Top 10 things to expect from the 2025 World Series of Poker 1y3q14

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The 56th Annual World Series of Poker (WSOP) begins next week. Once again, Paris Las Vegas and Horseshoe Las Vegas will host the biggest poker events of the year, with players from all over the world flocking to Sin City to test their skills and luck on the felt.

As the first “shuffle up and deal” of the summer approaches, we take a look at the top 10 things you should expect from this year’s WSOP.

We explore the new rule changes instituted by the WSOP, the updated WSOP+ app, and what to expect from your favorite poker players.

10. More ladies fighting for WSOP bracelets
For the longest time, women have been underrepresented in poker. Recent attempts to bring more ladies into the game have had some results, but the WSOP attendance numbers have not changed too much, as the game remains male-dominated in 2025.

Yet, poker is not without its female stars, with the likes of Kristen Foxen, Victoria Livshitz, Leo Margets, Nadya Magnus, and Maria Konnikova all regularly grinding the tournament circuit.

Last year, Foxen had an amazing run in the WSOP Main Event, and it may be just what was needed to inspire more ladies to the big one and potentially make a run at the final table.

In 2025, we predict more ladies will make final tables than last year, and some of them may even go all the way and capture some WSOP silverware, proving there is no reason for poker to be a men’s sport.

9. No Phil Hellmuth in the Main Event
A few months ago, the Poker Brat announced he would not be playing the 2025 WSOP Main Event, as he is simply getting too old for the long grind the event forces on the players.

In a video message, Hellmuth explained that the Main Event is too much of a grind for many players of his generation and called for a change in rules that would allow for more rest days during the Main Event or a different change that would allow for more humane playing hours. He is much more up for playing juicy cash games with straddles than sitting through days playing tournaments.

Hellmuth was not the only one expressing this sentiment, but he was met with resistance by the likes of Daniel “Kid Poker” Negreanu, who remained firm in their opinion that the Main Event should remain unaltered.

Regardless of whose side you have in the debate, Hellmuth may be skipping the Main Event for the first time in decades, and the poker world will miss it.

Should Hellmuth stay true to his word, we won’t get a grand entrance we have become accustomed to either, which means WSOP will lose a small bit of the showmanship associated with the brand.

I am not playing the @WSOP Main Event. It has become an “Endurance contest.”

I truly believe that 80% of the players want changes made to the @WSOP Main Event. 12 hour days, or longer, for 6-7 days in row, is brutal and disproportionately affects older players pic.twitter.com/7K4OcJOZ56
— phil_hellmuth (@phil_hellmuth) February 18, 2025

8. Tons of great poker content
The summer is a great time for all poker fans, as the multitude of poker content coming from the World Series makes it onto the different platforms.

If you are a PokerGO subscriber, you will have a chance to watch dozens of final tables in real time, along with an even more extended coverage of key events.

If you choose not to pay the subscription, you will still get access to plenty of official content via YouTube and other channels, as well as plenty of footage not created by the WSOP itself.

For one, Daniel Negreanu will be returning with his regular WSOP Vlogs, which have become staple content for all WSOP fans over the last decade.

Other poker Vloggers, such as Rampage, Mariano, or Wolfgang, are all expected to be in Vegas for the summer, along with plenty of other content creators whose channels are still up-and-coming.

Overall, we can expect to see an unprecedented amount of poker content coming directly from Las Vegas, which should scratch the itch for the tens of thousands of poker players who won’t be able to attend the game’s biggest fiesta.

7. New cheating scandals
No one who plays poker or works in the industry enjoys seeing cheating happen at the tables, but it is simply inevitable.

The allure of money, trophies, and titles is simply too great, which means some individuals will always look to cut corners.

In recent years, we have seen players use RTA to assist their decisions on at least a dozen occasions, collude with others to better their results, using poker cheat sheets, or outright cheat at the table using illegal devices and methods.

The WSOP has introduced stricter rules and intends to fight cheaters at every corner, but this doesn’t mean all cheating will be avoided.

In fact, with more anti-cheating methods in place, we can expect the WSOP to detect more cheaters than ever and deal with them accordingly.

As always, all players are strongly encouraged to alert the tournament staff and the poker community of any potential cheating they spot, as it’s the best way to ensure the full integrity of the game.

6. Stiff competition for Player of the Year
WSOP is more than another poker festival, and for many players winning bracelets and competing for the Player of the Year title is more important than the cash prizes.

Last year saw Scott Seiver win the POY title with a legendary performance, but the likes of Jeremy Ausmus, Chance Kornuth, and Yuri Dzivilevski all stayed in the running until the final days of the Series.

The likes of Negreanu and Shaun Deeb, who are typically favorites for the title, didn’t even make the shortlist in the end, demonstrating just how stiff the competition actually is.

This year will be no different, as the best NLH specialists and mixed game grinders once again descend upon Las Vegas and do what they do best.

