EWC to expand in 2026 with 32 teams, $2 million and open LAN qualifier

The Saudi Arabian tournament will more than double in size and length compared to the last two editions.

The organizers of the Esports World Cup have announced more details about the Counter-Strike 2 portion of next year's edition of the Saudi Arabian festival, unveiling a sizable expansion of the format.

The main part of the competition will double in attendance, from 16 to 32 teams, and feature a $2 million prizepool, a $750,000 increase compared to 2025.

With that will come an overall change in format spanning an extra week in the calendar, as was clear from the first announcement of the tournament which revealed it would take place from August 10-23.

Previously, 16 teams played a single-elimination bracket, but in 2026 the competition will start with a double-elimination group stage with four groups of eight teams, followed by a 16-team playoff bracket.

Additionally, a non-BYOC LAN open qualifier with support of up to 128 teams will be held in Riyadh from August 7-9 to determine four of the 32 participating teams.

Most of the remainder will come from the Valve Regional Standings as of June 2026, with 21 coming from the Global ranking, two from each of South America, North America and Asia. The final spot is reserved for the winner of Asian Champions League 2026.