3 min readAug 4, 2026 06:44 PM IST
Age proved to be just a number at the Esports World Cup 2026 in Paris, where 15-year-old Chilean prodigy Jaime “Craime” Bustos etched his name in the record books as the youngest champion in tournament history.
Competing in the Street Fighter 6 tournament, the 15-year-old, who was 15 years, two months, and 25 days old at the time of his victory, defeated Japan’s veteran player Hibiki 5-2 in the grand final. Craime lost the opening round but recovered strongly to dominate the rest of the series. His path to glory was equally impressive as he suffered just one defeat in the group stage before outclassing EVO 2026 champion MenaRD and EVO Japan 2026 champion Yamaguchi in the knockout rounds.
The win marked the biggest achievement of his career, which began just two years ago. “I’m very, very happy for my win, and I can’t wait to go back to Chile. This isn’t just me, this is everyone who comes in and helps me,” said Craime after rewriting history in Paris.
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Craime walked away with a $250,000 prize (approx. INR 2.3 crore), qualification for Capcom Cup 13, and 1,000 Club Championship points for his team, Team Falcons. The win helped Team Falcons regain the top spot in the Club Championship standings with 2,400 points.
EWC 2026 at halfway stage
Week 4 of EWC 2026 is in the books, marking the halfway stage of the competition. Saturday produced a regional first winner in Mobile Legends: Bang Bang. Sunday added two more champions, with Call of Duty: Warzone rewarding a team that stuck together, and Overwatch witnessing a back-and-forth battle that saw one player claim his second EWC title.
In the Club Championship race, Team Falcons surged to the top of the standings following their Street Fighter 6 victory. They added another 300 points in MLBB but surprisingly failed to earn points in Call of Duty: Warzone and Overwatch – two titles they have previously won. Falcons now hold a slender lead of just 150 points, with eight other teams within striking distance of a single championship victory, making this one of the closest races in EWC history.
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Elsewhere, T1, currently sixth, picked up 750 points in Call of Duty: Warzone and 500 in Overwatch. However, they only have Fortnite remaining on their schedule. Twisted Minds were the other big movers, securing 300 points in Warzone and 750 in Overwatch. With five titles still to be decided, they remain a team to watch.
