LAHORE: Pakistani Tekken star Arslan Ash qualifies for Esports World Cup 2026 after finishing third at Road to EWC: DreamHack Atlanta.
From May 15-17, DreamHack Atlanta hosted the Tekken 8 qualifier, offering three qualification spots for the Esports World Cup 2026. One of the spots went to Arslan Ash, as well as Mulgold and Keisuke.
As a result, Arslan Ash becomes the sixth Pakistani player to qualify for the Esports World Cup 2026, slated to be held in Riyadh from 6th July to 23rd August 2026.
Arslan Ash is one of Pakistan’s most successful esports players and a leading figure in competitive Tekken. This latest qualification adds to Pakistan’s growing reputation in the world of fighting games.
Originally from Lahore, Arslan Ash started playing Tekken at the age of eight in local gaming arcades. He has become one of the more accomplished players in franchise history over the years.
In August, earlier this month, Arslan achieved a career milestone by winning his sixth Evolution Championship Series (EVO) title at EVO 2025 in Las Vegas. Representing Twisted Minds, he beat fellow Pakistani player Atif Butt in the Tekken 8 Grand Final.
Arslan first rose to international fame in 2019 after winning the Tekken 7 title in Japan. He later won multiple EVO titles in the United States, placed third at EVO 2022, won EVO Japan in April 2023 and took his fifth EVO title in July 2024.
Arslan Ash is considered one of the greatest Tekken players of all time and was named as ESPN’s Best Esports Player of 2019. He’s also the winner at CEO 2021 and Combo Breaker 2022, where he won the Tekken 7 title by beating all 10 of his opponents.
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