A final in Brussels. Two millionaire trophies. A duel against a Belgian for a new title in London. Maria Lampropulos has made her mark on the world poker scene without following a predictable path: that of a player who has become one of the major figures of Argentine poker.
After Daniel Negreanu, our Poker Face column resumes its rotation with a champion whose journey brings together South America, Europe and the Bahamas, with a direct and repeated link to Belgian poker.
Maria Constanza Lampropulos. On the circuit she is simply called Maria, sometimes “Connie”. Her name is not that of a social‑media created star: it is the name of a player who has built her reputation by winning open tournaments, against the most varied fields.
Her career has had two pivotal years, 2017 and 2018. But for players who frequent the Belgian festivals, her story had already begun to be written in Brussels.
2016: Brussels, her first major Belgian imprint
In February 2016, at the Grand Casino Brussels – Viage, Maria Lampropulos reached the heads-up of the WPT National Brussels. The event attracted 457 entries and offered a prize pool of €487,619. In the final, the Argentine player was beaten by Frenchman Sébastien Ta, the eventual winner for €100,000.
Maria finished 2nd for €68,200, ahead of Dutchman Tobias Peters. Behind those figures already emerges the silhouette of a competitor capable of climbing to the top of an international tournament, far from the image of a player merely passing through the circuit.
This detail is of particular importance to Poker France Belgique: long before her millionaire victories, her name already appeared in the results of one of Belgium’s major poker events.
A singular final against Ivan Luca
Just a few days later, another final table in Rozvadov, this time in the Main Event of the Eureka Poker Tour. Among the 682 entries, Maria met the remaining title contenders… including Argentine player Ivan Luca, who was then her partner.
The scenario almost reads like a TV script: the two players met in a heads-up on 8 March 2016. After a financial agreement, they contested the title for about 90 minutes. Ivan Luca eventually prevailed; Maria collected €95,404 for second place.
Two finals, in two countries, in less than two weeks. The results were not yet millionaire‑level, but they signalled a very clear progression.
Some careers turn on a single trophy. Maria Lampropulos’s was first built on several successive finals.
Nottingham 2017: a million pounds and a change of dimension
In April 2017, the partypoker LIVE MILLIONS festival took place at the Dusk Till Dawn club in Nottingham. The Main Event with a £5,300 buy‑in exceeded its £6 million guarantee: 1,204 entries and an official prize pool of £6,017,395.
Amid this field, Maria Lampropulos gradually claimed her place among the title contenders. At the final table she sat alongside Stephen Chidwick and Katie Swift. Then came the decisive duel with Jacob Mulhern.
On the final hand, Maria put her chips in with a pair of Kings. Her opponent called with Ace‑King. The board did not turn the tables: the champion collected £1,000,000.
It is no longer a promising performance, it is a coronation. Maria becomes the first woman to win a Main Event partypoker MILLIONS, a result that gives her new international visibility.
In the comments and reactions of the day, a recurring element of her story also appears: the support of the women present at the festival. But the performance is first measured sportingly, in an open tournament where she dominated the competition.
Bahamas 2018: a second seven‑figure triumph
Poker rarely gives you time to settle into certainty. Less than nine months after Nottingham, Maria headed to the Bahamas for the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure. The Main Event with a $10,300 buy‑in attracted 582 entries and distributed over $5.6 million.
The final table looked impressive: future world champion Koray Aldemir, Spanish prodigy Adrián Mateos and Canadian Shawn Buchanan were among the opponents to beat. Maria pressed on, survived the shifts in dynamics, and then found herself in a duel with Buchanan.
The final confrontation gave her a 10‑7 suited clubs against a mismatched King‑5. The flop brought a ten for Maria and the board did not allow Buchanan to regain the advantage. At the end: $1,081,100 and the trophy.
She then became the first woman to win the Main Event of the PCA. This second seven‑figure win, achieved on another circuit and another continent, permanently places her name among the great live‑poker winners.
Maria Lampropulos at 888Live Barcelona 2018. Image: 888poker Spain / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY 3.0.Far from the cliché: the results speak for themselves
On a poker table, a prestigious title never guarantees the next tournament. What sets Maria’s trajectory apart is her ability to regularly find paid places and final tables after her two biggest victories.
