Many endeavors strive to salute the best of their industry. From the Grammys (music) to the Oscars, Emmys, and Tonys (acting in film, television, and theater) to other more mundane efforts, there is a place for honoring the best in your business. In the world of poker, that salute to excellence will come to an end in 2026 as, after twenty-five years of honoring the best that the poker world has to offer, the Global Poker Awards will be discontinued.
“Other Projects” Take Precedence
The Global Poker Awards ended with a simple statement from the group that owns the show, the Global Poker Index. In a brief announcement Eric Danis, the president of the GPI and the Hendon Mob Poker Database, expressed his disappointment with the ending of the awards show. “If you had told a younger me that I’d be part of a team organizing awards ceremonies in France, Monte Carlo, Malta, the Sunset Strip just blocks away from The Viper Room and Whisky a Go Go, and finally Las Vegas, I wouldn’t have believed you,” Danis said in the announcement. “We’re certainly going to miss putting on a great show, but we have other projects that have taken priority over the awards.”
Danis also took a moment to celebrate those who had been a part of the Global Poker Awards process. “We would like to thank everyone who has supported the GPI Poker Awards over the years, including the talented individuals who have hosted the ceremonies,” Danis said. “These include the incredible Kara Scott, Joe Stapleton, Ali Nejad, Maria Ho, Lynn Gilmartin, Drea Renee, and the greatest showman, Jeff Platt.” (Writer’s note: I was a member of the Voting Committee that determined the winners of the Global Poker Awards, and it was an honor.)
This does not end the other things the GPI does in the poker community. They will still award the Player of the Year, the Women’s Player of the Year, and the Hendon Mob Award for lifetime achievement, and they will receive trophies that will signify the importance of their accomplishments. There was no other indication of what the GPI has planned for the future regarding honoring poker’s best or the significance of these “other projects.”
A Quarter Century of Memories
Since 2001, the Global Poker Awards have looked to honor the significant achievements in the world of poker. Back in 2001, it was known as the European Poker Awards, honoring the best who came to the felt on the European continent at that time. Notable poker luminaries such as Pascal Perrault, Simon Trumper, and Alex Kravchenko received awards at the inaugural ceremonies, and Irish Poker Open co-founder Liam Flood was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002.
For more than a decade, the European Poker Awards were the only game in town for poker honors. That changed in 2014, when the American Poker Awards joined the game, looking to do just what their European predecessor had done, only for U.S. players. The two award programs would coexist until 2018, when the GPI decided to bring them under a single roof as the Global Poker Awards.
In total, nearly 400 people won either a European Poker Award, an American Poker Award, or a Global Poker Award. In its history, the Global Poker Awards honored some of the biggest names in the game, including Doyle Brunson, Barny Boatman, Stephen Chidwick, Gabe Kaplan, Matt Savage, Mike Sexton, Shaun Deeb, Cary Katz, Jason Mercier, Liv Boeree, Kristen Foxen, and many others. Although it might be heading to the dustbin of history, we can still recall the excellence that the Global Poker Awards looked to honor and remember these players in perpetuity.
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