All-in on Taiwan: CTP Club Leads Global Poker Venue Rankings

Within less than one decade, CTP Club (Chinese Texas Hold’em Poker Club) has become one of the fastest-growing venues for live poker in the Asia-Pacific region. The numbers speak for themselves: according to the Global Poker Index (GPI), CTP Asia Poker Arena leads the list of top venues by number of events in the past year with 3,204, well ahead of the nearest competitor and beating nine other US-based venues.

CTP is also the top poker room by number of players with 302,505 recorded, ahead of Bally’s Casino Las Vegas (292,751). Europe’s largest poker room, King’s Casino in Rozvadov, is in third place with 149,093 – half of what Taiwan’s premier venue attracted in 2024.

CTP’s role in getting poker recognized as mind sport

“CTP Club has always aimed to create an inclusive and professional environment for live poker players, making it the leading hub for competitive poker in Taiwan and across Asia,”

CTP’s Head of International Relations, Raymond Wong, told SoMuchPoker.

While most forms of gambling are still illegal in Taiwan, the Chinese Texas Hold’em Poker Association has put in a lot of effort in cooperation with local authorities to establish poker as a mind sport.

Since its founding in 2015, the association, also known as CTP Club, has opened several branches in Taiwan, and in 2019, they started to submit tournament results to the GPI.

“CTP views Texas Hold’em as a new type of mind sport and has actively worked to get it acknowledged as such. In fact, CTP’s success in obtaining legal recognition for poker in Taiwan has paved the way for significant expansion in recent years. We aim to leverage this success to promote poker in other Asian countries and attract more international tournament brands to host events in Taiwan,”

Wong added.

Taiwan’s top poker venue: Asia Poker Arena

CTP’s largest branch received a massive boost in May 2023, when the Asia Poker Arena (APA) opened in Taipei City. Currently considered Asia’s largest permanent poker room, the relatively new venue has already seen some of Taiwan’s largest and most prestigious poker festivals. CTP Club became a household name on the island and throughout the Asian poker community.

“We believe CTP has played a pivotal role by hosting high-quality tournaments, providing exceptional facilities, and building a strong player community that supports both amateur and professional growth. Our continuous efforts to collaborate with international brands and host large-scale events have significantly elevated Taiwan’s status as a live poker destination in Asia.”

Wong explained, sharing his team’s broader vision too.

“Our ultimate vision is for Taiwan to become a major hub for poker tournaments in Asia, drawing participants from all over the world. Additionally, under the World Poker Federation (WPF), we have recently established the Asian Poker Sports Association (APSA). The key goal of APSA is to unite poker organizations across Asia and contribute to the legal and organized promotion of poker throughout the region.”

Wong said.

With a spacious area of 540 square meters, the Asia Poker Arena no doubt has the facilities for holding major tournaments.

Its 65 tables have been already put to the test during big live festivals, hosted by international brands like the World Poker Tour (WPT), Asian Poker Tour (APT), U Series of Poker (USOP) and Hong Kong Poker Players’ Association (HKPPA).

Remarkably, it was their own festival, the Taiwan Millions Tournament (TMT) that attracted the most players: in July 2024, the 16th edition of the low-stakes marquee event drew a staggering 6,953 entries and generated a prize pool of NT$ 44,968,700 (~USD 1,371,796).

Major international brands will without a doubt continue to visit Taiwan, with upcoming stops of the APT in April 2025 and WPT in August 2025 already in the books.