ESL 2026 CS2 Event Dates Might Hint at IEM Cologne Major

With 2025 on the horizon, some tournament organizers are already looking beyond next year. Top-tier tournament organizer ESL has announced its competitive calendar with dates for six events in 2026, and some Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) esports fans might instantly recognize a specific gap.

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On 19 December 2024, in a short-but-sweet announcement, ESL explained that:

The competitive calendar year of 2024 is soon closing its final page, Team Spirit got crowned champions of the Perfect World Shanghai Major to round out the year and we soon embark into 2025. Today we’re announcing our event footprint and dates for calendar year 2026, which coupled with our existing 2025 overview provides clarity on what's to come from us over the next 24 months.

The tournament organizer then revealed their event calendar with specific dates for 2026, which you can see in the image below. Note the gap!

If you can't see the image, check out the dates for ESL's big events in 2026 below.

• 27 January to 8 February 2026
• 23 February to 15 March 2026
• 12 to 19 April 2026
• 10 to 17 May 2026
• 21 September to 11 October 2026
• 1 to 8 November 2026

In comparison, the ESL calendar for 2025 has seven LAN events, leading to speculation that the one missing event could be a Major Championship. For those who don't know, the iconic IEM Cologne event generally takes place in July and August, precisely where the gap in ESL's 2026 competitive calendar is!

Lastly, ESL noted that fans can stay tuned for more 2026 calendar details in "the near future" and noted "Additional Information requirements per Valve’s regulations." which you can read about here.

Will IEM Cologne 2026 be a Major Championship played at the "Cathedral of Counter-Strike," aka the LANXESS arena in Germany? We do hope so, but at the time of writing, this is still speculation.

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