For the first time in Counter-Strike history, both Majors will be held outside Europe in 2027

Pavo Jurkic Published September 21, 2026

It’s official: Europe will not host a single CS2 Major in 2027. Earlier this week, Perfect World confirmed their 2027 Major will be hosted in Shanghai, China. It will be the second Major event in 2027, with the first one being FiReSPORTS Major in Buenos Aires (Argentina).

In other words, this will be the first time in Counter-Strike’s history that the no Major will take place in Europe during a calendar year.

That’s right; every single year, from 2013 to 2026, at least one European city hosted a Major event. Granted, 2020 is an exception because no CS2 Majors were held due to COVID.

Still, this is somewhat concerning news for European CS fans, who might start to feel left behind as Counter-Strike continues to expand into emerging markets.

Counter-Strike continues to expand

Over the last few years, Counter Strike started to expand heavily outside its European stronghold. From 2013 to 2016, CS Majors were exclusively held in European Cities. Columbus was the first Major held outside of Europe, and the trend has continued ever since.

Rio de Janeiro Major in 2022 was the first South American Major, while Perfect World’s 2024 Shanghai Major was the first one to expand to Asia. All these events will provide Counter Strike with even more exposure in regions outside of Europe.

Despite Europe not getting any Majors, the continent won’t be a stranger to large-scale CS2 esports events. All of the ‘big three’ CS2 TOs, namely PGL, BLAST, and ESL, have shown a greater preference to hosting their events in the region.

What does this mean for CS2 in Europe?

While Majors seem to be going to global locations, other Tier 1 events are almost exclusively held in Europe. More precisely, at least five Tier 1 European CS events have already been announced for early 2027.

However, European fans will have a hard time swallowing the next three Majors, not on a personal level, but because of the scheduling difficulties. Matches will be played at very weird Central European Time hours, which is bound to affect European viewership.

Nonetheless, the CS2 esports calendar is packed. Stay tuned to our esports news coverage and other information leading to the upcoming Majors.

Featured image credit: EFG