Counter-Strike Majors stretch from DreamHack Winter 2013 into the modern CS2 era, with repeated changes to format, qualification, seeding, and championship scale.
26
Valve majors since 2013
7
CS2-era majors
Team Vitality
Latest winner
Next confirmed major
May 31 - Jun 20, 2027
Buenos Aires is the furthest confirmed Major on the current public calendar and extends the CS2 Major circuit into South America.
Upcoming Events
Ongoing Events
No Valve Major is active right now.
Valve Major Championships, usually shortened to Majors, are the championship events that sit at the top of the Counter-Strike calendar. They began in 2013 at DreamHack Winter and became the benchmark event for every roster that wants to define an era rather than just win another tournament weekend.
The format, qualification path, and even the names of the stages have changed several times since then. Prize pools grew from the original $250,000 tier to the modern $1,250,000 level, the team count expanded from 16 to 24 and then to 32, and Valve's own ranking system became central to who gets into the event.
Major history can be read as a series of structural shifts: formats changed, qualification moved from the old Legend system toward ranking-led invites, the active map pool kept rotating, and the championship line kept expanding from DreamHack Winter 2013 into the current CS2 era.
Major formats have changed in steps rather than all at once. The key shifts are the move from four small groups to Swiss play, then the expansion from 16 teams to 24 and later to 32.
Format era
Format era
Format era
Format era
Qualification changed even more often than the format itself. The path went from the old Legend status model to offline qualifiers, Minor events, RMRs, and then the modern Valve ranking led system.
Qualification era
Qualification era
Qualification era
Qualification era
Qualification era
Qualification era
The map pool at Majors follows Valve's active duty pool. The exact seven maps can change as Valve rotates maps in and out, but the current reference set is below.
Ancient
Still central to the modern Major veto.
Anubis
Part of the current active duty group.
Dust II
Returned as a headline Major map.
Inferno
A permanent big-stage staple.
Mirage
Still one of the most familiar Major battlegrounds.
Nuke
Core part of the modern pool.
Overpass
Back in the current active rotation.
This table covers the full Valve Major line, including upcoming confirmed events, completed CS2 Majors, the last Global Offensive Major, and the earlier championship history back to DreamHack Winter 2013.
| Game | Tournament | Date | Prize Pool | Location | Teams | Winner | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Counter-Strike 2 | FiRe Major Buenos Aires 2027 Buenos Aires is the furthest confirmed Major on the current public calendar and extends the CS2 Major circuit into South America. | May 31 - Jun 20, 2027 | $1,250,000 | Buenos Aires, Argentina | 32 | TBD | TBD |
| Counter-Strike 2 | PGL Major Singapore 2026 Singapore is scheduled as the second confirmed Major after Cologne in the 2026 season. | Nov 25 - Dec 13, 2026 | $1,250,000 | Kallang, Singapore | 32 | TBD | TBD |
| Counter-Strike 2 | Intel Extreme Masters Cologne Major 2026 Cologne is the next confirmed Major on the schedule and the first Major listed for the 2026 campaign. | Jun 02 - Jun 21, 2026 | $1,250,000 | Cologne, Germany | 32 | TBD | TBD |
| Counter-Strike 2 | StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 StarLadder returned to the Major stage in Budapest and closed the 2025 season with another title for Team Vitality. | Nov 24 - Dec 14, 2025 | $1,250,000 | Budapest, Hungary | 32 | Team Vitality | FaZe Clan |
| Counter-Strike 2 | BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 Austin expanded the Major to 32 teams and put a Counter-Strike Major back in North America. | Jun 03 - Jun 22, 2025 | $1,250,000 | Austin, United States | 32 | Team Vitality | The MongolZ |
| Counter-Strike 2 | Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024 Shanghai was the second CS2 Major and gave Team Spirit the first Major title of the new game outside Europe. | Nov 30 - Dec 15, 2024 | $1,250,000 | Shanghai, China | 24 | Team Spirit | FaZe Clan |
| Counter-Strike 2 | PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 Copenhagen was the first Major played in Counter-Strike 2 and became the opening chapter of the CS2 Major era. | Mar 17 - Mar 31, 2024 | $1,250,000 | Copenhagen, Denmark | 24 | Natus Vincere | FaZe Clan |
| Global Offensive | BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 Paris was the final Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major before the switch to Counter-Strike 2. | May 08 - May 21, 2023 | $1,250,000 | Paris, France | 24 | Team Vitality | GamerLegion |
| Global Offensive | Intel Extreme Masters Rio Major 2022 Rio brought a Major back to Brazil and ended with Outsiders taking the title in front of a heavy home crowd atmosphere. | Oct 31 - Nov 13, 2022 | $1,250,000 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 24 | Outsiders | Heroic |
| Global Offensive | PGL Major Antwerp 2022 Antwerp gave FaZe Clan their long-awaited Major title and remains one of the biggest wins in the organization's history. | May 09 - May 22, 2022 | $1,000,000 | Antwerp, Belgium | 24 | FaZe Clan | Natus Vincere |
