World Cosplay Summit

General information

The World Cosplay Summit was founded in 2003 by the Japanese TV station TV Aichi to promote cosplay outside of Japan. The WCS was intended to gather cosplayers from all over the world in Nagoya with the support of the government’s “Cool Japan” initiative.
Today, the WCS is an international cosplay championship with participants from 42 countries around the world. Participants must first qualify in one or more preliminary rounds in their countries.

Austria has been in the preliminary since 2018 and thus also in the final since 2019. The Austrian preliminary will take place at AniNite. The winning team of the preliminary round will travel to Nagoya (Japan) the following year to compete in the final in front of tens of thousands of fans. An experienced jury, supported by mangakas (e.g. Hiro Mashima), well-known musicians (e.g. Ichiro Mizuki, May’n, Kenji Nojima) game producers (e.g. Yoko Taro) anime dubbing actors (e.g. Toru Furuya) selects the winners in various categories as well as a WCS Grand Champion.

However, the WCS Finals competition is only one component of the multi-day event. Cosplayers experience nearly two weeks of parades, stage performances, press events, and official visits to Nagoya state and city officials.

More information on the topic on the Wikipedia page of the World Cosplay Summit

IMPORTANT

The WCS final will take place in Nagoya/Japan in November 2027. It is essential that you can also take part there!

Registration

Click here to register.

Registration deadline: 01.08.2026, 23:59 hrs

Conditions of participation

Participation is only possible in teams of 2.
You must be present on the day of the competition.
If you are unable to attend the award ceremony, please report to the information stand and leave your contact details.
Prizes willNEVERbe forwarded abroad!
By registering, you give us permission to stream the performance live and use the videos.
Shorts or “safety pants” must be worn under skirts or dresses.
Obviously violent or pornographic images will be disqualified.
Last minute registrations on site areNOTpossible.
Violations of the competition rules can lead to exclusion from the competition!

Set of rules

Please read the stage rules and regulations before registering.

Basic rules:

Participation is only possible in teams of 2 persons. One person cannot participate in two different teams. Subsequent changes to the cast, performance or costumes are not possible.
Cosplayers need a proof of citizenship or a certificate of permanent residence (in Austria). Otherwise a permanent proof of residence for Austria is required.
Cosplayers must be at least 18 years of age or older when traveling to Japan for the World Cosplay Summit. The final will take place in Nagoya/Japan in November 2026. It is essential that you can participate there!
The time limit for the performance is 2 minutes 30 seconds. All participants must have a valid AniNite ticket for the day of the competition. We cannot provide or reserve tickets.
All teams must be present in cosplay at the award ceremony. No team member may have been an Austrian representative at the WCS final in the previous year.

Registration:

To take part in the preliminary round, the team must complete the registration form for the 2026 WCS preliminary round during the registration period.

Team information:

Team name
Characters depicted + source
Brief description of the performance
3 photos in cosplay for the WCS team for use on social media & press: one photo together (collage also possible) and individual photos of each participant.

Personal details of each team member:

Name
Cosplay name/Alias
Birthday
Email address
Proof of Austrian citizenship or permanent residence permit
Social media account
Confirmation that each team member has read the rules of the preliminary round

Cosplay:

Both members of the team must wear costumes from the same Japanese manga, anime, video game or live action movie.
Characters from dojinshis or anthologies of a manga/anime/video game are not allowed. Costumes from non-Japanese sources, even if the source was filmed in Japan, are not allowed. (Example: Costumes from the anime Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, Genshin Impact and Disney characters etc. are not allowed).
The costumes must be made by the cosplayers themselves. Minor accessories or parts needed for the performance, as well as wigs, shoes, etc. may be purchased.
The use of technology that requires data input, such as embroidery machines, fabric printing, laser cutters and 3D printing, is permitted provided team members were involved in some way in the production of the final piece.

