MagicCon Las Vegas 2026 officially kicked off on May 1st, with the main theme being the recently released Secrets of Strixhaven.
To celebrate, Wizards of the Coast did the usual thing - deck out a prime area of the convention floor, add in some games and prizes, and make it seem like you are in the school for a bit. There was also a sort of sorting system to see which school you can belong to: Silverquill, Prismari, Witherbloom, Lorehold, and Quandrix.
The expansion and theme proved to be a popular one, with much merch (some being school-themed like pennants) already being sold out on Friday, and the convention actually having to somewhat expand the free play area after so many requests for tables. Helping out the fact was that, yet again, Wizards hired actors to go around as characters from the expansion, meshing well withe whited out Strixhaven area.
Also new was an expansion of the arcade. While old favorites returned, like D&D pinball machines and Aetherdrift slot car racing, there was the notable addition of Magic: the Gathering mini-golf. And each hole was a separate plane of popular planes of the past. There was the neon lit Kamigawa hole, an otter-infused Bloomburrow hole, the coffin as a ball ramp Innistrad hole, and more.
Other planes also got decent representation.
Most notably, the family magic area, which included the MagicKids charity booth, was Bloomburrow themed once again (along with yet another challenging puzzle). The upcoming Marvel Super Heroes set got a small area. Even Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles got a small touch. However, many fans bemoaned the loss of the rideable Ixalan velociraptor, which had been a staple of many conventions past. Later, many employees had to point it WAS there, but was in an area where many fans couldn't see it as it was between halls at the convention center rather than in one of them.
And these were just the basic fan experiences. Artist's Row, the cosplay contest, aisles of vendors, on-site card grading, and more all returned. As did the panels, which showed off the upcoming The Hobbit and Reality Fracture sets.
However, the big question this year, of attendance, hasn't been solidified just yet.
There were many last minute badge purchases, with 90% being sold heading into the last week. But, preliminarily, this looks like the most attended MagicCon yet. Despite a shaky economy and other issues, many seemed to have shown up. Final numbers will be out soon, but the high attendence, as well as the revamped Las Vegas Conventio Center, seemed to have solidified Vegas as a lock for the yearly west coast show.
Up next for MagicCons is the Amsterdam convention in July, where Reality Fracture is expected to be put on display in full force along with announcements of what some 2027 expansion may be. Atlanta follows this autumn.
