2026/04/08 09:35

Registration for the 2nd Qualifying Tournament of the 12th Shogi Wars Kishin Tournament in Europe is now open!

Please enter via the "Event" button at the bottom of the app.

Even if you did not participate in the previous round, there is still plenty of opportunity to qualify for the final tournament by joining from this round. The tournament details are as follows:

Online Qualifiers + Over-the-Board Finals in Germany

12th Shogi Wars Kishin Tournament in Europe

The 12th Shogi Wars Kishin Tournament in Europe returns in 2026 with three online qualification tournaments and a live final tournament in Paderborn, Germany.

All participants will receive a digital Shogi Wars item, and attractive prizes await the top players in the finals.

Event Overview

This is an online shogi tournament played on the Shogi Wars app. The qualification stage takes place online, while the final round will be held face-to-face in Paderborn, Germany.

Tournament Schedule

Qualification Tournaments

Qualifier	Date	Time
Qualifier 1	February 22, 2026	12:00–14:00 UTC
Qualifier 2	April 26, 2026	12:00–14:00 UTC
Qualifier 3	June 21, 2026	12:00–14:00 UTC

Final Tournament

August 7, 2026 — Paderborn, Germany

Who Can Participate?

The qualification tournaments are open to all residents of European countries.

Registration Opens

For Qualifier 1: February 3, 2026 at 12:00 UTC
For Qualifier 2: April 7, 2026 at 12:00 UTC
For Qualifier 3: June 2, 2026 at 12:00 UTC

Qualification Tournament Rules

Time control: 10 minutes per player
No byoyomi
No limit on the number of games played
No premium subscription required
Use of the digital assistant “Kishin” is not allowed

How to Qualify for the Finals

Eight players will advance to the final tournament:

The winner of each qualification tournament (3 places total)
- If the same player wins two or all three qualifiers, the runner-up of the 2nd and/or 3rd qualifier will advance instead, as needed.
Five players with the highest number of wins based on their Best Two qualification results
- Among these five players, only one may hold Japanese citizenship.

Please note: Players who qualify for the finals must be able to travel to Paderborn in person.

All participants in the qualification tournaments will receive a digital Shogi Wars item.

Final Tournament Format

The final tournament will feature 8 qualified players in a three-round knockout format.

Games will be played face-to-face in Paderborn, using Shogi Wars on each participant’s own smartphone.

Final Tournament Rules

Time control: 10 minutes per player
No byoyomi
Use of the “Kishin” assistant is not allowed

Prizes

1st Place: €400
2nd Place: €250
3rd Place: €150

Additional prizes for runners-up include, among others, a teaching game with a professional shogi player.

Live Commentary

Selected games from the final tournament will be commented live on YouTube.

About the “Best Two” Rule

For each player, only the two qualification tournaments with the highest number of wins will be counted toward final qualification.

This means a player may still remain competitive even if they miss one of the three qualifiers.

Tiebreak Criteria

If players are tied on wins, qualification will be decided in the following order:

The player with the fewest losses
If still tied, the player with the most wins in Qualifier 3 (June 21)
If still tied, the player with the fewest losses in Qualifier 3
If still tied, by lot