The World Series of Poker (WSOP) has been running annually since 1979 and growing almost every year. The only exception was in 2020, when the live series had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even so, that year the series managed to organize a hybrid Main Event that played out mostly online but held the final table in person.
The series was instrumental in creating the poker boom, as coverage of the 2003 Main Event on ESPN instilled in Americans the idea that anyone had a chance to qualify online for an affordable price and potentially win millions on the world’s biggest stage.
That success spawned the launch of secondary series like the WSOP Europe, WSOP Circuit, and eventually online poker at WSOP.com.
For most of its modern era, WSOP was owned by Caesars. However, it was acquired in 2024 by GGPoker, making its online component more important than ever. Caesars continues to operate the US-facing WSOP network using software from Evoke (formerly 888), but those days may be numbered.
All non-Circuit WSOP events award gold bracelets, while the Circuit events award rings. Both are prestigious symbols and one of the most recognized metrics for a player’s overall success in tournaments.
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