“Cities of the world take note”: EA esports heads discuss ALGS’ return to Sapporo

For the second consecutive year, the Apex Legends world champion will be crowned in Sapporo, Japan.

In fact, the game’s most important event will be held in the city for three years in a row, a typically unusual choice in the world of esports. However, according to prominent figures within EA, the benefits are evident.

At the ALGS 2026 World Championship, Esports Insider Italy spoke to two key figures in the ecosystem: Sam Turkbas, Senior Director of Esports at EA, and Monica Dinsmore, Head of Esports at EA.

“The biggest reason we decided to stay in Sapporo for two more years last year is the partnership with the city government, and we’ve been working very closely with them since last year’s Championship,” said Dinsmore. 

“Then there’s the fan zone area, which exploded in popularity, and this year is an even bigger experience with engagement for attendees and more opportunities for both brands and local businesses.”

According to EA, over 38,000 tickets were sold for the Year 5 ALGS Championship, including a sold-out Sunday final at the Daiwa House PREMIST DOME. Moreover, adding new partners and building on the previous year’s experience, rather than starting over, were all reasons why the team stayed in Sapporo. 

Turkbas also noted: “Our stage is 55 metres across, so not a lot of venues can fit it.”

Both noted that there isn’t much harmony between the two sides of the game. Both Turkbas and Dinsmore think the solution is keeping the game’s pro scene as open as possible, highlighting “the Cinderella stories of newcomers that make it big.” 

Turkbas stated: “Apex has been out for seven years, and some players have been playing it for as long. The aspirational nature of the spectacle is part of all sports, and just because there’s professional football on tv you’re not prevented from playing with your friends.

“The ALGS is an open competition; any team can come together at the beginning of the year for registration and to try to get to the Pro League and the Challenger Circuit. If people are interested in getting to this level, there’s plenty of opportunity to compete.”

On the organisational side, all players Esports Insider have interviewed at the event are hoping for more support from EA. Projects such as partnered skins, or the return of crowdfunding. 

When asked directly if such initiatives are on EA’s radar,  the company’s Head of Esports stated: “They are always on our radar, we’re always looking for more ways to make the ecosystem more robust and sustainable. 

“We’re introducing more opportunities for pros with events like the Esports World Cup, and we’re making sure our prize pools are meaningful and full of opportunities. It’s something we’re always looking at, but there’s nothing concrete we can share at this time.”

The last year was a period of transformation for the Apex Legends Global Series, and having its Championship location set in stone for the foreseeable seemingly helped the team provide stability. 

“We haven’t run one of our split playoffs in a normal way since year 4 now, so we haven’t been able to apply the learnings from the Championship to one of our playoff events in basically a season,” Turkbas added.

“We want to bring what we learned back, and we will because we are now setting the template for what good partner and fan engagement looks like here in Sapporo.”

This template will serve both as an internal milestone for EA as well as a showcase of the economic impact that an esports world championship can accomplish. 

“The thing that made us come back to Sapporo was the partnership with the city, with the venue, with Hokkaido esports organisations, and with the brand partners,” said Dinsmore. 

“This event is a really important showcase for brands, cities and venues to see how impactful an event like the ALGS is to the local economy, brand visibility and access to a new audience. What we hope is to replicate all this in other regions and venues, so take note, brands and cities that want to activate with ALGS: that’s something I’d like to see replicated around the world.”

The final act of the ALGS 2026 Championship will be the Match Point final that will take place tomorrow, starting at 12AM JST (4AM BST). Fans can watch the best 20 teams in the world on Apex Legends’ esports Twitch and YouTube channels.