How to Turn €5 Into a Festival Package
Poker has a rhythm that for every player is different. You decide fully and solely yourself how that rhythm is going to go. You either play cash games, tournaments, or online live qualifiers, and then you have the degens who mix it all up. Online poker is about timing and opportunity, and here the Wednesday satellites come in handy!
Operators: Betfred, Betsafe, Betsson, Champion Poker, Coolbet, Guts, Inbet, Nordicbet, Paf, Redstar.
Poker doesn't have to be that it costs a lot. Because let's be honest here, if you decide to start playing full schedules, live or online, and you are not really coping well with a downswing for example, you might end up having expensive sessions. For many players, as stubborn as they can be, it's good to go back to the basics every now and then, and here are the Daily €5 Festival satellites coming in. Every day, at 20:00 CET, you have the chance on securing yourself a final ticket worth €50.
For the price of a coffee, there is a chance to start a path that could end with a full €1,600 Festival Series package. That alone is enough reason for sitting down for an evening or two, and to give it a swing.
The €5 Daily Satellite
The first step is the €5 satellite that runs every day at 20:00 CET. What we like most about this tournament is how easy it is to jump in. It only costs €5, and usually between two and five players win a ticket to the €50 Wednesday Final. Technically the guarantee is just one €50 ticket, but in practice there are almost always more.
Since the satellite runs every day, missing one evening really doesn’t matter. If you skip Monday, you can try again Tuesday. If you bust early on Thursday, there is another chance on Friday. That’s what makes this format fun. It never feels like one shot and it’s over. You can keep trying during the week and collect tickets for the Wednesday final.
Another thing we like is that the tickets don’t expire immediately. If you win one, you are not forced to play the final right away. You can choose when to use it. That gives a lot more freedom compared to normal satellites. And honestly, even though The Festival live events can become quite expensive in the end, despite the buy-ins being low compared to any other larger scale live event, it's exciting to sometimes try it out and turn a small buy-in into something much bigger.
The €50 Wednesday Final
Every Wednesday at 19:30 CET, everyone who qualified during the week meets in the €50 Festival Final. Again, tickets are valid for a longer period, so you can choose yourself if you want to jump into the next upcoming final, or the one after. But not to be mistaken: This is where things start to feel a bit more serious.
At least one €1,600 Festival Series package is guaranteed. But because so many players qualify through the daily satellites, the prize pool often grows bigger than expected. That means more than one package can end up being awarded. And if a second package isn't reached, cash prizes will be handed out instead.
The Wednesday finals have become iconic in a way. We've met many players who qualified through this final, and who are all absolutely proud to have one of such victories under their belt. Winning such package doesn't mean you will be saving on hotel accommodation and the Main Event, you also get the full experience with the hospitality events.
What's the best part of it all? When you win such package, you have the option to select your own preferred destination in 2026 with The Festival. The only thing you need to do is to reply within 7 days after having received the confirmation e-mail that you have won the package. We like this approach a lot, as it gives you as a player the final saying about where you would like to go.
The Possible Destinations
There are several stops during the Festival Series, and each one has its own vibe.
- Bratislava feels like a great mix of poker and atmosphere. The old town is beautiful, and everything is close together. It looks like the kind of place where you can play during the day and enjoy the city at night. However, the event is already behind us, as it ended on March 1st.
- Rozvadov is already famous in the poker world. Huge tournaments, big fields, and a serious poker environment. If you want to test yourself against strong players, this is the place.
- Malta is something completely different. Sunshine, sea views, and poker all in the same week. It’s hard to imagine a better setting for a tournament series.
- Tallinn has always had a special reputation among players. The city mixes old architecture with a modern feel, and the poker scene there has a lot of personality. We still think that Tallinn is hugely underrated in the European poker scene, but let's change that in 2026!
Why We Like This System
What makes this structure smart is how everything connects. The €5 satellite feeds into the €50 final. Because it runs every day, a lot of players qualify during the week. By Wednesday, the field is often bigger than expected. That means more chances for packages.
It also gives players time to plan. If someone wins a package early in the year, they can already start thinking about travel and which stop they want to attend. And let’s be honest here: The idea of winning multiple packages and playing several Festival stops in one year is pretty cool.
The satellites and the Wednesday final run across the iPoker partner network. That includes sites like Betsson, Betsafe, Nordicbet, Guts, Coolbet, Paf, Champion Poker, Betfred, Inbet, and RedStar Poker.
See you at the tables!
Wednesday Qualifier Schedule (CET)
| Tournament | Time | Buy-in | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wednesday Festival Final | 19:30 | €50 | €1,600 Festival package guaranteed (often exceeded) |
| Daily Satellite | 20:00 | €5 | Qualifies into the €50 Final |
| Wednesday Hyper Satellite | 18:00 | €3 | Qualifies into the €50 Final |
