PUBG Mobile Global Championship (PMGC) 2025 Announced at EWC 2025

PUBG Mobile has officially released the competitive structure for PUBG Mobile Global Championship (PMGC) 2025. This year’s format features a three-round qualification process, ultimately leading to 16 teams competing in the Grand Finals. There will be 39 teams competing in the qualifying rounds. The news was released during the PUBG Mobile World Cup (PMWC), which is part of the larger Esports World Cup 2025, held in Riyadh.

PMGC 2025 Qualification Process

Image via EWC 2025

Gauntlet Stage

Teams Involved: 16
Qualification Slots Available: 6
Qualification Basis: Teams are chosen on the basis of regional fall season rankings.
Format: A three-day series where the top 6 teams qualify directly for PMGC Grand Finals.
Remaining Teams: Bottom 10 are moved to the Group Stage.

Group Stage

Total Teams: 32
- 22 teams are directly invited
- 10 come from the Gauntlet stage

Group Distribution: Two groups of 16 teams each

Qualification Slots: Top 4 from each of the two groups (a total of 8 teams) qualify for PMGC Finals, Teams in the 5th to 12th positions move to the Last Chance Qualifier, and the Bottom 4 in each group are eliminated.

Last Chance Qualifier

Format: Single-bracket elimination
Teams: Remaining contenders from both groups (positions 5 to 12)
Slots Available: Only the winner qualifies for the Finals

Host Nation Invite

One team from Thailand, being the host country, is directly qualified for the Grand Finals. So the total number of 16 finalists is 6 from Gauntlet, 8 from Group Stage, 1 from Last Chance, and 1 Host country.

Map Pool Changes for 2025

Removal of Sanhok

Sanhok has been totally eliminated from the PMGC map pool.
The change is in line with competitive balance issues and meta assessments.

Rondo Addition

Image via Tencent Games

Rondo, the latest map addition, is added alongside Erangel and Miramar as the trio of official maps that will be used in PMGC 2025 Finals and regional PMSL Fall Season tournaments.

Competitive Features of Rondo include:

Esports-focused blue zones
Sentry guarding systems
Optimized airdrop settings
A recall system, after listening to feedback from players
No shop system in-game, to respect competitive balance

The redesigned PMGC 2025 event, which is scheduled to run through November and December in Thailand, is highly centered on regional representation, competitive balance, and map diversity. The scrapping of Sanhok and the introduction of Rondo tactically will set the tournament on a fresh esports direction that is rejuvenated.