IEM Krakow 2026: All You Need to Know

The first Intel Extreme Masters CS2 tournament of 2026 will be underway on January 28, as 24 prominent teams prepare for IEM Krakow’s inaugural edition. After a historic decade in Katowice, the Intel Extreme Masters moves to Krakow to start a new chapter. ESL believes the Polish city’s passionate crowd will become a core part of the event, creating unique experiences that will define the tournament's future legacy. 

The tournament will be held on LAN over the course of 12 days, with the playoff stage (last three days) being open to a live audience. Ultimately, on February 8, one of the 24 teams will be crowned the first-ever winner of IEM Krakow, earning a lion's share of the $1.25 million prize pool and an ESL Pro Tour Championship title, taking them closer to the ESL Grand Slam VI.

Here’s everything to know about IEM Krakow 2026, including its format, participating teams, prize pool, schedule, and livestream details. 

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Teams 

ESL recently announced the 24 teams set to participate in IEM Krakow 2026, selected based on their positions in the Global Valve Regional Standings (VRS). The top eight teams in the standings received a direct invite to the tournament’s second phase, the Group Stage. Meanwhile, teams ranked 9th to 16th in the VRS were invited to the first stage, the play-ins. 

Stage 1 invites: 

• Aurora Gaming
• B8
• Legacy
• G2 Esports
• Team Liquid
• 3DMAX
• Astralis
• PARIVISION
• HEROIC
• paiN Gaming
• FUT Esports 
• Ninjas in Pyjamas
• Passion UA
• BC.Game Esports 
• NRG
• GamerLegion

Stage 2 invites: 

• FURIA
• Team Vitality
• Team Falcons 
• Team Spirit 
• Natus Vincere 
• MOUZ
• FaZe Clan 
• The MongolZ

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Format

IEM Krakow 2026 will be held over three stages:

Play-in

• Date: January 28 - January 30

Out of the 24 teams, only 16 will compete in the play-in stage. Teams will engage in a double-elimination bracket, with each match following a best-of-three (Bo3) format. The top eight teams will advance to the next stage. 

Group Stage

• Date: January 31 - February 5

The group stage will feature 16 teams: eight directly invited rosters and eight teams that qualified from the play-ins. Teams will be split into two double-elimination groups, and each match will be a best-of-three series. 

The top three teams from each group will then advance to the playoffs. Winners will proceed directly to the semifinals. The runners-up will enter the quarterfinals as the High Seeds, while third-placed teams will be the Low Seeds. 

Playoff

• Date: February 6 - February 8

In the final stage of IEM Krakow, the top six teams will face off in a single-elimination bracket. The quarterfinals will feature the Group A runner-up matched against Group B’s third-place team and vice versa. The winners will then proceed to the semis, wherein they will face the group stage winners. 

The Grand Final will be a best-of-five (Bo5) showdown, while the quarterfinals, semifinals, and third-place match will be held as best-of-threes.  

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Schedule and Group Distribution

Stage 1: Opening Round

All eight opening matches of Stage 1 will be held on Wednesday, January 28. Here are the matchups:

• Aurora Gaming vs GamerLegion: 2 am PST / 11 am CET

• HEROIC vs PARIVISION: 2 am PST / 11 am CET

• Astralis vs paiN Gaming: 4:30 am PST / 1:30 pm CET

• NRG vs B8: 4:30 am PST / 1:30 pm CET

• Legacy vs BC.Game Esports: 7 am PST / 4 pm CET

• FUT Esports vs 3DMax: 7 am PST / 4 pm CET 

• Team Liquid vs Ninjas in Pyjamas: 9:30 am PST / 6:30 pm CET

• Passion UA vs G2 Esports: 9:30 am PST / 6:30 pm CET

The four Upper Quarterfinal clashes will be determined by the opening round results: the winner of Match 1 will face the winner of Match 2, the winner of Match 3 will play against the winner of Match 4, and so on for matches 5-6 and 7-8. Likewise, the Lower Round 1 matchups will pit the losers of the opening round in a similar fashion.

Stage 2

While the schedule for the second stage will be determined only after Stage 1 concludes, ESL has announced the group distribution for the eight teams that received a direct invite into Stage 2. The eight teams that qualify from Stage 1 will join them in this double-elimination group stage. Here are the groups:

Group A

• FURIA 
• The MongolZ
• Natus Vincere
• Team Spirit

Group B

• Team Vitality
• FaZe Clan
• MOUZ
• Team Falcons

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Venue

While the whole tournament will be played on LAN, only the IEM Krakow Playoffs will be open for the crowd to attend. The TAURON Arena Kraków will be host to the playoffs, scheduled to be held from February 6-8.

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Prize Pool

IEM Krakow 2026 will feature a $1,250,000 prize pool, with the winner receiving $400,000 as prize money and an additional $60,000 as a Club Reward, exclusive to the organization. Here’s the overall prize distribution:

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Where to Purchase Tickets for IEM Krakow 2026

The last wave of IEM Krakow 2026 is currently live on ESL’s website. The options include various tiers of one-day and three-day passes, as well as separate options for the lower and upper bracket matches. 

Ticket prices range from €55 for a 1-day Upper Bracket pass to €515 for a full-access 3-day pass. As of the time of writing, however, some of the purchase options are sold out. 

You have the option to upgrade your ticket (€120) for a few goodies, as well as perks such as a dedicated entrance for early access and pre-sale access for the next edition of IEM Krakow. The website also features a Souvenir Ticket for sale, which costs €7 and allows you to take home a unique memento of your time in IEM Krakow. 

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Where to Watch IEM Krakow 2026

IEM Krakow 2026 will be broadcast live on Twitch and YouTube. Follow the action on the Strafe Esports tournament page as the tournament unfolds.

Follow Strafe Esports for the latest Counter-Strike 2 news and our X account for the latest content and coverage. Also, stay tuned to Strafe's channel on YouTube for exclusive interviews, press conferences, and more.

Featured Image Credit: ESL Counter Strike

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