South Korea defeated Saudia Arabia 4-1 on Sunday in the grand final of the Overwatch World Cup 2026 in Anaheim, Calif.
The path to the championship featured a 3-0 win over the United States in the quarterfinals on Saturday and a huge comeback for a 3-2 victory over France in the semifinals on Sunday.
Saudi Arabia eliminated Spain 3-1 in the quarterfinals on Saturday, then swept Sweden 3-0 to advance to the first-to-four grand final.
France downed Sweden 3-1 in the third-place match on Sunday.
Sixteen national teams began round-robin play in four groups in Busan, South Korea. The group stage ran from Aug. 20-23, with the top two teams in each quartet advancing to the single-elimination playoffs on Saturday and Sunday.
In the grand final, South Korea lost to Saudi Arabia 2-0 on Nepal, the opening map, then won the next four. South Korea won 3-1 on Neon Junction, 3-2 on New Junk City, 2-1 on Route 66 and 106.46m to 100.74m on Esperanca.
South Korea’s Kim “Simple” Ji-sung was selected the MVP.
France took home third-place honors. France opened with a 2-1 win on Samoa before Sweden drew even with a 3-0 score on Route 66. France responded with wins on Esperanca (141.97m to 3.9 m) and Aatlis (3-1).
In the semifinals earlier Sunday, South Korea topped France after dropping the first two maps — Samoa (2-1) and Route 66 (2-1). South Korea rallied with wins on Esperanca (112.99m to 80.03m), New Junk City (3-2) and Eichenwalde (3-2).
Saudi Arabia had a more straightforward match against Sweden in the other semifinal, winning 2-0 on Nepal, 3-0 on Aatlis and 2-1 on Route 66.
Prize pool (prizes to be announced)
1. South Korea
2. Saudi Arabia
3. France
4. Sweden
5-8 — Spain, Germany, Australia, United States
9-12 — China, United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark
13-16 — Japan, Mexico, Thailand, Colombia
–Field Level Media
