King of Conte 2026 to feature first-ever repechage round

The 19th annual King of Conte 2026 comedy competition will feature a historic first: a repechage round to determine the final contestant. Out of 3,445 entries, 10 groups have been selected to compete in this special round to secure a spot in the finals.

The ten groups participating in the repechage are Edogawa Junk Junk, Off Rose, cacao, Kissa Moon, Shizuru, Shoga Neko, Spicy Garlic, Soitsu Doitsu, Nelsons, and Hakai Arigato. The selection process involves a two-step judging system. First, 60 comedians who reached the semi-finals or quarter-finals of this year's tournament will score the performances to select the top three groups. Subsequently, the final winner will be decided via a public vote from viewers using TBS ID.

The live broadcast for both the repechage and the finals is scheduled for October 17 on TBS. The program will be hosted by Ryuichi Hamaya of Kamaitachi, the 2017 champion, and the comedy duo Chocolate Planet, who were runners-up in 2014.