Expect to see quite a few of the same names in the running this year as well, along with a few new dark horses who will emerge after the first few weeks of play.

5. Strong showings from the "Old Guard"
Just weeks ago, we watched Erick Lindgren, a player many thought was washed up, win a million dollar buy-in to the HCL Million Dollar Game, and a further $300k in the game itself from a #25k buy-in.

Lindgren demonstrated that the players from the Poker Boom era still have a lot to show, and he is far from being the only one from that group who can still compete at the highest level.

In fact, superstars like Negreanu, Phil Ivey, and Patrik Antonius have remained every bit as competitive as ever, and any one of them could have a summer to in 2025.

Expect to see the of the “Old Guard” make many final table appearances and remind the young bucks what poker is all about, despite not using any solvers or GTO poker software in their poker studies.

4. Stricter rules at final tables
The WSOP is an ever-evolving competition, and the rules have been consistently updated since the 1970s.

The new rules have always aimed to keep up with the times and ensure that players get the best possible experience, so it is no wonder that the WSOP has instituted a set of new rules for this year’s Series.

This time around, players will be required to remove all electronic devices once events come down to the final three tables, and will not be allowed to get any assistance from their rail. As long as the tournament is running, you won’t be allowed to talk strategy with anyone in the tournament area.

Further new WSOP rules give the WSOP staff more leniency in banning players from the Series altogether, and allow for new penalties for players who try to dodge the blinds while switching tables.

Some of the rule changes come in the wake of last year’s Main Event final table controversies, which saw eventual champion Jonathan Tamayo coached by a pair of experienced poker professionals during play.

Attempts of similar “live coaching” this year will lead to penalties, and potentially even a straight-up ban for anyone involved.

3. Fewer international players due to immigration policies
A recent executive order instituted by U.S. President Donald Trump has made the process of entering the country a bit more difficult for foreigners, and it could reflect in the number of international players who choose to visit the WSOP.

Under the new rules, visitors who intend to spend more than 30 days in the country must go through a special registration and fingerprinting process, and could face deportation as well.

While the new policy won’t actually change the outcomes for most visitors, it has already stirred up some debate and caused some would-be visitors to cancel their plans for visiting America.

Fear of being deported upon arrival or refused entry, mixed with the already existing taxation rules at the WSOP, makes playing the WSOP in Las Vegas a dubious concept for some international players.

All of this combined, we can expect at least some poker players to skip playing the WSOP this year, which could have a slight impact on the overall player fields as well.

2. A player-friendly WSOP+ app
One of the major changes being introduced at the 2025 WSOP is the introduction of WSOP+, a mobile app that aims to streamline the entire WSOP experience.

The app, which launched experimentally at last year’s WSOP Paradise last year, is now live for the Las Vegas festival and should be in action come 27 May.

Using WSOP+, players will be able to pre- for WSOP events, enter live events, get notifications on empty seats, and much more.

WSOP+ should be a one-stop-shop for all things related to the Series, allowing players to enjoy their WSOP with minimal stress.

If it does the job it’s intended to do, this app could revolutionize the entire WSOP experience, eliminating the long registration lines and allowing players to jump right into the action with minimal waiting times.

Of course, it remains to be seen just how well the app will work in such a massive festival. If it works well, the poker community will rejoice. If it doesn’t, it could be the biggest nightmare for thousands of tournament players.

The early days of the WSOP will show just how the app performs with thousands of active s, and it could be the start of a brand-new era of simpler live poker tournament experiences.

THE WORLD SERIES OF POKER BRINGS THE WSOP+ APP ONLINE IN LAS VEGAS TO ENHANCE PARTICIPANT EXPERIENCE??

, go right to your seat, post stories and get WSOP news - all in one app.

Press Release: https://t.co/h9UEadODF2 pic.twitter.com/YwJBDfHxHy
— WSOP - World Series of Poker (@WSOP) May 5, 2025

1. Stronger GGPoker presence
In August 2024, Caesars Entertainment sold the WSOP brand to NSUS Group, the owners of GGPoker, in a $500 million deal, one of the biggest in the history of poker.

The of the acquisition made it clear that many things would remain the same, including the venue for the main WSOP festival in the years to come. The key staff running the tournaments will also be the same in 2025, suggesting not much will change for this year’s Series.

And yet, the 56th Annual WSOP will run under new ownership, and it is bound to show in some ways. GGPoker has had a strong presence at the WSOP for years, but we can expect it to go to the next level this time around.

Expect the world’s biggest online poker site to even more prominently than before at all WSOP sites, and GGPoker Ambassadors to show up in force for tournament play and photo ops of all sorts.

While most Americans still can’t play at GGPoker, the company will make sure that all international visitors get full exposure to the online poker brand and that WSOP and GGPoker are now a part of one big family.

Top 10 things to expect from the 2025 World Series of Poker 53251c