PGL Astana 2026: Teams, Format, Schedule, and Prize Pool

PGL Astana 2026, the second edition of the major Counter-Strike 2 tournament in Astana, will begin in Kazakhstan on May 9. The championship will feature 16 teams, while the total prize pool, including the club share, will amount to $1.6 million. Against the backdrop of IEM Atlanta being held at the same time, the list of participants looks a bit unusual this time, but it still includes several strong and high-profile teams.

The highest-ranked teams at the event are considered to be Falcons and Spirit. At the same time, Astana will be especially interesting from the perspective of debuts as well. Finn “karrigan” Andersen will play his first tournament for Falcons, while Justinas “jL” Lekavicius and Adrian “xelex” Vincze will debut for the revamped MOUZ roster.

The tournament format will remain familiar for PGL events. The group stage will be played in a Swiss system, with teams playing up to five rounds to determine the eight playoff participants. All teams that advance from the Swiss stage will begin the decisive part of the tournament from the quarterfinals. The grand final will be played in a best-of-5 format, and there will also be a third-place match before it.

All PGL Astana 2026 participants:

• Falcons

• Spirit

• MOUZ

• G2

• FURIA

• Aurora

• PARIVISION

• The MongolZ

• Monte

• HEROIC

• Gentle Mates

• magic

• Fisher College

• K27

• The Huns

• 9z

Opening matches on May 9:

• Aurora — HEROIC

• G2 — Fisher College

• MOUZ — Gentle Mates

• The MongolZ — magic

• Falcons — K27

• Spirit — The Huns

• FURIA — Monte

• PARIVISION — 9z

The prize money that is divided between participants and their clubs is split equally. For the first place, there will be a reward of $256,000; second place will receive $120,000; third place, $96,000; and fifteenth-sixteenth places will get $8,000 each.

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Consequently, PGL Astana 2026 will not only be an important event in the context of the trophy race but also one of the most entertaining games of May by virtue of its lineups.