The Counter-Strike 2 tournament calendar just got a little lighter. PGL has officially announced that it will no longer host its planned August 2026 event, citing a scheduling overlap with the newly expanded Esports World Cup.
We will not be running our August 6–16, 2026 Counter-Strike 2 event.
The decision follows another tournament being announced at a later date that overlaps with ours, despite our schedule being published in March 2024.
We appreciate your understanding.— PGL (@pglesports) October 11, 2025
The “other tournament” in question is none other than the Esports World Cup (EWC), the Saudi-backed mega-event which recently announced a 32-team format, a $2 million USD prize pool, and a longer schedule running from August 12–23, 2026.
Esports World Cup’s Expansion Shakes Up the Calendar
The EWC’s growth has created a ripple effect across the CS2 competitive landscape. With 28 of the 32 EWC invites tied to the Valve Regional Standings (VRS), top-tier teams are expected to prioritise Riyadh over other events. The tournament’s financial incentives and prestige have made it virtually impossible for other organisers to compete for the same dates.
This is the latest in a growing list of scheduling headaches for PGL. The company previously moved the PGL Masters Bucharest Grand Final earlier this year to avoid a clash with IEM Chengdu. But this time, the overlap proved too large to ignore.
Community Reactions: “Blood Money Always Wins”
The decision has sparked frustration across the Counter-Strike community. Many fans have accused the Esports World Cup of monopolising the scene through its financial power, while others blamed ESL for its deep involvement in the Saudi-backed ecosystem.
One user wrote, “I do not understand how you can let Esports World Cup push you to not have your event. This only shows me that you care more about what they do than what you do. It’s a joke.”
Another echoed the sentiment, saying, “Wonder why ESL only overlaps with PGL and never with BLAST. #Nooticing.”
There’s a growing perception that PGL is being squeezed out of the top-tier tournament scene, a sentiment that ties back to earlier controversies involving ESL allegedly pressuring teams to skip PGL’s events. (Read more in our recent coverage: ESL Forcing Teams to Boycott PGL Bucharest?)
A Difficult Year for PGL
The cancellation is a tough blow for PGL, which had originally announced its full 2026 calendar in early 2024. The company still plans to run four other Counter-Strike 2 tournaments next year, with events scheduled in Cluj-Napoca, Bucharest, Astana, and Belgrade.
However, losing its August LAN means one fewer Tier 1 event for the global CS2 circuit, and with the deadline for 2026 tournament announcements already passed under Valve’s Tournament Organiser Rules, no new events can fill the gap.
Whether PGL’s decision signals a shift in the balance of power between organisers or simply a scheduling casualty remains to be seen. What’s clear is that the Esports World Cup’s expansion is changing how tournament organisers approach their calendars, and for fans, the road to 2026 just got more political than ever.