Fair play and disqualification update for 2026

Hi Chief,

Fair play has always been at the heart of Clash of Clans, and it becomes even more important when trophies, prize money, and the World Championship are on the line. In recent seasons, we have seen that cheating and other Terms of Service (ToS) or competition's Rulebook breaches not only affect individual players, but also entire teams and the wider community that follows our esports.

We regularly review accounts that qualify for our competitions and act on confirmed breaches of our ToS. These reviews have shown that certain behaviour can create unfair advantages and undermine trust in the competition, which is why a clearer penalty structure is needed.

At the same time, players and teams have told us that the current punishment structure feels unclear and, in some cases, uneven. It was not always obvious how account level bans connect to human responsibility, or how team penalties stack across a season.

From the 2026 Clash of Clans World Championship season onward we are therefore moving to a clearer and stricter structure that makes four things crystal clear:

A ToS Ban affects the game account.
A Disqualification affects the human behind the account.
Player infractions and team infractions are kept on separate offense lists.
Offenses stack for the team, no matter which player caused them.

The goal is not to punish more people. The goal is to give honest players and teams a fair and predictable environment, while making it very unappealing to risk the integrity of the competition.

NOTE: Any other scenarios included in the competition's Rulebook, and also, depending on the entity of the infraction and its impact, might result in a different disqualification.

ToS ban and disqualification

If a human receives a ToS Ban on any of their game accounts, the Player Infraction list below applies to that human.
When the Disqualification period ends, that human can return and compete again on any of their eligible game accounts.
A ToS Ban always affects the account. A Disqualification always addresses the human.

Every Disqualification event also creates a Team Infraction for the team that the player was representing at the time of the Disqualification.

Player infractions

Each infraction is tied to a human. If a human receives a ToS Ban on any account, the following Disqualification structure applies to that human.

Player first offense

Out for the rest of the ongoing Qualifier and the next Qualifier.
May return after that period and compete on any eligible account.

Player second offense

Out for the ongoing Qualifier plus three more Qualifiers.
May return after that period and compete on any eligible account.

Player third offense

Out for one full year from all competitions.

Once a player reaches the third offense layer, any further infractions will again result in a one year suspension.

Player offense history follows the human across seasons, unless we explicitly reset it, so these layers can carry over into future years.

Team infractions

Each infraction is also counted for the team that the player represents at the time of the disqualification. Team offenses are tracked across the respective Clash of Clans Esports Worlds season. This list helps players see in advance if a team already carries risk of stronger penalties.

Team first offense

Team keeps all of its points.
Team may continue in the ongoing Qualifier by using its chosen sixth player, selected during the Ladder registration period.

Team second offense

Team loses one third of its season points.
Team is removed from the ongoing Qualifier and cannot use its sixth player.

Team third offense

Team loses all of its season points.
Team is removed from the ongoing Qualifier and cannot use its sixth player.

Once a team reaches the third offense layer, any further infractions within the year will again result in the same third offense punishment. Also, Team infractions only apply to the current competitive season.

Any Disqualification event always updates both lists. It counts as one Player Infraction for that human and one Team Infraction for the team they were playing for at the time.

Retrospective application for 2025 suspensions

To keep things fair for everyone, we are also applying this logic to players who were already suspended in 2025.

Any player who was suspended at any time in 2025 will be treated as entering at the Player second offense layer if they commit a new infraction in 2026.
Players who were suspended between April and July 2025 may return for the first Qualifier of 2026, under this Player second offense status.
Players who were suspended in August 2025 or during LCQ may return for the second Qualifier of 2026, under this Player second offense status.

What this means for you

If you play fair and respect the Terms of Service, nothing changes for you. You can focus on playing, improving, and enjoying the competition.

If you consider taking risks with extra accounts, exploits, or any other ToS breaches, the message is simple. The penalties are now clear, visible to your team, and they get harsher each time. You are not only risking your own chances, but also the chances of everyone who represents your team on stage.

We know this system is strict, and we know there is no perfect solution. But we believe this is the clearest and fairest way to protect competitive integrity, respect the effort of honest players, and ensure that every star and every point is truly earned.

Clash On!

- The Clash of Clans Esports team