WSOP 2026 Satellites
For the fifth year in a row, the World Series of Poker will take over two casinos on the Las Vegas Strip – Paris Casino and Horseshoe (formerly Bally’s) Las Vegas, both on the Vegas Strip. Since moving from The Rio back to the infamous Las Vegas Strip, the WSOP has increased in prizepools and player numbers, with a record 9,735 hopefuls taking on the 2025 WSOP Main Event, also known as the world Championships.
Last year, there were 100 tournaments where you could win a gold WSOP bracelet, and with 100 bracelet events again in 2026, the WSOP is back and bigger than ever. The 57th annual World Series of Poker welcomes back classic events such as the $50,000 Poker Players Championship, the $1,000,000 Mystery Millions and the Colossus, but the most popular event is the Main Event
Costing $10,000 to play, live and online satellites are vital to feed thousands of players into the World Championship at a fraction of the buy-in. In 2003, Chris Moneymaker made $2.5 million from an $86 online poker satellite into the big one… so could it be your turn this summer?
What is a WSOP Satellite?
A satellite is a tournament in which the prizes are entries to a larger tournament. Satellite tournaments allow players to win a seat to a higher buy-in tournament for a comparatively smaller investment. For example, 2003 WSOP Main Event champion Chris Moneymaker satellited his way into the tournament for only $86 and won $2.5 million. In 2025, GGPoker sent hundreds of players into the action after they qualified via their online satellites.
There can be different layers to satellites. Some of them will award a direct seat into the tournament you want to play. These satellites often cost a higher percentage of the target tournament buy-in to enter. Others will award a seat into another satellite that offers a direct seat. The lowest buy-in satellites require winning three or four tournaments before you even enter the one you want to play, and they are most common in online poker.
Online poker satellites can be incredibly cheap and will often cost somewhere between a few cents and a couple of dollars to enter. Live satellites usually offer entries at 10% of the actual buy-in. For example, many satellites to a $10K buy-in event will cost around $1K to enter, and one in every ten players will win a seat.
Live Landmark Satellites
Every year, the WSOP hosts satellites at the site of the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas to offer the opportunity for players to win seats into bracelet events at a discount. These are now called ‘landmark satellites’ and follow a particular structure.
A landmark satellite (other tournament series may refer to it as a "milestone satellite") is one in which players must accumulate a certain number of chips to win the seat they seek. In normal satellites, players must survive to a certain point at which all players win their seats. For instance, a normal satellite may have enough players to award 10 seats, so when the field is thinned to just 10 players, action stops, and each player wins a seat. In a landmark structure, however, players must accumulate a certain number (value) of chips to win.
For example, when the satellite begins, the floorperson will announce the number of seats available and the chip landmark to reach. When a player hits that goal, they alert the floor, their chips are removed, and they immediately walk away with their seat.
This year, there are a number of special landmark satellites running daily, through which players can win casino value chips for tournament buy-ins only. The daily mega landmark schedule will run May 27 to July 14 as follows, with landmark satellites offering players a WSOP seat upon achieving a predetermined chip threshold:
| Time | Dates | Buy-in | Prizes | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8am | July 1-7 | $150 | Multiples of $1,100 entries into 1pm Mega | Turbo |
| 10am | July 1-7 | $585 | Multiples of $10,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
| 1pm | July 1-7 | $1,100 | Multiples of $10,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
| 2pm | July 1-7 | $260 | Multiples of $2,200 entries into 7pm Mega | Turbo |
| 4pm | July 1-7 | $585 | Multiples of $10,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
| 7pm | July 1-7 | $2,200 | Multiples of $10,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
Between July 3rd and July 8th, there are additional exclusive Turbo Mega Satellites held during the early hours of the morning.
| Time | Dates | Buy-in | Prizes | Format |
| 8am | July 2-8 | $1,100 | Multiples of $10,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Turbo |
Daily Landmark Mega Satellites
Throughout the duration of the WSOP Daily Mega Satellites will provide Tournament Buy-In Credit, which participants can subsequently utilize to register for WSOP bracelet events, Daily Deep Stacks, and any Mega Satellites on offer.
| Time | Dates | Buy-in | Prizes | Format |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3pm | May 26-July 13 | $240 | Multiples of $2,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
| 7pm | May 26-July 13 | $585 | Multiples of $5,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
| 10pm | May 26-July 13 | $135 | Multiples of $1,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
| TBC | May 26-July 13 | $1,100 | Multiples of $10,000 paid in Tournament Buy-In Credit | Regular |
Speciality Landmark Mega Satellites
Interested in earning a ticket to prestigious $5,000 or $10,000 WSOP tournaments? Landmark’s Exclusive Mega Satellites provide an opportunity to secure your entry at a fraction of the cost.
All Landmark Mega Satellites occur at 7pm.
