Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], January 22: After a year marked by strong on-ground impact and compelling growth stories, KRAFTON India today announced the opening of registrations for the KRAFTON India Esports Rising Stars Programme 2026, reinforcing its long-term commitment to nurturing grassroots esports talent across the country. Registrations for the second cohort open January 20, 2026, until February 20, 2026, with selected Rising Stars to be announced via KRAFTON India’s official social media channels following the registration window during BGIS 2026 and to be onboarded later in the year.
Rising Stars Programme 2026: Structure & Vision
The Rising Stars Programme 2026 introduces an expanded and more structured framework aimed at long-term ecosystem building. The programme will onboard a new set of Rising Stars across two tiers, i.e. Elite Rising Stars and Backup Rising Stars.
Programme Benefits & Competitive Opportunities
The Elite Rising Stars will receive ecosystem support such as streaming device assistance, room cards, and additional performance, visibility, and ecosystem benefits.
The Backup Rising Stars will receive room card support and serve as a ready talent pool within the programme.
Performance benchmarks will be in place to ensure accountability and programme quality, with provisions to elevate high-performing Backup Rising Stars into the Elite group when required.
KRAFTON India Esports also plans to host multiple dedicated Rising Stars tournaments annually, providing consistent competitive opportunities where Rising Stars can compete with their teams for prize pools and gain structured tournament exposure.
Leadership Commentary
Commenting on the initiative, Karan Pathak, Associate Director – Esports, KRAFTON India, said:
“As India’s esports ecosystem matures, creators need more than short-term visibility—they need consistency, competitive relevance, and clear pathways to grow. With Rising Star 2026, we’ve built a more structured, performance-led programme that rewards commitment and progression. By introducing tiered support, regular competitive opportunities, and clear benchmarks, we’re creating a scalable pipeline that allows emerging talent to grow sustainably and step up when they’re ready. This programme reflects our long-term vision of strengthening India’s esports ecosystem from the ground up.”
Programme Legacy & Impact
Launched in 2025, the Rising Stars Programme was conceived to identify and nurture emerging esports athletes and gaming content creators through structured mentorship, ecosystem support, and sustained development opportunities.
The inaugural programme featured seven promising esports athletes and creators including NOOBPARI, SHIRAJ, ZALAIKAM, SAUMRAJ, MERNOX, SAM, and EVIL, who showcased strong progress over the course of the year.
Several Rising Stars recorded multi-fold growth across Instagram and YouTube, while live streaming emerged as a key engagement driver, enabling deeper, real-time connections with audiences. Improved content discipline across reels, shorts, long-form videos, and community interactions reflected a clear evolution from early-stage creators to more professional, audience-focused esports personalities.
Building a Sustainable Talent Pipeline
In its first year, the programme established itself as a credible and impactful talent pipeline, demonstrating how consistent guidance, creator-first support, and ecosystem access can significantly accelerate growth.
This transformation was enabled by KRAFTON India Esports through hands-on mentorship, strategic guidance, infrastructure enablement, and platform amplification, helping participants strengthen both competitive performance and digital presence.
This shift reflects how India’s creator and esports ecosystem is maturing, where long-term participation and credibility matter more than one-off moments. Rising Star is designed as a pipeline, allowing creators to enter, grow, and scale over time based on performance and involvement.
About KRAFTON, Inc.
Headquartered in South Korea, KRAFTON, Inc. is dedicated to discovering and publishing captivating games that offer fun and unique experiences. Established in 2007, KRAFTON is home to globally renowned developers including PUBG STUDIOS, Striking Distance Studios, Unknown Worlds, VECTOR NORTH, Neon Giant, KRAFTON Montréal Studio, Bluehole Studio, RisingWings, 5minlab, Dreamotion, ReLU Games, Flyway Games, Tango Gameworks, and inZOI Studio.
Each studio strives to continuously take on new challenges and leverage innovative technologies. With a passionate and driven global team, KRAFTON is a tech-forward company expanding its business horizons across multimedia entertainment and deep learning.
For more information, visit www.krafton.com.
