Praise Steven Nyamwasa Secures Rwanda’s Top Seed for Continental Esports Cup

The New Times reports that Praise Steven Nyamwasa closed a 4-2 final win over Sami Muhamedssin Mohamednour Atta to claim Rwanda's top seat at September's SportsBiz Africa Esports Cup, securing a continental stage he previously had to walk alone. Sunday's national EA SPORTS FC 26 championship at BK Arena delivered Nyamwasa the Rwf1 million first prize and the captaincy of a four-player Rwandan delegation now bound for Kigali from September 12-13.

A bracket that finished wider than expected

The national tournament pulled 20 entrants through a knockout funnel — eight quarterfinalists, then four semifinalists — and the rule that mattered most was the one written after the cut: every semifinalist, not only the champion, secured a continental ticket. That pushed Atta, Tresor Irasubiza, and Franklin Gacinya into the Rwanda delegation alongside Nyamwasa, splitting the rest of the prize purse between them — Rwf500,000 for Atta, Rwf300,000 for Irasubiza, Rwf200,000 for Gacinya.

It is the depth, not the final alone, that reshapes Rwanda's competitive math at the continental stage. The second SportsBiz Africa Esports Cup is set to field 32 players from Rwanda, Kenya, South Africa, Madagascar, Nigeria, Côte d'Ivoire, Egypt and Morocco, with a US$10,000 prize pool across the bracket. Nyamwasa, who finished fourth at last year's event as Rwanda's lone entrant, frames the upgrade directly: "Last time I went alone, now I'm going with four companions, and I believe they're going to do better."

Stakes and the grind behind them

Gacinya already has a preparation lane sketched out. He plans to work through regular online and offline practice, including training sessions with friends at an esports gaming room at his school. For the wider delegation, the continental visit lands as both a bracket test and a quiet audit of Rwanda's competitive cadence. Nyamwasa noted that he has competed in only three tournaments over the past year — a fraction of the monthly schedule he describes in neighboring scenes — and laid the diagnosis plainly: "We need investments, we need people to trust in the talents that we have."

SportsBiz Africa project lead Bridget Mutoni pointed beyond the trophy itself, naming event organization, commentary, refereeing, game development, and education as the wider industry African gamers are increasingly being pulled into. The continental field in Kigali will not simply test Rwanda's newest four-man squad; it will measure how far the country's pipeline is being asked to stretch between now and the opening rounds on September 12.

Nyamwasa is keeping the verbal line measured: "I'm not going to promise a specific position, but I'm going to give my best, give my all to present Rwanda in the best way possible."