| Date | Event | Buy-In |
|---|---|---|
| 5/27 | $5K Pot-Limit Omaha | $585 |
| 5/29 | $5K Omaha Hi-Lo 8 or Better | $1,100 |
| 5/30 | $10K No-Limit Hold'em (entry into GG Millions) | $1,100 |
| 5/31 | $10K No-Limit Hold'em (entry into GG Millions) | $1,100 |
| 6/1 | $10K No-Limit 2-7 Lowball Draw | $1,100 |
| 6/4 | $10K Seven Card Stud | $1,100 |
| 6/6 | $10k Dealers Choice | $1,100 |
| 6/8 | $10K Pot-Limit Omaha Hi-Lo Split 8 or Better | $1,100 |
| 6/10 | $10K Limit Hold'em | $1,100 |
| 6/11 | $10K Seniors High Roller No-Limit Hold'em | $585 |
| 6/12 | $10k Big O | $1,100 |
| 6/13 | $10K No-Limit Hold'em (entry into Super Turbo Bounty) | $1,100 |
| 6/14 | $5K Razz | $1,100 |
| 6/16 | $10K No-Limit Hold'em (entry into Mystery Bounty) | $1,100 |
| 6/17 | $10K H.O.R.S.E. | $1,100 |
| 6/23 | $10K 2-7 Triple Draw Lowball | $1,100 |
| 6/25 | $10K Pot-Limit Omaha | $1,100 |
| 6/27 | $10K 6-Handed No-Limit Hold'em | $1,100 |
| 6/28 | $5K Seven Card Stud Hi-Lo 8 or Better | $1,100 |
| 6/30 | $10K 8-Game Mixed | $1,100 |
| 7/2 | $5K No-Limit Hold'em (entry into Super Turbo Bounty) | $585 |
| 7/10 | $10K 6-Handed No-Limit Hold'em | $1,100 |
| 7/13 | $5K 8-Handed No-Limit Hold'em | $585 |
High Roller & Landmark Satellites
Players looking to join the elite High Roller events at this years WSOP - those with buy-ins over $25,000 - have several paths to qualify. One of the most exciting opportunities is the chance to satellite into the $250,000 Super High Roller, the highest buy-in event of the series.
With the exception of the Heads-Up Championship, most qualification routes are structured around Landmark Mega Satellites. In some cases, players can enter through a preliminary mega satellite that feeds into higher tiers.
$25,000 Events
| DatE | Buy-In | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 5/28 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
| 5/29 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
| 6/2 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
| 6/3 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
| 6/5 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
| 6/14 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
| 6/15 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
| 6/22 | $2,750 | 6 PM |
$50,000 Events
| DatE | Buy-In | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 6/7 | $625 (multiples of $5,300 entries into 6 PM Mega) | 3 PM |
| 6/7 | $5,300 (multiples of $50,000 entries into High Roller Event) | 6 PM |
| 6/18 | $625 (multiples of $5,300 entries into 6 PM Mega) | 3 PM |
| 6/18 | $5,300 (multiples of $50,000 entries into High Roller Event) | 6 PM |
$100,000 Events
| DatE | Buy-In | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 6/9 | $120 (multiples of $850 entries into 3 PM Mega) | 12 PM |
| 6/9 | $850 (multiples of $7,500 entries into 6 PM Mega) | 3 PM |
| 6/9 | $7,500 (multiples of $100,000 entries into High Roller Event) | 6 PM |
No-Limit Hold’em Landmark Mega Satellites (July 1 – 6)
$150 Buy-In at 8 AM (multiples of $1,100 entries into 1 PM Mega) (Turbo Format)
$260 Buy-In at 2 PM (multiples of $2,200 entries into 7 PM Mega) (Turbo Format)
$260 Buy-In at 2 PM (multiples of $2,200 entries into 7 PM Mega) (Turbo Format)
Turbo No-Limit Hold’em Landmark Mega Satellites (July 2 – 7)
$1,100 Buy-In at 8 AM (multiples of $10,000 paid in direct entry or casino value chips)
WSOP Satellites in 2026
The WSOP’s global online poker partner, GGPoker, now sends hundreds of players to the Main Event each year. Via its ‘Road to Vegas’ promotion, GGPoker sent 774 players to the 2023 Main Event, and in 2024 that number increased again to over1,000 players.
GGPoker will run more than 10,000 online poker satellites on its dot-com site for players in various parts of the world (excluding the United States). American players can compete for prize packages to be awarded on ClubGG, the subscription poker site also running a ‘Road to Vegas’ promotion.
WSOP’s proprietary online poker site in the US operates only in Nevada, New Jersey, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. Spread across those sites, there are a plethora of opportunities to win Main Event seats each year. In 2025, WSOP.com in the aforementioned American states, plus the province of Ontario in Canada, sent close to 1,000 players to the WSOP Main Event.
The WSOP sites are already offering seats via deposit bonus drawings and promotional freerolls to award Main Event seats. Monthly satellite opportunities will increase in number as the summer nears, but there are currently satellites running every weekend - Saturdays at 4:30pm ET for $320 and Sundays at 3:30pm ET for $215.
FAQs
The WSOP will be hosted between two connecting casinos: Horseshoe and Paris in Las Vegas in Nevada, USA.
A WSOP satellite is a tournament wherein the prize is a seat to a WSOP bracelet event. There are WSOP satellites on some online poker sites and in brick-and-mortar casinos in Las Vegas.
In many past years, WSOP satellite winners collected lammers. They could then use those lammers to buy in to the bracelet events or sell the lammers to another player. Those who specialized in satellite play could focus on those qualifying events and sell any extra seats they didn’t need. That policy has changed. Players are no longer awarded lammers and cannot resell seats that they win. If a player wins a WSOP satellite, they will automatically be registered for that specific bracelet event.
You can qualify for the WSOP by winning a seat through a WSOP 2026 satellite online or at participating land-based casinos
The length of a World Series tournament depends on the exact event you play. For example, some last only one day, whereas the Main Event takes about two weeks to win.
You can qualify for the WSOP by winning a seat through a WSOP 2026 satellite online or at participating land-based casinos.
When you cash in a WSOP event, you will pay tax on your winnings if over a certain amount. However, depending on your country of residency, you may be entitled to claim all or some of this tax back.
The WSOP Main Event costs $10,000 to enter
When you enter a WSOP satellite, there is usually at least one seat or prize package guaranteed in the prize pool. More may be added if enough players join to cover the cost of additional packages. Once registration ends, the final prize pool is declared, and you find out how many seats are on offer. For example, if there are three seats available, the tournament plays down until only three players are left. Once this happens, all three players are awarded a seat in the WSOP tournament, no matter how many chips each player has in their stack.
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