Yesterday, 16 Duelists who accumulated World Qualifying Points throughout the past year competed in the World Qualifying Point Playoff. Two of those Duelists – Mario De Micco and Luka Kovak – emerged at the top of the competition with their “Kewl Tune” Decks and earned invitations to compete at this year’s Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME World Championship in Ariake, Japan. Now, all other Duelists who earned invitations to compete in this year’s North America World Championship Qualifier will enter the fray, and four more of those North American Duelists will earn the honor to compete on the global stage.

The release of the new Chaos Origins booster set on July 3, 2026 introduced powerful new cards to competitive play, and the best Duelists in the room mastered them in preparation for the competition. The new “Blitzclique” theme and the theme built around Light and Darkness Ritual are certain to make a splash, while powerful tech cards like Pot of Sloth and Zenna’s Deceiving Doll Maidens will be incorporated into many Decks. Unlike for the North America Genesys Championship that began yesterday, Pendulum Monsters and Link Monsters are fair game to include in Decks for the Advanced Format World Championship Qualifier, marking a higher level of power in the Decks that Duelists bring to the table. 2062 Duelists are competing in the World Championship Qualifier this morning, and by the end of the weekend, North America will complete its team of six Duelists that will represent their continent in Japan.

The Duelists are shuffling up, and the North America Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship Qualifier 2026 is about to begin!