She notably won a High Roller 888poker LIVE in Barcelona in 2018, then returned to win a tournament of the same category at the 2024 Barcelona festival. In the meantime she continues her run on European festivals and the World Series of Poker.
Beyond the earnings, a constant emerges: Maria does not limit herself to exclusively women’s events. Her biggest results have been achieved in open competitions, amidst hundreds or thousands of opponents.
London 2024: a new final against Belgium
In November 2024, the Women’s Winter Festival, held at the Hippodrome Casino in London, attracted 271 entries for its Main Event with a £400 buy‑in. With a prize pool of £100,000, the tournament marks an important date on the European women’s calendar.
Maria gradually works her way back into the race after starting the final day with only 14 big blinds. Her opponent in the final will be Ann‑Roos Callens, Belgian player, also the author of an excellent tournament.
The heads-up finishes on a final hand where Ann‑Roos bets King‑6 and Maria calls with Queen‑5. A Queen on the flop gives Lampropulos the advantage; neither the turn nor the river change the verdict.
Maria secures £20,000, while Ann‑Roos Callens walks away with £12,610 for second place. A new title, and above all a second landmark episode in Maria’s career directly linked to a final against a representative of Belgian poker.
A tournament with 271 entries, with a final that gives particular resonance to this portrait for the Belgian audience.
Maria Lampropulos interviewed in 2018. Image: 888poker Spain / Wikimedia Commons — CC BY 3.0.Still active in 2026
Maria Lampropulos is not only a figure from the great years 2017–2018. In December 2025, she finished 14th in the Main Event EPT Prague for €50,300, before taking second place in a side event at the PokerStars Open Cannes for €11,800.
In 2026, her name continues to appear in international results: she notably recorded a 56th place at the PokerStars Open Main Event in Barcelona for €11,710, several paid places at the WSOP in Las Vegas and an 8th place in the Women’s Event of the EPT Barcelona.
According to The Hendon Mob, her cumulative live earnings total $4,015,187 at the time of writing this article. These are gross tournament winnings, not net profit taking entry fees and travel expenses into account.
The Poker Face look: why Maria Lampropulos?
Because her trajectory resists shortcuts. Describing her merely as “a great player” would overlook what makes her unique: her progression on the European circuit, two seven‑figure wins in open Main Events, a historic victory in the Bahamas and a longevity that still brings her to the top of competitions.
Because her story also speaks to the Franco‑Belgian community: Brussels in 2016, Nottingham in 2017, then a new head‑to‑head with Belgium in London in 2024.
And because she perfectly embodies the new Poker Face line. This portrait does not celebrate a gender; it tells a career, a personality and a sporting journey at the highest level.
From Brussels to the Bahamas, Maria Lampropulos has turned promising finals into historic victories. And ten years after her first exploits in Europe, she continues to defend her place at the big tables.
After the portraits of ElkY, Leo Margets, Kenny Hallaert, Kristen Foxen and Daniel Negreanu, this edition features an Argentine champion. Poker Face continues to alternate female and male personalities, French, Belgian or international, prioritising history, performance and interest for our community.
A face. A story. A personality.
Maria Lampropulos on the web
Only profiles and media whose identity or publication could be verified are displayed here. Links to videos point to their publishers, without reproducing their protected images.
X / Twitter@MLampropulos · profile verified by her posts
The Hendon MobLive results, tournaments and statistics
PokerNewsBiography, record, articles and videos
Global Poker IndexRankings and competitive journey
Interview PCA 2018Reaction to her historic win, by PokerNews
Interview Barcelona 2018Video published by PokerNews after the High Roller
Sources: The Hendon Mob (results as of 8 November 2026), PokerNews, PokerStars, partypoker and Global Poker Index. The cited results correspond to the rankings and archives consulted during writing.
Photographs: the two archive images from 2018 are credited to 888poker Spain, sourced from Wikimedia Commons and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0. The authors, source pages and licences are listed in the captions. They do not depict the finals of Brussels 2016, Nottingham 2017 or London 2024.
Feature image: a cover created by PFB must be distinguished from reportage shots. If it actually reproduces or transforms the Commons photo, the attribution “888poker Spain / CC BY 3.0” and a note of the modifications are required.
