Moments after the restart, Michael McNicholas in the small blind moved all-in and Antonio Guimaraens in the big blind called off his last 880,000.
Antonio Guimaraens: A♥6♠ 
Michael Mcnicholas: 9♠7♠
While standing up, Guimaraens saw the dealer fan spread a board of 3♥10♠8♣4♥K♠ and doubled up.
The 25 players are back at the tables. Shuffle up and deal!
Level: 29
Blinds: 80,000/160,000
Ante: 160,000
With 25 players remaining in the 2026 WSOP Europe Main Event, Day 5 inside King’s Casino at Hilton Prague is shaping up as a true battle of nations, with 17 countries still represented and a brand-new champion guaranteed to be crowned.
France and the United States lead the way numerically with three players each still in contention, while the United Kingdom, Finland, Switzerland, and Lithuania each have two runners remaining. The rest of the field spans Greece, Spain, Norway, Bulgaria, Germany, China, South Africa, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Japan, and Georgia, ensuring a truly global lineup chasing the €2 million top prize.
At the top of the counts, Finland holds the chip lead thanks to Hengtao Zhu, who returns with 16,395,000 chips after a dominant Day 4 performance. Close behind is the United Kingdom’s Brandon Sheils with 15,935,000, continuing a red-hot 2026 that has already seen him claim major titles on both the live and online felt.
Lithuania’s Rokas Asipauskas (12,100,000) also sits among the front-runners, while Japan’s Akihiro Konishi (9,490,000) and Greece’s Vasileios Panagiotidis (9,275,000) round out the biggest stacks heading into the penultimate day.
| Place | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hengtao Zhu | Finland | 16,395,000 | 102 |
| 2 | Brandon Sheils | United Kingdom | 15,935,000 | 100 |
| 3 | Rokas Asipauskas | Lithuania | 12,100,000 | 76 |
| 4 | Akihiro Konishi | Japan | 9,490,000 | 59 |
| 5 | Vasileios Panagiotidis | Greece | 9,275,000 | 58 |
| 6 | Peter Koevesdi | Germany | 8,085,000 | 51 |
| 7 | Marius Kudzmanas | Lithuania | 6,595,000 | 41 |
| 8 | Joona Nyholm | Finland | 6,405,000 | 40 |
| 9 | Chris Hunichen | United States | 6,310,000 | 39 |
| 10 | Steven Jones | United States | 5,980,000 | 37 |
With Annette Obrestad eliminated on Day 4, the last remaining former champion is now out of the field, guaranteeing that a new name will be added to the prestigious list of WSOP Europe Main Event winners.
Obrestad, who famously captured the inaugural title in 2007, was also the final woman standing before her run came to an end in 34th place.
Historically, the WSOPE Main Event has seen winners from a wide mix of countries, including Norway, Indonesia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain, Greece, Sweden, Austria, Italy, Germany, and the Czech Republic. However, several nations still represented in the final 25 are chasing a first-ever WSOPE Main Event victory.
France, Finland, Lithuania, Japan, China, South Africa, Georgia, Ukraine, Switzerland, and Bulgaria are all still searching for their first WSOPE Main Event winner
There is also some local interest with just one Czech player remaining. Jan Tichacek carries the hopes of the home crowd and will be aiming to emulate Josef Gulas Jr, who kept the title on home soil when he won the event in 2021.
All survivors have locked up at least €50,000, but the biggest money is now firmly in view.
Six-figure payouts begin at the final 11, while making the final nine guarantees at least €140,000. The stakes rise quickly from there, with the final five locking up €425,000 and a podium finish worth at least €800,000.
At the top awaits the €2,000,000 first-place prize, with life-changing money on the line as the race toward the final table heats up.
Cards will be back in the air at 12 p.m. local time, with play resuming on Level 29 at blinds of 80,000/160,000 with a 160,000 big blind ante.
The plan for Day 5 is to play six 90-minute levels, or until the final table is reached ahead of Friday’s finale. A dinner break is scheduled after Level 32.
As always, stay tuned to PokerNews for full coverage from the 2026 WSOP Europe Main Event.
| Table | Seat | Player | Country | Chip Count | Big Blinds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 108 | 1 | Akihiro Konishi | Japand | 9,490,000 | 59 |
| 108 | 2 | Marius Kudzmanas | Lithuania | 6,595,000 | 41 |
| 108 | 4 | Hengtao Zhu | Finland | 16,395,000 | 102 |
| 108 | 5 | Jan Tichacek | Czech Republic | 5,655,000 | 35 |
| 108 | 6 | Steven Jones | United States | 5,980,000 | 37 |
| 108 | 8 | Maksym Mamon | Switzerland | 4,900,000 | 31 |
| 109 | 1 | Yuhan Wang | China | 4,510,000 | 28 |
| 109 | 2 | Vasileios Panagiotidis | Greece | 9,275,000 | 58 |
| 109 | 3 | Thomas Eychenne | France | 2,340,000 | 15 |
| 109 | 5 | Sonny Franco | France | 2,900,000 | 18 |
| 109 | 6 | Peter Koevesdi | Germany | 8,085,000 | 51 |
| 109 | 7 | Rokas Asipauskas | Lithuania | 12,100,000 | 76 |
| 116 | 1 | Christopher Brian Hunichen | United States | 6,310,000 | 39 |
| 116 | 2 | Benjamin Michel Gerard Chalot | Finland | 5,805,000 | 36 |
| 116 | 3 | Markus Bonus | Switzerland | 5,670,000 | 35 |
| 116 | 4 | Thomas Hall | United Kingdom | 5,100,000 | 32 |
| 116 | 6 | Nikolay Bibov | Bulgaria | 5,815,000 | 36 |
| 116 | 7 | Viacheslav Sultanov | Ukraine | 5,350,000 | 33 |
| 116 | 8 | Lazare Kalebashvili | Georgia | 1,525,000 | 10 |
| 117 | 1 | Brandon Sheils | United Kingdom | 15,935,000 | 100 |
| 117 | 2 | Joona Jukka Matias Nyholm | Finland | 6,405,000 | 40 |
| 117 | 4 | Sondre Stormyr | Norway | 2,640,000 | 17 |
| 117 | 5 | Giovanni Zanette | South Africa | 3,865,000 | 24 |
| 117 | 6 | Michael Mcnicholas | United States | 3,020,000 | 19 |
| 117 | 7 | Antonio Guimaraens Garcia | Spain | 1,240,000 | 8 |
Event #5: €5,300 WSOPE Main Event NLHE European Championship
Day 5 Started
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