Counter-Strike 2
Counter-Strike 2: its teams, tournaments, transfers and the business around them.
PARIVISION sign HObbit and slaxejezzz after their 0-3 Cologne exit
In three days PARIVISION replaced two of the five who went 0-3 at the Cologne Major: veteran HObbit in for BELCHONOKK, then 18-year-old slaxejezzz in for nota.
IntegrityWhat a coach may say at a CS2 Major, and when: the rule and its penalties
How the coaching rule works at a Counter-Strike 2 Major: who sits behind the players, the three moments a coach may speak, how timeouts are called and how breaches are punished.
PlayersHLTV rewrites its Hall of Fame eligibility rules before the 2026 class
HLTV has set fixed waiting periods for its Counter-Strike Hall of Fame, split the ballot between two eras and dropped the rule that kept out former players who now coach.
CoachesAstralis part ways with coach ruggah after Cologne Major exit
A week after going out of the IEM Cologne Major in Stage 2, Astralis ended its work with head coach ruggah. The club says talk of other changes to the team is unsubstantiated.
IntegrityESL bars Legacy's coach from the rest of the IEM Cologne Major
ESL ruled on June 13 that Legacy coach adrrr may no longer coach at the IEM Cologne Major after repeated warnings for communicating with his players during rounds.
SponsorshipsTeam Vitality's ApEX Joins Oakley's Athlete Roster
Dan 'apEX' Madesclaire signed with eyewear brand Oakley's athlete roster, joining names like Patrick Mahomes II and Kylian Mbappé ahead of IEM Cologne.
CoachesENCE bring allu back as head coach of its Counter-Strike team
ENCE named former player allu head coach on June 9, four days after parting ways with Whitey. The young roster promoted from the academy in April stays under evaluation.
Prize MoneyCounter-Strike Major sticker money: how it reaches teams and players
Beside its prize pool, a Counter-Strike Major pays teams through the sale of stickers. How that money was shared under capsules, and the formula Valve applies from Cologne.
AcademiesFaZe Clan launch FaZe Up Next, a CS2 academy team coached by gade
FaZe Clan unveiled an academy roster, FaZe Up Next, on June 3, with former professional gade as coach and RobbaN as head of Counter-Strike for the division.
PlayersIEM Cologne 2026 Shows the Five-to-Seven-Year Career Myth Is Dead
From 16-year-old s1zzi to 36-year-old karrigan, the IEM Cologne 2026 Major field shows veteran and teenage Counter-Strike 2 players competing side by side.
AcademiesParken Challenger Championship folds, cancelling nine CS2 events
The company behind Copenhagen's Parken Challenger Championship has started bankruptcy proceedings and cancelled its nine remaining 2026 events, five weeks after announcing an expansion.
Prize MoneySpirit forfeit a projected US$420,550 ESL club share after skipping Atlanta
ESL has confirmed that Team Spirit lose their 2026 share of its Annual Club Incentive after a third declined invitation in two years, the one to IEM Atlanta.
RostersBetBoom start the Cologne Major without S1ren as d1Ledez steps in
BetBoom announced on May 31 that S1ren misses at least the first day of the IEM Cologne Major. Registered substitute d1Ledez plays, and the rules allow one swap back.
TechnologyValve fixes CS2 spectator flash effect before the IEM Cologne Major
A Counter-Strike 2 update adds a setting for how strongly flashbangs blind spectators and moves the flash under the HUD, days before the IEM Cologne Major opens on June 2.
PlayersIEM Cologne Major 2026: 31 players make their Major debut
HLTV counts 31 first-time players at the IEM Cologne Major, which opens on June 2. Five teams bring 21 of them, and two start in the last group stage.
CreatorsESL names 17 broadcast talent for the IEM Cologne Major 2026
Presenters, five analysts and four casting pairs will carry the broadcast of the Cologne Major from June 2, with a former GamerLegion coach making his analyst debut.
VenuesESL returns to China with IEM Beijing 2026 at the Biohyalux ECM Arena
IEM Beijing 2026 brings 16 Counter-Strike 2 teams and US$1,250,000 to Wukesong from November 2 to 8, with fans on all six days of play and a 360-degree stage.
Prize MoneyValve drops capsules for the Cologne Major and sets how teams are paid
Valve has released the IEM Cologne Major stickers without capsules. HLTV reports that half of sticker revenue is shared, by ranking first and by Major placing afterwards.
TransfersSharks tie doc, gafolo and rdnzao to 2030 before the Cologne Major
Sharks have signed doc, gafolo and rdnzao to new contracts that run until 2030, twelve days before the team opens its second Major against HEROIC in Cologne.
Media RightsPGL Astana 2026 peaks at 1.16 million, PGL's best outside a Major
Esports Charts put PGL Astana 2026 above 1.16 million peak viewers, with Russian streams close to a record and a Portuguese audience that rose and fell with FURIA.