banks to ladder up in the payout, may be subject to a reduced clock or incur a penalty in accordance with Rules 40, 113, and 114.”

Players stalling to make it to the next tier of payouts has been an omnipresent problem in tournaments, both live and online, almost whenever and wherever tournament poker has been spread. Now tournament officials have another tool in their quivers to fight against this unsportsmanlike behavior.

Sponsorships

Another new rule is that participants who intend to wear sponsorship apparel featuring brand names and/or logos at a “feature” table have to now send an email to tournament organizers at least 24 hours before displaying the logos or promotional language in order to obtain approval. The host properties retain full and absolute discretion to approve or deny these applications. Logos that might be “injurious or prejudicial” to the host properties, the WSOP, and ABC will not be allowed.

No more than two individuals will be permitted to wear apparel promoting the same entity at a table that will be televised or live streamed. If three or more participants show up for a broadcast table wearing items promoting the same company, then they will have to decide among themselves who will remove the offending clothing. If they are unable to agree, then a WSOP staff member will conduct a high-card drawing among the affected players to see who will get to keep their logos.

The rules last year did not require advance approval for wearing patches, promotional text, and other branded apparel. Moreover, up to three people at the same table could wear apparel promoting the same site.

The biggest problem with these new sponsorship rules is that they apply to all broadcast tables not just final tables. Television crews decide which tables to broadcast based on a number of factors, like the presence of big-name players, how the action is flowing, and if there are any interesting hands taking place.

Therefore, nobody knows for sure when or if they will be featured at a televised table. In order to fully comply with the rules, it seems that thousands of players will have to apply for approval just in case they happen to wind up at a feature or broadcast table.

Play a Fair Game Online

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May 5, 2026 – by Max Golden, Editor-in-Chief