The 2026 World Latte Art Championship (WLAC) was the annual world-championship event for competitive latte art, held on April 10–12, 2026, at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California, USA. The competition took place on the show floor of World of Coffee San Diego and marked the first time the WLAC had been held in the United States.
Organizer
The event was organized by World Coffee Championships (WCC), the competition arm of the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA).
Format and Field
Thirty-three baristas, each representing a national or regional “Competition Body,” took part. Competitors advanced through preliminary and semifinal rounds before six finalists competed on Sunday, April 12.
In the final round, each finalist produced six drinks — two matching pairs of free-pour lattes and two matching designer-pattern lattes — within a ten-minute limit, judged by certified WCC judges on symmetry, pour quality, texture, contrast, and overall presentation.
A separate public-vote “Art Bar” competition ran alongside the main stage.
Results
- Champion: Bala (Lin Shao-hsing / Shao Sing Lin), representing Taiwan — his third appearance in the WLAC, after becoming third in 2022 and 2023. His winning free-pour designs included a raccoon, a giraffe, and a red panda.
- Runner-up: Jacky Chang, representing Malaysia
- Third place: Zking (Zhang Yuanyi), representing China
- Fourth through sixth place went to Bank Sarawut (Thailand), Jay Kim (South Korea), and Tatsuya Ishibashi (Japan). Marco Monzon competed as the U.S. representative.
- Art Bar / People’s Choice winner: Eduardo Olímpio, representing Brazil, who received a trip to World of Coffee Panama in October 2026.
Roughly two weeks after the event, WCC began referring to Bala and other Taiwanese competitors as representing the “Competition Body of Chinese Taipei” rather than “Taiwan,” a change that drew criticism from parts of Taiwan’s coffee community, some of whom linked it to the involvement of a China-based championship sponsor.
Prizes and Sponsors
Stage finalists received silver and copper trophies, with the champion awarded a gold trophy and merchandise from the convention center; no cash prize was publicly disclosed. Thermoplan AG supplied the Qualified Espresso Machine (Black&White4 Competizione), while California Dairies Inc. and the California Milk Advisory Board were the milk sponsors. Official numerical scores were not publicly released.
See Also
- 2026 World Brewers Cup
- 2026 World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship
- 2026 World Coffee Roasting Championship
- 2026 Cezve/Ibrik Championship
- 2026 World Cup Tasters Championship (WCTC)
References
- World Coffee Championships — wcc.coffee/san-diego-world-coffee-championships
- World Coffee Championships — wcc.coffee/latest-news/2026-world-latte-art-champion
- Sprudge — “Bala Of Taiwan Is The 2026 World Latte Art Champion” (April 13, 2026)
- Comunicaffe International (April 13, 2026)
- TaiwanPlus (April 14, 2026)
- Radio Taiwan International (April 20, 2026)
- KPBS Public Media (May 4, 2026)
- Taipei Times (May 3, 2026)
- UCC APAC — ucc-apac.com.tw (April 14, 2026)