Tournament host James BanKs Banks said he will not work at IEM Cologne Major 2026 in Counter-Strike 2. He called missing a Major painful, especially after working the last nine Majors in a row for different tournament organizers.
BanKs added that he did not ask for an inflated fee and only requested the regular rate that had been accepted before. As we predicted, IEM Cologne Major 2026 was expected to be one of the most important events of the season, so the absence of an experienced host became a notable storyline before the tournament.
ESL announced the broadcast talent lineup on May 29. Oliver James Borg OJ Borg D'Anastasi was listed as the host of the Major, while BanKs said he would return even more motivated at other events in 2026.
IEM Cologne Major 2026 will take place from June 2 to 21 on LAN in Germany. The tournament will feature 32 teams competing for a $1,250,000 prize pool. Predictions for the tournament’s matches are available on Winio, our predictions for 13 out of 16 tier-one events have been correct so far.
image credit: PGL
Team Liquid are in talks with German rifler Karim "Krimbo" Moussa from BIG. According to insider German Cs Leaks, the sides are close to reaching an agreement, with the move expected to happen after IEM Cologne Major 2026.
Team Vitality has revealed its new CS2 jersey for IEM Cologne Major 2026. The design keeps the club’s signature colors and features sponsor logos approved for display at the Major in Cologne.
Magic defeated 3DMAX in the upper-bracket quarterfinal of Stake Ranked Episode 2 in CS2. The Bo3 match ended 2:0: the Russian team won Ancient 13:9 and then closed Inferno in overtime with a 19:15 scoreline.
The organizers of XSE Pro League 2026 in Counter-Strike 2 have announced the first eight invited teams. BetBoom Team, FaZe Clan, Legacy, 9z Team, EYEBALLERS, Alliance, Ninjas in Pyjamas and Team Nemesis have received invites to the tournament.
ESL has announced a new tier-one Counter-Strike 2 tournament in China. The event will be called IEM Beijing 2026 and is scheduled to take place in Beijing from November 2 to 8, 2026.
Legacy defeated Team Falcons in the playoff grand final of CS Asia Championships 2026 in CS2. The match ended with a 3:1 score: the Brazilian team lost Nuke 11:13, but won Ancient 13:9, Mirage 13:6 and Dust2 13:6.
Team Falcons defeated MOUZ in the semifinal of CS Asia Championships 2026 in CS2. The match ended 2:1.
