Olympic medalist Miles Chamley-Watson brought his long held vision for the future of fencing to life this past weekend as the inaugural World Fencing League made its global debut at the Shrine Auditorium, where Team Shield claimed victory in the league’s first ever competition.
Founded by Chamley-Watson, the new league launched with a high intensity, team based format featuring 12 of the sport’s top athletes competing in mixed gender, mixed weapon matchups for a $100,000 prize pool, as Team Blade faced Team Shield across six bouts in foil, épée and sabre.
For Chamley-Watson, the debut marked the realization of an idea years in the making.
“It’s really surreal — like how to make fencing mainstream was kind of my vision, but to see this now is kind of crazy. It’s an honor,” he said.
Lewis Hamilton looks on during the inaugural World Fencing League at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on April 25, 2026.
Photo credit: projectsby.paul
The event opened with a red carpet arrival featuring athletes and VIP guests including Lewis Hamilton, Jay Shetty, Swizz Beatz, Ashley Greene, along with Nike executives, underscoring the league’s ambition to position fencing at the intersection of sport, culture and entertainment.
That crossover has long been part of Chamley-Watson’s identity. Known for bringing fashion into a sport often defined by tradition, he said he has never felt confined by expectations. “People like to put me in these boxes and I’m like no, I’m going to do what I want to do,” he said.
That same mindset shaped the WFL, which introduced proprietary blade tracking technology and AI-powered officiating designed to translate the speed and intricacy of fencing into real-time, “Star Wars-style” visuals for fans inside the arena and viewers watching globally.
Team Blade vs Team Shield at the inaugural World Fencing League at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on April 25, 2026.
Photo credit: projectsby.paul
The league’s debut also sought to spotlight what Chamley-Watson says is often misunderstood about the sport itself. “It’s so intricate and so hard,” he said. “I think that level of difficulty is the most misunderstood.”
The competition featured some of fencing’s biggest names, including Chamley-Watson against Ryan Choi in men’s foil, Lee Kiefer versus Arianna Errigo in women’s foil, Koki Kano against Gergely Siklósi in men’s épée, Eszter Muhari against Alexandra Ndolo in women’s épée, Oh Sang-uk versus Jean-Philippe Patrice in men’s sabre, and Michela Battiston facing Maia Chamberlain in women’s sabre.
Team Shield emerged victorious at the close of the six-match competition, securing the first win in league history and capping the debut with a statement result for the new format.
Team Shield takes the victory at the inaugural World Fencing League at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on April 25, 2026.
Photo credit: projectsby.paul
While the matchups delivered Olympic-caliber competition, the larger focus remained on introducing fencing to broader audiences in a more accessible, spectator-friendly way.
Streaming partner DAZN carried the event live with free global coverage, while the WFL said its international media network spans more than 150 countries across six continents — a sign of the league’s ambitions beyond its Los Angeles launch.
Following the competition, captains, winning fencers and WFL CEO Zhen Ren Teo addressed media at a post event press conference, where discussion centered not only on the outcome, but on the league’s potential to reshape the sport. By merging elite athleticism with showmanship, innovation and personality, the World Fencing League made its first case that fencing can reach beyond its traditional audience.
