Agnese Barca has won the biggest women’s poker tournament ever held in Estonia, taking down the 2026 Queens of Tallinn Main Event for €11,650.
The Latvian entered Sunday’s nine-player final table as chip leader and completed the job at Olympic Park Casino, defeating Germany’s Annika Abmayr heads-up after a lengthy final-day battle.
Barca’s victory came at the end of a record-breaking edition of Queens of Tallinn. The €555 Main Event attracted 108 entries and generated a €50,220 prize pool, setting a new benchmark for the women’s festival.
The result comes at a time when women are becoming increasingly visible across poker, both at major tournament series and in parts of the industry traditionally dominated by men.
It was also a strong week throughout for Barca. Before winning the Main Event, she had already finished third in the festival’s opening €80 NLH event.
Barca Converts Chip Lead Into Queens of Tallinn Title
Barca began the final table with 658,000 chips, ahead of Finland’s Outi Reinilä on 559,000 and Swedish Poker Hall of Fame member Noelia Ivars Rico with 466,000.
There were plenty of recognizable names still standing.
Former Queens of Tallinn champion Saara Benlamine reached the final nine, while defending champion Giedre Valgemäe was attempting to win the Main Event in consecutive years.
Valgemäe’s title defense ended in eighth for €1,860, while Ivars Rico finished sixth for €2,870.
That left Barca, Abmayr and Lithuania’s Indre Martoviciute-Kasten fighting for the title.
The three-handed battle lasted more than four and a half hours before the remaining players agreed a deal. The payouts were redistributed relatively evenly, with €2,900 and the championship necklace left to play for.
Martoviciute-Kasten eventually departed in third, although the deal meant her €8,855 payout was actually higher than the €8,465 collected by runner-up Abmayr.
Barca then overcame Abmayr heads-up to secure the title and €11,650.
Heartbreak Again for Annika Abmayr
Abmayr’s runner-up finish came with a remarkable sense of déjà vu.
The German had also finished second in the 2025 Queens of Tallinn Main Event, meaning she has now come within one opponent of winning the tournament in consecutive years.
This time she had started the final table with only 122,000 chips, around ten big blinds, before surviving all the way to heads-up.
Abmayr remained the shorter stack when play became two-handed but threatened to complete the comeback before Barca finally closed out the tournament.
For Barca, it completed a final table she had led from the outset.
Record Field Continues Growth of Women’s Poker
The numbers behind the tournament may prove just as significant as the result.
Queens of Tallinn is still a relatively young festival, but the 2026 Main Event’s 108 entries produced a €50,220 prize pool, making it the largest women’s poker tournament staged in Estonia.
The €555 buy-in was higher than previous editions, but that did not prevent the tournament from establishing a new record.
Thirteen players made the money, with the final table featuring players from Latvia, Germany, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, Estonia and France.
The wider four-day festival also featured a schedule of side events and attracted players from across Europe.
Women’s poker has developed well beyond dedicated tournament festivals too. Players continue to combine the game with careers and family life, including women who have found ways to keep competing through pregnancy, breastfeeding and motherhood.
High-profile players have also helped maintain that visibility. Jennifer Tilly’s poker career has now spanned more than two decades and includes a WSOP Ladies Championship bracelet and induction into the Women in Poker Hall of Fame.
Barca now joins the Queens of Tallinn Main Event roll of honor after turning her final-table chip lead into the biggest victory of the festival.
And with a record field and prize pool behind her, the Latvian has also become champion of the biggest women’s poker tournament Estonia has yet hosted.
