Evo France came and went this weekend, as fighting game players from across Europe and the wider world flocked to Nice, France. However, while veteran champions were crowned and a milestone was passed for European fighting game players, younger talent showed up in force.
Take Blaz, the 15-year-old Chilean Ryu player. He’s been making a name for himself for some time now at Street Fighter 6 events, first making an impact at South-American regional events back in 2023 before securing high placements around the world, such as his third-place finish at Ultimate Fighting Arena earlier this year.
But at Evo France, Blaz managed to show up in a major way at what is likely one of the most important events he’s attended. During his run through Evo France, he managed to take down multiple prominent and storied players, including Kobayan and French hometown favourite Mister Crimson. Blaz would finish in second place at Evo.
But while Blaz has become something of a known quantity among fighting games, a new challenger managed to also draw eyes and well-deserved praise. Neia, the 16-year-old Lili player from Paris, tore through the Tekken 8 bracket at Evo Europe. She dominated in early Pools matches with relative ease. It was only until Neia ran into legendary South-Korean player Qudans that they lost a match, the same Qudans who would end up placing 7th overall in the tournament.
After that, having been placed in the losers bracket, Neia’s run ended courtesy of another player of great renown: Tetsu. With this loss, Neia would end up in 17th place, out of 1,169 players. What’s noteworthy is that this was Neia’s second ever major tournament, having previously entered the French Ultimate Fighting Arena 2025 and landing a 13th-place finish.
So why does this matter? Well, both players are excellent example cases of not only the merits of reaching beyond typical markets of gaming events, but also proof against the stereotype that this genre isn’t just for the old-heads out there.
On the age front, it’s well known that different generations favour different types of games. For example, millennials make up a significant majority of the MMO playerbase these days, while live service games like Roblox and Fortnite tend to be dominated by the younger generation of gamers. Fighting game audiences trend older, it’s safe to say. Though players like Blaz and Neia prove that this generalisation doesn’t speak to the entire player base.
Their respective ages also are exceptionally impressive when you consider the ages of some of these games’ most successful players. Leshar, who won the Street Fighter 6 tournament at Evo France, is 26. Tokido, another top 8 player and beloved figure among fighting game enthusiasts, is 40. The high-end competitive peak of this genre is flooded with adults with years of tournament experience behind them.
But while the age of Blaz and Neia is gaining attention, and for good reason, I’d also like to note the geographic perks of this story. Chile, Blaz’s home country, isn’t exactly known for its bustling video game communities. There is an audience there, sure, but when you think about South American video game hubs, your mind might typically go to Brazil or Mexico. But it’s thanks to events like the Capcom Pro Tour: South America League that Blaz was able to kick off his professional career: support that is always welcome and glad to see from major publishers.
And for Neia, her and many other European players may never have been able to attend an Evo if it wasn’t brought to the region this year. Neia has played at French events and clearly made a name for herself, but would she have been able to spend over a €1000 (at least!) to travel to Vegas or Japan to play Tekken! Probably not!
Evo France was, among many other things, a battleground where young talent was able to strut its stuff on a global stage. It was a testament to not only the importance of offering opportunity to under-represented parts of the world, but also a reminder that the Bison player I’m losing to online isn’t necessarily a 35-year-old with kids and a mortgage.
Here’s hoping future events one of these newcomers can take home the first place trophy, and fend off all the genre veterans. New blood, as they say, is good blood.