| Global Offensive | PGL Major Stockholm 2021 Stockholm marked the return of the Major after the pandemic interruption and delivered NAVI's iconic title run. | Oct 26 - Nov 07, 2021 | $2,000,000 | Stockholm, Sweden | 24 | Natus Vincere | G2 Esports |
| Global Offensive | ESL One: Rio Major 2020 Rio 2020 was cancelled and never produced a champion, but it remains part of the official Major timeline because of how it affected the qualification system. | Nov 09 - Nov 22, 2020 | $2,000,000 | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 24 | Cancelled | Cancelled |
| Global Offensive | StarLadder Berlin Major 2019 Berlin ended with another Astralis Major title and reinforced the era's most dominant championship dynasty. | Aug 23 - Sep 08, 2019 | $1,000,000 | Berlin, Germany | 24 | Astralis | AVANGAR |
| Global Offensive | Intel Extreme Masters XIII - Katowice Major 2019 Katowice 2019 continued the Astralis title streak and became one of the clearest benchmarks for elite Major form. | Feb 13 - Mar 03, 2019 | $1,000,000 | Katowice, Poland | 24 | Astralis | ENCE |
| Global Offensive | FACEIT Major: London 2018 London was part of the first expanded 24-team Major cycle and another major step in Astralis' reign. | Sep 05 - Sep 23, 2018 | $1,000,000 | London, United Kingdom | 24 | Astralis | Natus Vincere |
| Global Offensive | ELEAGUE Major Boston 2018 Boston produced the most famous North American Major win when Cloud9 beat FaZe Clan in the grand final. | Jan 12 - Jan 28, 2018 | $1,000,000 | Atlanta and Boston, United States | 23 | Cloud9 | FaZe Clan |
| Global Offensive | PGL Major Krakow 2017 Krakow switched the group stage to a Swiss format and ended with Gambit Esports winning the title. | Jul 16 - Jul 23, 2017 | $1,000,000 | Krakow, Poland | 16 | Gambit Esports | Immortals |
| Global Offensive | ELEAGUE Major Atlanta 2017 Atlanta opened the million-dollar era of the Major and gave Astralis the first of several titles. | Jan 22 - Jan 29, 2017 | $1,000,000 | Atlanta, United States | 16 | Astralis | Virtus.pro |
| Global Offensive | ESL One: Cologne 2016 Cologne 2016 kept the older 16-team structure but raised the stakes with the newer million-dollar prize pool. | Jul 05 - Jul 10, 2016 | $1,000,000 | Cologne, Germany | 16 | SK Gaming | Team Liquid |
| Global Offensive | MLG Major Championship: Columbus 2016 Columbus was the first Major in North America and one of the events that helped push Brazilian Counter-Strike to the center of the scene. | Mar 29 - Apr 03, 2016 | $1,000,000 | Columbus, United States | 16 | Luminosity Gaming | Natus Vincere |
| Global Offensive | DreamHack Open Cluj-Napoca 2015 Cluj-Napoca introduced the offline qualifier route that later became a formal part of Major qualification. | Oct 28 - Nov 01, 2015 | $250,000 | Cluj-Napoca, Romania | 16 | Team EnVyUs | Natus Vincere |
| Global Offensive | ESL One: Cologne 2015 Cologne 2015 kept the original structure and added another title to Fnatic's early Major legacy. | Aug 20 - Aug 23, 2015 | $250,000 | Cologne, Germany | 16 | Fnatic | Team EnVyUs |
| Global Offensive | ESL One: Katowice 2015 Katowice 2015 reinforced Fnatic as one of the strongest early Major rosters. | Mar 12 - Mar 15, 2015 | $250,000 | Katowice, Poland | 16 | Fnatic | Ninjas in Pyjamas |
| Global Offensive | DreamHack Winter 2014 DreamHack Winter 2014 was one of the earliest Majors and a key event in the first years of Valve-backed Counter-Strike championships. | Nov 27 - Nov 29, 2014 | $250,000 | Jonkoping, Sweden | 16 | Team LDLC.com | Ninjas in Pyjamas |
| Global Offensive | ESL One: Cologne 2014 Cologne 2014 gave Ninjas in Pyjamas their long-awaited Major title after repeated close calls. | Aug 14 - Aug 17, 2014 | $250,000 | Cologne, Germany | 16 | Ninjas in Pyjamas | Fnatic |
| Global Offensive | ESL Major Series One Katowice 2014 Katowice 2014 quickly became one of the defining early Major events and a landmark win for Virtus.pro. | Mar 13 - Mar 16, 2014 | $250,000 | Katowice, Poland | 16 | Virtus.pro | Ninjas in Pyjamas |
| Global Offensive | DreamHack Winter 2013 DreamHack Winter 2013 was the first Valve-backed Major and the true starting point for the Major championship line. | Nov 28 - Nov 30, 2013 | $250,000 | Jonkoping, Sweden | 16 | Fnatic | Ninjas in Pyjamas |
FAQ
A CS2 Major is Valve's flagship Counter-Strike championship tier. It sits above regular tournaments in prestige and usually becomes the event that defines a team's legacy in a season.
The last completed CS2 Major was StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, which Team Vitality won over FaZe Clan.
The first Major played in Counter-Strike 2 was PGL Major Copenhagen 2024. Natus Vincere won that event and FaZe Clan finished second.
Yes. BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 is the clearest current North America CS2 Major and one of the key championship events in the CS2 era so far.
Modern CS2 Majors move through multiple Swiss stages before the playoff bracket. Earlier Major eras used a smaller group stage structure, while the current era uses Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3, and then the playoffs.
Valve Majors carry the highest championship value in Counter-Strike. They reshape player legacy, define team eras, and attract the most historical weight compared with normal event wins.