PGL Astana 2026 – The Competition

PGL Astana 2026 PGL Astana is a tier-1 Counter-Strike 2 tournament held in the Kazakhstan capital, Astana. 16 of the world’s best CS2 teams, including 5 qualifiers and 11 invitees, compete for a prize pool of more than $1.5m.

The group games are played in a Swiss system, eventually whittling down to the final 8 teams. Playoffs are knockout games, with the quarters and semis best-of-three and the final best-of-five. 

2025 marked the first year of the tournament, when it offered a $1.25m prize pool. Team Spirit walked away victors, with Astralis claiming second place, ahead of Aurora Gaming in 3^rd.

Astana 2025 attracted nearly 1 million viewers on Twitch, rising to 1.3 million total viewers, putting it on par with the likes of IEM Cologne.

How Much Is The PGL Astana 2026 Prize Pool?

The success of last year’s event has seen PGL increase the prize pot for this year’s competition. 16 teams will be competing for their share of a $1.6m prize pool. Clubs and players receive equal shares of the prizes.

Those placing 15^th and 16^th receive a combined $16,000 each, while the winning players receive $256,000, with the team itself collecting the same prize. 

Who’s Competing In PGL Astana?

The generous prize pool has attracted some big names, with 6 of the top 10-ranked teams accepting invitations to participate.

Notably, though, both Vitality and NAVI declined invitations. The top 2 teams have opted to play at IEM Atlanta, instead, with Vitality presumably hoping to start their run to a third $1m Grand Slam prize.

However, while the top two teams are missing, that leaves the door open for some of the lesser-ranked teams.

The teams competing in this year’s competition, with their global rankings, are:

• Furia (3)
• Aurora (4)
• Falcons (5)
• Spirit (6)
• Parivision (7)
• The MongolZ (8)
• MOUZ (11)
• G2 (12)
• 9z (18)
• Monte (19)
• HEROIC (24)
• Gentle Mates (36)
• magic (46)
• Fisher College (47)
• K27 (56)
• The Huns (111)

How Can I Watch PGL Astana 2026?

Group games start on 9 May with quarter-finals on 15 May, semi-finals on 16 May, and the grand final on Sunday 17 May. Games can be watched on the official PGL Twitch and YouTube channels.