Get ready for even more high-stakes Counter-Strike action! We’re thrilled to announce a significant expansion to the IEM Cologne Major 2026 format, bringing an even richer competitive experience to both the teams and players, as well as the fans.

In a move designed to maximize the competitive element of Stage 3 and deliver more thrilling matches, all matches in Stage 3 of the IEM Cologne Major 2026 will now be played in best-of-three series — for the first time in CS history.

Competition Extended, More Tickets Added

To accommodate this exciting change, the tournament schedule for Stage 3 has been adjusted and will now span an extra day, running June 11-15, 2026. Fans travelling onsite to Palladium in Cologne will be able to experience the following daily schedule:

Thursday, June 11
Stage 3 - Round 1 - 4 x best-of-three matches

Friday, June 12
Stage 3 - Round 2 - 4 x best-of-three matches

Saturday, June 13
Stage 3 - Round 3 - 4 x best-of-three matches

Sunday, June 14
Stage 3 - Round 4 - 3 x best-of-three matches

Monday, June 15
Stage 3 - Round 5 - 3 x best-of-three matches

We’ve seen how immense the demand for this event is, with both the Playoffs and Stage 3 selling out in record time. We’ve managed to further increase the inventory for tickets across all existing sold-out days of Stage 3, in addition to releasing tickets for the newly added day.

The overall schedule footprint for the IEM Cologne Major 2026 will now run as:

Stage 1 - June 2-5, 2026
Stage 2 - June 6-9, 2026
Stage 3 - June 11-15, 2026
Playoffs - June 18-21, 2026

Ticket Information

Mark your calendars! Tickets for the new day (June 11th) and the increased inventory for all existing days of Stage 3 will go on sale on Thursday, February 26 at 15:00 CET.

Tickets will be going on sale via vivenu, you will be able to access the ticket sale by going here.