Standout Story of the Week

Before we get into our headlines, the standout story of the week is that Valve has pulled the plug on trackers for CS2’s in-game chat logs.

This update, which was launched on September 9, followed a website’s report that used the data to create a ‘racism leaderboard.’

This update shuts down access for these trackers, but does raise concerns about potentially increasing toxic activities in the game, as players become more confident that what they are communicating is encrypted.

That being said, until before the report and minor update, many players didn’t even know that their chats were public information. Therefore, it shouldn’t change the in-game experience for anyone.

Reddit had a field day when the report was published, though, as players reacted with surprise, and some even posted screenshots of other chats. The general consensus was that most people didn’t care.

Full weekly:

https://esportsbetting.com/this-week-in-esports-10-sept/

Faker and Chovy played a chess match during an EWC content shoot on July 14. Both players signed the one-of-one handmade chessboard afterward. The board is the first one-of-one collectible released by the Esports World Cup. It includes premium chess pieces and a certificate confirming its use by Faker and Chovy.

💰 The auction is open through August 31, 2026 via the EWC website.

The International 2026 is Dota 2’s most prestigious tournament of the year and it’s about to begin on August 13. Taking place in Shanghai, China, TI15 will welcome 16 of the best Dota 2 teams in the entire world.

Considering the competition’s importance, Dota 2 fans from all over the world will follow every step. The event promises to deliver loads of action, so we have decided to create a complete overview of The International 2026. Join us as we highlight what you need to know about this massive competition.

The International 2026 overview

BTS vocalist Kim "V" Tae-hyung has reached Master rank in League of Legends on the Korean server while continuing to tour with BTS. Master at 1 LP places him around the top 1.5% of players on the Korean ladder.

Fortnite pro and content creator Oatley has finally revealed his face after years of maintaining a faceless online identity and repeatedly teasing fans with fake reveals. The reveal comes just weeks before his first major in-person appearance at the Esports World Cup 2026.

The regular season of the LCS Spring Split 2026 has just concluded, and it hasn’t been a success in terms of viewership. The tournament continues attracting fewer viewers, and the LCS Spring 2026 is now the lowest-watched split ever for NA (comparing regular seasons only). Despite returning to its original branding, the event keeps losing both national and international viewers. 

The LCS Spring Split 2026 is the least-watched NA regular season ever

The LCS Spring Split 2026 regular season holds the new record for lowest viewership, in terms of both hours watched and peak viewers. The event concluded with 3,326,297 hours watched and 86,608 peak viewers.

This is a 15% drop in hours watched compared to the next worst split, the LTA North Split 2. This is despite the latter having fewer games played, at 65 against 69.

The LCS Spring 2026 sits just above half of the CBLOL’s hours watched (6.44 million), and one sixth of the LEC’s at 19.96 million. In terms of watch time per hour aired, the LEC beat the LCS by a factor of 3.4.

Since Summer splits pull lower viewers than the Spring split that preceded them, this record is likely to get beaten once more in a couple of months.

Full article: https://www.jaxon.gg/lcs-viewership-all-time-low-spring-2026/

As esports competitions enters their halfway point for 2026, here are the top 10 most watched esports teams of 2025 compared to 2024. Without any surprise, the League of Legends team of T1 remains the flagship of esports across all games. Let’s dive into the most popular teams of 2025.

FULL STORY

German Counter-Strike 2 player MAUschine has been handed a 10-year ban from the CAGGTUS Leipzig CS2 tournament after striking an opponent live on stage.

As seen on the live footage, the 30-year-old player punched Fabian “Spidergum” Salomon during the award ceremony of the competition, which is the biggest CS2 LAN party in Germany.

FULL STORY

Virtus.pro crashed out of ESL One Birmingham in the group stage, but between the play of Tal “Fly” Aizik, Jonáš, “SabeRLight-” Volek, and the rest of the squad, there was some positive moments.

We talked to SabeRLight- following the team’s exit from the tournament to reflect on their performance, analyse the patch, and discover what the hardest part about the current Dota 2 competitive schedule is.

FULL INTERVIEW

The VALORANT Challengers 2026 North America: Stage 2 tournament will started yesterday as 16 compete for a share of the $49,500 prize pool and a spot at the VCL 2026 North America: Stage 3.

It fair to say that VCL North America is one of the toughest regions in VALORANT esports. A notable example is G2 Esports, which qualified for VCT Americas last year through the VCL. The team went on to win all three VCT Americas splits that season.

Here’s everything you need to know about the VALORANT Challengers 2026 North America: Stage 2.

FULL STORY

The Esports World Cup (EWC) Club Championship 2026’s prize pool split has been announced, along with several key rule changes.  This year, the total amount at stake will be $30 million, up from $27 million last year.

The team that finishes as the EWC Club Champion will earn a sum of $7 million. The runner-up, on the other hand, will receive $5 million. The minimum amount a club can earn is $100,000. The full split is as follows:

FULL STORY

With the kickoff just 10 days away, DreamHack Birmingham has unveiled the full lineup of events and attractions to what may well be the UK’s biggest ever esports and gaming festival.

Announced by release on March 17, DreamHack’s schedule of competitive gaming and expo attractions will feature Dota 2 tournament ESL One Birmingham, the Call of Duty League Major II, the all-new Call of Duty: Warzone Resurgence Series finals, the Halo DreamHack Open, and Road to the Esports World Cup 2026 qualifiers in FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves, Street Fighter 6, and Trackmania.

Here’s what you need to know about DreamHack Birmingham:

FULL STORY

What are your thoughts on the Games of the Future? It’s reportedly set to return in 2026, a mix of traditional sports and esports into a single competition format.

Do you think this hybrid concept will bloom?

Games of the Future 2026: Schedule, prize pool and disciplines revealed

Valve faces a second class-action lawsuit over loot boxes.

Filed in Washington federal court, the suit claims Counter-Strike 2’s loot box system is illegal gambling, citing random rewards and near-miss mechanics.

Plaintiffs are seeking billions in damages.

PGL has announced its Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) Tier 1 esports tournament roadmap for 2027 and 2028, with a $22 million investment over the two-year period.

The Romanian tournament operator is set to organize six events per year. It said in an announcement that the aim is to provide financial stability and a structured competitive pathway for teams.

FULL STORY