PokerStars has unveiled its full 2027 European Poker Tour schedule, and the headline news is a price cut that has not happened in more than 15 years. The EPT Main Event buy-in is being reduced from 5,300 euros to 5,000 euros, a move PokerStars says is the first change to its flagship tournament’s price tag in over a decade and a half. The announcement also lays out five confirmed EPT stops for the year, alongside three other PokerStars-branded festivals, and a broader restructuring of buy-ins across the brand’s live events.
Five EPT Stops Confirmed for 2027
The 2027 European Poker Tour will run across five locations. EPT Paris opens the season from February 9 to 20, 2027, followed by EPT Monte-Carlo from April 21 to May 2. EPT Barcelona, traditionally one of the circuit’s largest and most popular stops, runs August 15 to 28. EPT Malta returns to the schedule from September 28 to October 9 after being skipped in 2026, with the stop set to take place at the Hilton Malta alongside the Portomaso Casino. The year closes with EPT Prague from November 28 to December 9, long considered the unofficial finale of the European Poker Tour calendar.
Beyond the five EPT stops, PokerStars also confirmed three additional festivals for the first half of 2027: the PokerStars Open Campione at Lake Lugano from January 8 to 17, the PokerStars-sponsored Irish Open from March 18 to 29, and the PokerStars Open Namur from May 26 to June 6. Together, the schedule gives European players, and the many Brazilian grinders who regularly travel for EPT festivals, a clear roadmap for planning their 2027 live tournament calendar well in advance.
The First EPT Main Event Price Cut in Over 15 Years
The most significant change is financial. The EPT Main Event buy-in drops from 5,300 euros to a flat 5,000 euros, which PokerStars describes as part of a broader shift toward simpler, rounder buy-in numbers across its live tournament portfolio. It is a notable reversal in an era when many major tours have trended toward higher buy-ins and bigger guarantees, and it suggests PokerStars is responding directly to pressure on players’ bankrolls amid a crowded live tournament calendar.
The changes do not stop at the Main Event. The PokerStars Open Main Event, long a feeder-style event held alongside EPT festivals and also as a standalone tournament at smaller stops, will now be standardized at 1,250 euros everywhere. That is a reduction from the 1,650 euro price point it carried at flagship EPT locations, though it represents an increase at standalone festivals like Campione and Namur, where it had been priced closer to 1,100 euros. PokerStars also indicated the PokerStars Open High Roller will be adjusted to 2,500 euros at EPT festivals as part of the same restructuring.
Why PokerStars Says It Is Making the Change
According to Cedric Billot, PokerStars’ Associate Director of Live Events, the changes stem directly from player feedback gathered over the past several festivals. The EPT has set the standard in live poker for more than 20 years, Billot said, and PokerStars’ job is to raise it. He added that players had told PokerStars the PokerStars Open at EPT stops had become too expensive, and that the new 1,250 euro price point is designed to keep those events accessible while still giving PokerStars a way to manage demand at its busiest and most popular venues.
Billot framed the pricing overhaul as part of a multi-year project focused on improving the overall tournament experience, from the quality of live stream coverage to the logistics of running events smoothly at scale. He was also clear that this is only the opening move in a longer process, stating plainly that this is only the start and hinting at further changes to PokerStars Live events throughout 2027.
How the Power Path and Online Qualifiers Fit In
PokerStars also confirmed that its Power Path satellite system, which lets players convert smaller buy-in entries into bigger ones, has been adjusted so that four PokerStars Open entries can now be exchanged for a single EPT Main Event entry. That gives grinding players a clearer, more predictable route to the Main Event through the Open structure rather than relying purely on direct satellites.
Online qualifiers are already underway for several of the newly announced stops. Satellites for the PokerStars Open Campione and the Irish Open are running now in the PokerStars client, while feeder tournaments for EPT Paris have also begun. Direct online qualifiers specifically for EPT Paris are set to launch on Sunday, November 15, giving players roughly three months to win their way into the opening EPT stop of the year before the live festival begins in February.
What It Means for Players Heading Into 2027
For recreational and semi-professional players weighing whether to travel for a live EPT stop, a lower Main Event buy-in combined with a more predictable PokerStars Open price point should make budgeting for a festival trip somewhat easier. Rake and fee structures for the new buy-ins have not yet been published; PokerStars says those details will be released alongside each individual festival’s full schedule as the dates approach. Players studying how to build a bankroll capable of handling EPT-level buy-ins may find Poker Pro Academy’s WSOP guide useful background, since many of the same bankroll management principles apply across major live tours.
With five EPT stops, three additional festivals, and a flagship price cut all confirmed in one announcement, PokerStars has given the European live poker scene plenty to plan around heading into 2027. Whether the changes meaningfully shift attendance patterns at a time when live tournament fields across the industry have become increasingly price sensitive remains to be seen, but the cut to the EPT Main Event buy-in alone marks a symbolic shift after fifteen years of steady increases.
As with any live poker festival, players should budget responsibly and only enter buy-ins they can comfortably afford, keeping in mind that travel, lodging, and the Main Event fee together represent a significant financial commitment. Poker involves real financial risk and should be approached as entertainment rather than a guaranteed source of income. Must be 18+ or the legal age in your jurisdiction to participate.