3D Printing: Aspects such as the modeling data, balance with the costume, finishing, or attachment to the cosplay are to be judged along with the costume if they are part of the worn structure of a costume. Items that are hand props and are not attached to the performer’s body will be judged separately as hand props. The purchase of 3D digital models is allowed (like the purchase of commercial sewing patterns), provided the original creator of the model is credited by the team. Teams may use public facilities such as makerspaces for the use of 3D printers and do not need to own a 3D printer for the prints to be judged. Only the steps carried out by the teams will be assessed. These steps must be thoroughly documented to show which steps were necessary. Items that have fewer steps of their own or are of low quality in the final production will be scored lower than items that have several steps of their own and are of high quality in the final production. Examples of multiple steps include modeling/creating the 3D print, printing/scaling and manipulating the materials used for printing, finishing, including joining the seams of multiple printed parts into a new product.
The creation of a cosplay build book in .pdf or .ppx/.pptx format is required and must be submitted digitally. This should include photos or sketches showing the production process to help the team demonstrate the quality and accuracy of the cosplay and the techniques used. If you have any questions about your cosplay, please contact the WCS team via the contact form.

Props:

A maximum of 3 stage props are permitted during the performance. Each prop may not weigh more than 10 kg and should not exceed 210 cm in height, 210 cm in width and 90 cm in depth.
External energy sources for props are not permitted.
All costumes, wigs, stage props and hand props for both team members together are limited to a maximum total of 40 kilograms.

Music:

License-free music and sound clips must be used for the audio. The sound sources used must not infringe any copyrights.
Soundtracks from the source material are NOT permitted. Soundtracks containing the original voices are not permitted.
Speaking on stage is not possible, the audio must be delivered in advance.
The audio files must be submitted in MP3 format.
Revised audio files can be submitted until 05.08.2026, 23:00.

appearance:

The time limit for the performance is 2 minutes 30 seconds.
Only the participants are allowed on stage during the performance. Helpers are NOT allowed on stage.
Stagehands (employees) are available to set up any stage props. Set-up and dismantling should not take longer than 40 seconds each.
The audience or other persons may not be actively involved in the performance.
Throwing objects into the audience or towards the jury is prohibited.
The content of the performance must be described in 1-3 sentences and sent with the application.
The use of fire, explosions, water, sprays or other liquids, laser pointers, stroboscopes and scattering agents (powder, confetti, etc.) is prohibited.
Soiling, marking or damaging the props or outfits of other participants is prohibited and will result in exclusion. Negligence will also lead to exclusion.

Scoring rules:
The judges will award up to 200 points based on the following categories:

Outfit (100):
- Quality of the cosplay (40)
  - How well the individual elements are combined with each other, seat of the cosplay,
  - Cleanliness of the finish
  - Accuracy of the cosplay (40)
  - Faithfulness to the original source material used, selection of fabrics, color fidelity, attention to detail
- Technology (20)
  - Techniques used, cleanliness of execution, harmony of techniques, quality

Stage Performance (100):
- Performance (50)
  - Fidelity to the original performance, how the story is conveyed, use of props, and overall entertainment value
  - Acting/quality of performance (20)
    Expressiveness and quality of active elements such as dance. Acting performance, expressiveness of the participants in scenes with a simple plot, presentation of dialog, concealment of any mistakes Stage
- Presence (20)
  - First impression that the cosplays create when they appear on stage. Outfit changes and the use of gimmicks are also taken into account.
- X Factor (10)
  - Exceeding expectations, realizing ideas not previously used in applications, etc.]

The judges can seek support from the WCS Austria officials if they have any questions regarding the interpretation of rules. Neither the points nor the placings of the teams that have finished will be passed on to the teams or visitors. Only the winner and runner-up will be announced.

AniNite 2026 Media Rules

1. team name, cosplayer name/alias, submitted photos, etc., can be used for press releases and on the social media accounts of AniNite, WCS Austria and WCS Japan. If the real name is to be used, please note this in the registration form.
2. the teams are asked to work together in a committed, friendly and respectful manner and to approach the project with a positive attitude so that the success of the WCS can be ensured together.
3. the media (TV, Internet, newspapers, magazines, etc.) may publish pictures and impressions from the WCS preliminary round. No compensation payments are made.
4. the image rights to any media publication such as news programs or other selected media involved in the WCS, promotional activities in the print media, as well as events and performances, announcements of the WCS before the finals and during the stay in Japan are attributed to the Executive Committee of the WCS.
5. after the end of the WCS preliminary decision, pictures of the cosplayers, photos, broadcasts, homepages and DVDs etc. fall under the responsibility of the WCS committee. Compensation payments for images published by the media will not be made.

If you have any questions, please use our contact form