The 2026 World Series of Poker has begun in Las Vegas, but no broadcast of the tournament action has hit the air yet. The first event to be broadcast will be on Friday, when the WSOP will air the play from the $10,000 No Limit Hold’em Heads-Up World Championship on YouTube. When that action kicks off on Friday, these are the people who will be commenting on it, and they are an all-star cast with years of experience broadcasting poker content.
McEachern and Chad Helm the Staff
It would not be the WSOP without the legendary broadcasting team leading the way. Play-by-play man Lon McEachern and color commentator Norman Chad will once again be back for the broadcast of the $10,000 WSOP Championship Event (the “Main Event”) later this summer. The duo has been a team for the Main Event broadcasts on ESPN (and other outlets) since at least the early Aughts. McEachern’s authoritative delivery and Chad’s levity have consistently provided the WSOP with just the right mix of seriousness and comedy that the event needs.
When McEachern and Chad are taking a break, other teams will step to the mics to pick up the baton.
Considered one of the best of the “new breed” broadcasters are Ali Nejad and Nick Schulman. Nejad has covered a variety of events over the past two decades, including the National Heads-Up Poker Championships and Poker After Dark. Schulman is a seven-time WSOP bracelet winner who is one of the best non-Texas Hold’em players in the world (five of his seven bracelets are in non-Texas Hold’em tournaments) and, together with Nejad, has been able to meld into one of the best commentator teams in the poker world.
A new combo for viewers will augment these two teams. Maria Ho and David Williams are both accomplished players, but they have also honed their skills on the broadcast desk. Ho is a Women in Poker Hall of Famer with over $5 million in career earnings. Williams is best known as the runner-up to Greg Raymer in the 2004 WSOP Main Event, but he has since won a WSOP bracelet and earned over $9 million in career earnings.
Floor Team Brings Excellent Credentials
When it comes to the men on the floor at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas, you could not ask for a better – or more unique – combo than the two men tapped for Team WSOP.
The newcomer to the mix is commentator Joe Stapleton. Known for his work with the PokerStars Live broadcasts of the European Poker Tour, Stapleton brought a mixture of gravitas and merriment to those shows. Also a renowned stand-up comedian, Stapleton is expected to bring those services and his excellent poker knowledge to floor interviews during the WSOP.
Although he has previously appeared on WSOP broadcasts, this will be the first year Jeff Platt officially joins Team WSOP. Platt has a lengthy background in poker on both sides of the camera, winning a WSOP Circuit ring in the past (and over $800,000 in career earnings). Platt is better known for the “Jeff Platt Curse,” in which players he ominously interviews are eliminated from whichever tournament they are in (think of him as poker’s Danhausen).
The 2026 World Series of Poker is set to be aired on YouTube through the WSOP’s dedicated channel and on ESPN. Around 100 hours of coverage from Las Vegas will air this summer, and these are the people (along with the excellent production staff and personnel) who will bring the game to fans. Action will kick off on Friday as the 2026 WSOP heads into its first weekend of action.
