The IEM Cologne Major 2026 is an upcoming Major championship that will be played with Counter-Strike 2. The Cologne Major will be the twenty-fourth Major for Counter-Strike 2, the eighth Major organized by ESL, the fifth Major held in Germany, and the fourth Major in Cologne. The 32 teams will compete in Cologne from June 2 to June 21, 2026 for a share of the $1,250,000 prize pool.
VENUE & ATTENDANCE
The tournament is held across two Cologne venues:
Group Stage Venue (Stages 1-3): June 2-15, 2026.
LANXESS Arena (20,000 capacity): June 18–21, 2026 for playoffs.
PRIZE POOL
The total prize money is $1,250,000 and is distributed as follows:
1st place
Winner
- $500 000
2nd place
- $170 000
3-4th places
- $80 000
5-8th places
- $45 000
9-11th places
- $20 000
FORMAT & STRUCTURE
The tournament plays with a three-stage Swiss system then a single-elimination playoffs bracket.
Stages 1-3 use a Swiss-system format. 8 teams are eliminated during each stage as 8 teams advance to the playoffs.
For Swiss Stages 1-2, matches that neither progress nor eliminate occur in best-of-one format, while matches that progress and eliminate occur under best-of-three format.
For the first time, Stage 3 will be played as a full best-of-three Swiss format, with all matches at Bo3.
The playoffs are an eight-team single-elimination bracket with best-of-three matches.
Grand Final: Best-of-five match.
