Celine Dion’s Son Chasing WSOP’s $10 Million First-Place Prize

Posted on: July 11, 2025, 10:10h. 

Last updated on: July 11, 2025, 10:38h.

  • Rene-Charles Angelil has gotten through Day 5 of the World Series of Poker $10K Main Event 
  • Angelil’s late father was an avid poker player
  • Celine Dion isn’t a big fan of poker, son says, but might attend final table if he makes it there

For Canadian Celine Dion’s 24-year-old son René-Charles Angelil, “My Heart Will Go On” applies more to the poker tables of Las Vegas, it seems.

Celine Dion, pictured above. Her 24-year-old son René-Charles Angelil is in contention for the $10 million top prize at the WSOP Main Event in Las Vegas. (Image; Shutterstock)

Angelil is playing in the 2025 World Series of Poker (WSOP) $10K Main Event going on currently at the Horseshoe Las Vegas Hotel and Casino and the Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino.

The 100-bracelet series schedule began May 27 with the $1,000 Mystery Millions, and ends July 16 with the WSOP Main Event final table.

Angelil is no fly-by-nighter. His father, René Angelil, was an avid poker player. According to Poker News, the elder Angelil would play high-stakes poker cash games at Bobby’s Room at the Bellagio while his wife was performing at Caesars Palace.

Father’s Poker Legacy

Rene Angelil died in 2016, but his son is carrying on his legacy in the poker rooms on the Strip and is currently in contention to win the $10 million first-place prize in the $10K buy-in tournament. 

As of Thursday’s Day 5 session, there were 371 players remaining of the 9,735 entries in this year’s tournament — third largest in WSOP Main Event history.

GGPoker’s parent company, NSUS Group Inc., bought WSOP from Caesars Entertainment Inc. in August 2024 for US$500 million. As part of that deal, Caesars secured the rights to continue hosting the WSOP’s flagship live tournament series at its Las Vegas casinos for the next 20 years.

Day 6 Starts at Noon on Friday

“Under the new leadership, NSUS intends to expand WSOP worldwide, positioning it at the forefront of poker’s growth,” said NSUS CEO Michael Kim at the time the deal was announced.

This is Angelil’s third WSOP Main Event. He told Poker News his famous mom isn’t a big fan of poker, but expects she’ll be in attendance if he makes the final table and is playing for the $10 million top prize.

Germany’s Sebastian Schulze had the tournament’s top chip count after Day 5 – 12,745,000. Angelil has 3,165,000.

Total Prize Pool Over $90 Million

The total prize pool for the 2025 WSOP Main Event is $90,535,500.

It’s been another historic summer at the WSOP with total participation on record pace,” said WSOP CEO  Ty Stewart. “Customers have really responded to the WSOP’s move to The Strip and I think this number shows we remain a strong summer headliner.”

Jonathan Tamayo from the US captured the $10 million top prize in last year’s WSOP Main Event.

Play gets going today at noon local time.