Valve Confirms CS Major Change to 32-Teams & Extra Stage

There have been some rumors about the Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) Major Championships moving from 24 teams to 32 teams. Now, without making any big announcement, Valve has confirmed this change via a CS Major Supplemental Rulebook that most fans wouldn't even look at or know about.

Yes, we can confirm that 32 teams will compete in the main event of the BLAST.tv Austin Major, as all organizers, MUST follow Valve's rules for a Major Championship.

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In the aforementioned "supplemental rulebook," Valve clearly stated this new development, with a specific line reading, "Major features 32 teams."

There's also mention of Major Regional Qualifiers (MRQ) that should replace RMR events and an additional stage. Check out the details below:

• 16 teams are invited to Stage 1 from the Major Regional Qualifiers.
• 8 teams are invited to Stage 2 based on Valve Regional Standing.
• 8 teams are invited to Stage 3 based on Valve Regional Standing.

Normally, there would be two Swiss format stages in a Major Championship, the Opening and Elimination Stages, previously known as Challengers and Contenders. With the new format, there's another stage to look forward to, which also means the CS2 Majors should last roughly four days longer than they used to. The TLDR is: More teams, more CS2 esports action.

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