About
Links
On 24.-28. February 2027, the EGF will hold the 9th Professional Qualification to select the 11th EGF pro. It will take place in Vienna. 16 players will take part in the event.
The last pro qualification had taken place in Vienna in 2025, it was quite a big show with a round robin tournament and 12 candidates. Eventually, Benjamin Dréan-Guénaïzia 1p from France had been welcomed into the rank of the EGF pro.
In 2027, the “Pro Quali” will be back in Vienna, with a new format, thought through with the help of the Pro Commission and built thanks to the experience from the past years.
Long story short, this will be a 16 players bracket with double elimination until the last game, meaning all players get a “second chance”. The Qualification is open to players under 40 years-old with a minimal ranking of 2550 in the EGD, nationals from an EGF full-time member.
You can read about the full requirements and system in the document below.
The EGF will ask all the members with eligible participants to confirm they support their application.
A dedicated webpage will be published later.
Becoming a Pro within the EGF
Becoming a Pro within the EGF
In Europe, for now, Professional players are very far from any full-time activity within the EGF and do not benefit from any kind of salary. Although in the long term this is one of the objectives of the EGF to provide a better structure for work and go improvement to the professionals, the path is still long.
Nowadays, being an EGF pros mostly means:
- An official status, sanctioned by a certificate, and the entry into the Pro system for rank promotion, which is different from usually GoR.
- Opportunities to represent Europe in international events for top/pro players (Chinese League C, Mlily Cup, Beihai Cup, Nanyang Cup and several such events where Europe is frequently invited)
- International matches opportunities (Europe VS Japan or the transatlantic league were examples).
- Facilitated work opportunities, in particular: Twitch commentaries (Pro players are always asked first and earn more than amateurs), and on-tournament workshop for game review/lectures, invitations to the EGC for teaching purposes compatible with playing big events there, invitation to Asia for such works (KPMC, for example).
- Tailored training in Asia can be discussed as well with the EGF Asian partners if a professional wishes to immerse intensively.
We hope to provide additional opportunities to make the Pro status a really valuable achievement.
Beware that as a Pro, you can not attend anymore Amateur events, such as the World Amateur Go Championship, the KPMC, Student OZA, International Amateur Pair Go Championship… But you can of course still attend the European Championship, Grand Prix and so on (in case of a doubt, let us know).
How does the Pro system works?
To find out more about the Pro life within the EGF, you can visit the pages about the Pros and read this document about Professional Go Ranks, made by the Pro Commission.