With G2 Esports becoming the latest winner of a Tier 1 event, Counter-Strike esports is set for an exciting end to 2025 as several teams begin to establish themselves as championship contenders. Team Vitality cruised through the Group Stage with wins over FaZe Clan and Virtus.pro before sweeping aside The MongolZ in the semi-final to set up a blockbuster clash with Team Spirit in the final. 2025 is set to be one of the most exciting seasons in the history of Counter-Strike 2 esports! The second Major is likely to be held in one of the countries with a rich history of hosting major esports events, which will attract even more viewers and participants. In addition to the standard set of Valve Global Standings teams, four participants are from regional qualifiers.
On November 12, 2023, Perfect World, who are responsible for distributing Counter-Strike 2 in China, announced the second major following the release of Counter-Strike 2, taking place in Shanghai between December 1-15, 2024. The first Counter-Strike 2 Major was announced to be the PGL CS2 Major Copenhagen 2024 which was held from March 17–31 in the Royal Arena. BLAST Paris Major 2023 was held in Paris on May 8 – May 21, 2023 with a prize pool of $1,250,000 USD. The previously cancelled ESL One Rio 2020 Major was replaced with IEM Rio Major 2022 and was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on October 31 – November 13, 2022. On January 14 — 2021, Valve announced that the championship would be held between October 23 and November 7 in Stockholm. The November Major was announced with a US$2,000,000 prize pool — combining the amounts that would have been set aside for both Majors.
The second edition of the FISSURE Playground tournament series saw several notable names from the VRS top ten head to Belgrade (Serbia), for a chance to cement their place among the top 32 sides. Even though the event followed an unusual format, Team Spirit lifted the trophy with a win against The MongolZ in the Grand Final. The Russian phenom scored his second MVP award of the year after earning his first following Team Spirit’s BLAST Bounty Season 1 victory. Vitality defeated Team Spirit in the semi-finals to set up a rematch against Team Falcons in the IEM Melbourne Grand Final. Team Vitality topped its group with comfortable wins over Wildcard and MOUZ to book yet another place in the playoffs of a Tier 1 event.
If two teams end up with an equal number of round victories after both halves (additional rounds), known as overtime, will be implemented; this consists of two halves, csgo upgrader keydrop each containing 3 rounds. The competition’s structure dictates the quantity of maps that must be played in a match. Beginning with the 2014 Cologne event (maps were categorized into Active Duty and Reserves), with all Majors utilizing the Active Duty category. The IEM Cologne Major 2026, the subsequent Major event, includes only best-of-three matches in its third Swiss-stage group. While the playoff rounds in the Majors have typically adhered to a conventional format of 8 teams in a single-elimination setup, there have been numerous changes in the group stages.
This is where the best of the best settle their scores on a pure LAN stage, usually ending in a best of five brawl that defines the season. If a team wins a match, they pocket half of their opponent’s bounty immediately. He specializes in analyzing new releases in the world of computer games, gaming services, and in-game economies. The first will be held from June 9 to 22 in Austin, USA, while the second is expected to take place in December in Europe. In 2026 (the tournament series will continue with expanded geography), including two new locations to be announced later, which will help attract viewers from around the world.
It’s their chance to earn good cash, but making it to the finals is a great challenge. The year is filled with exciting tournaments, so we have lots of opportunities to enjoy the competition and learn from the best. FACEIT Points can be redeemed for games, skins, and other rewards on the FACEIT shop. Specific details on maps and rules will be announced with each tournament.
CS2 Esports Schedule for Spring 2026
After Berlin 2019 (Valve and ESL announced the following Major), ESL One Rio 2020, which was to be the first Major to be hosted in South America. With wins at London 2018, Katowice 2019, and Berlin 2019, Astralis become the first team to win three Majors in a row and four majors total. This feat has only been matched by Astralis and Team Vitality — although Vitality did not maintain the same roster core throughout their Major wins. The tournament took place in late November and was won by the Swedish team Fnatic who upset Ninjas in Pyjamas in the finals. Many teams from other parts of the world would win Majors (including Team 3D from the United States at CPL Winter 2002 and WCG 2004), NoA from Norway at CPL Winter 2004, mibr from Brazil at ESWC 2006, and WeMade FOX from South Korea at WEM 2010.