How NexArena works

Head-to-head money matches and prize tournaments in the games you already play. You post a match with a stake, someone accepts, you play it, and the pot pays out on the result you both report.

Email, password, and your date of birth. That is the whole thing — no ID, no card, no deposit to look around.

Before you finish, we check which state you are in. Entry-fee play is not legal everywhere, so we have to know before any money is involved. You can skip that step and still create the account, play free matches and browse the site; we ask again before your first paid match.

If the location check fails, the usual cause is not a blocked permission — it is Wi-Fi being switched off. Computers and phones work out where they are largely by scanning nearby networks, so with Wi-Fi off there is nothing to go on, even on a wired connection or mobile data. Turn Wi-Fi on, reload, and try again. You do not need to connect to anything.

No. Making an account is free. You only pay when you enter a match or a tournament.

7.5% of the pot, shown before you enter — so a $10 versus $10 match pays $18.50 to the winner. Nex Pass members pay 5%.

Both stakes are held in escrow from the moment you join. Nobody can withdraw a stake that is sitting in a live match. When the result is agreed, the pot pays out instantly.

Nobody, until it is accepted. Open lobbies hide the host so players cannot shop the list for opponents they know they beat. The skill tier is still shown, because that is what you actually need to judge whether a match is fair.

A direct challenge is the exception — if you challenge someone by name, only they can accept, and they can see it is from you.

Both squads party up into one lobby and drop together. A 2v2 is four players in a Quads squad; a 1v1 is two. At the end, each side’s combined kills are compared and the most kills takes the pot.

The one time fill matters is a 1v1 played in Quads — two players in a four-slot squad, so No Fill has to be on or randoms drop into the spare slots.

You invite them. A side is built by its captain, not filled by whoever clicks first — the other party accepted against a specific squad.

Three things at once. A host is drawn, a 10-minute clock starts, and both sides have to check in before it runs out. The match page shows the countdown, who is hosting, their gamer tag and who has checked in so far.

A coin flip decides, not whoever posted the match. In a private lobby the host has a connection advantage, and handing that to the poster every time would be an edge they never paid for.

The flip is committed before it runs — the hash is published the second the match fills — and the seed is released with the result, so either player can replay it and confirm it was not steered. You can see the commitment on the match page.

Anyone who has not checked in within 10 minutes of the match filling forfeits. The pot goes to the side that showed up. This applies to everyone equally, host included — the clock does not care who won the draw.

A side counts as present only when every player on it has checked in. In a 2v2 you cannot cover for an absent partner: the other squad accepted a match against two people, not one.

If neither side checks in, there is nobody to pay, so the match is voided and every stake is returned. Both no-shows are still recorded.

Check in anyway — that is what protects you. Checking in is the record that you were there and ready. If the host never gets the lobby up and the clock runs out, they are the ones who did not show and the pot is yours.

The lobby code is posted into the match chat with a timestamp, so “they never invited me” is a question with an answer rather than one person’s word against another’s.

Because your opponent has to find you in the game. Without it two people can agree stakes, both pay in, and then be stuck — money locked in escrow with no way to play. So a tag for the platform is checked at the same point as your location and streaming obligation, before any money moves.

Your tag is only shown to people you are actually matched with, never on open lobbies.

PC and crossplay lobbies: yes. You must be live on your linked Twitch or Kick channel for the whole match, and keep the VOD available afterwards.

Console-only: no, but it is strongly encouraged. A VOD beats a screenshot in every dispute, and the side without one usually loses.

Staff can require any player to stream, on any platform, after a cheating report or a run of suspicious disputes.

If a result is disputed and you cannot produce a VOD covering the match, it is ruled a forfeit against you — regardless of what the scoreboard showed.

Do not delete the VOD or set it to subscribers-only until the match has settled and any dispute is closed.

Only the one linked to your NexArena account, and a channel can be linked to one account. Streaming somewhere else does not satisfy the rule.

Both sides report. If you agree, the pot pays out immediately. If you disagree, the pot freezes and staff rule on the evidence — nobody is paid until then.

Full gameplay showing both sides’ gamertags. A cropped scoreboard, a partial screenshot or a photo of a screen is not enough. Video beats a screenshot, and a VOD beats everything.

Submitting altered or fabricated proof is a permanent ban.

Award the match to either side, or void it and refund every stake. Rulings are final. Where staff find deliberate fraud, the account is banned.

Brackets — single elimination, prize pool announced up front.

Switcharoo — everyone enters solo, teams are drawn live on stream, and entrants can pay into the pot to force a respin until the teams lock. Minimum 8 teams, no entrant cap.

Customs — a full private lobby, several games, ranked on points, with match point at 120. Coming soon.

If it has not reached its minimum by start time, it cancels and every entry fee is refunded automatically. You are never left with money in a match that did not happen.

No. Your roster is frozen the moment you enter, and the entry records the players themselves rather than your team, so editing your team afterwards does not change who is entered. A player also has to have been on your team for 24 hours before you can enter them on it, which is what stops a squad picking up a ringer the hour before a bracket.

Once registration closes nothing about a roster changes — a team that loses a player plays short or forfeits. This applies to everyone equally. There is no membership perk, package or staff favour that waives it, because every other team paid their entry against the roster they could see.

Teams have to come out even, so if the headcount does not fill complete teams, the last entrants wait. One more entry and you are drawn in on the next spin — and you can pay into the respin pot yourself to keep the wheel turning. If the teams lock without you, your entry fee comes straight back.

Five tiers, per game, from your rating. New players are provisional for their first five matches while the rating settles.

• Burger 0–1149
• Beginner 1150–1349
• Amateur 1350–1549
• Marksman 1550–1799
• Pro 1800+

Yes, but only if you choose to. A gap of two tiers or more on a paid match needs the weaker player to accept it — consent from the stronger player is worthless, since they are not the one exposed. Free matches ignore the rule entirely.

Two balances. Available is spendable and withdrawable. Escrow is locked into live matches and cannot be withdrawn until they settle — it has not gone anywhere.

$9.99 a month for free entry to Nex Pass events, a 5% rake instead of 7.5%, and priority in the dispute queue.

Requested from your wallet and reviewed before payout. Identity verification is required above published thresholds, and winnings above the annual reporting threshold require a W-9 on file before a payout can go out.

Entry-fee play is not legal everywhere, so we check your location before you stake anything. Free matches and withdrawals never require it. If paid play is unavailable where you are, you can still play free matches and withdraw any balance you hold.

18, or older where your location requires it. We ask for your date of birth at signup, before you can fund a wallet.

Set deposit and wager limits, or self-exclude, from your profile. Lowering a limit applies immediately; raising one takes 24 hours. Self-exclusion cannot be lifted early — that is what makes it work. See Responsible Play.