Legendary Tekken player Arslan “Arslan Ash” Siddique has confirmed he will be missing two of the biggest Tekken 8 events of the year due to issues with his visa.
The 29-year-old is considered by many as the greatest Tekken player of all time after becoming the game series’ only triple crown champion back in 2023 when he won EVO, EVO Japan, and the Tekken World Tour Finals all in the same year.
However, he will be missing at least one of those events this year as he announced he will miss the Tekken 8 events for both Riyadh Clash and the record-breaking EVO Japan 2025.
The Pakistani took to his social media to explain that he was once again being held back by visa issues:
“I will not be able to attend Riyadh Clash and Evo JP this year. I made every effort to go, but unfortunately, I encountered visa problems again. It’s fine, I’ve learned to live with passport limitations; maybe one day, things will change.”
It’s not the first time Arslan Ash has had issues getting to events. At the start of his career, Arslan Ash infamously lost his passport with his visa in it a week before attending EVO Japan 2019 but managed to get an emergency one just before the event. It took him five flights over two days to arrive in Japan on the day the tournament started. And despite all that stress and extreme jet lag, he still won the event as a massive underdog.
Previously in 2023, Arslan Ash was able to attend EVO Japan thanks to a sponsorship from Global Sense and upon seeing his recent announcement, the company’s president Takayuki Kudo apoligised to the Tekken pro: “It is my regret that I should have made a move to ensure that you would come to EvoJapan, which would have increased your chances of obtaining an entertainment visa. I am sorry…”
But Arslan Ash refused to stay downbeat, responding: “Thank you Kudo San. It was not our fault. InshaAllah, we will succeed next year.”
In my seven years of esports writing, I’ve introuduced esports coverage to newspapers, interviewed some of the biggest names in the industry, and driven viewers mad with the puns in my YouTube scripts. I’m most proud of the latter.
