ESL faces backlash over “outrageous” Cologne Major 2026 ticket prices

Leonardo Biazzi Published October 2, 2025

ESL is facing considerable backlash online after it announced the IEM Cologne Major 2026 ticket prices on October 1. The Cologne Major is highly anticipated, as it’s been nearly 10 years since the Cathedral of Counter-Strike welcomed the most prestigious tournament in CS esports.

But as soon as the ticket prices for the IEM Cologne Major went live, fans started questioning why they’re so expensive in comparison to other CS tournaments.

In the first wave, the prices to attend all four playoff days range from €999 (a Premium reserved seat near the players’ walk-in + a goodie bag + free beverages) to €199 (upper seats). Alternatively, a one-day playoff ticket ranges from €44 to €129.

Besides those, fans will be able to purchase a “Diamond coin access” for €1999, which will give access to a comfortable lounge with free drinks & catering, plus a merchandising voucher.

Fans couldn’t help but notice that tickets for the IEM Cologne Major 2026 are considerably more expensive than what ESL charged for IEM Cologne 2025.

For example, a three-day lower seating ticket for IEM Cologne 2025 could be purchased for €149, and ESL is going to charge €319 for four days in the Major next year. Effectively, each day in this case will cost 60% more.

One fan, who said they’re a regular Cologne attendee, went as far as calling the prices “outrageous” on Reddit.

I went to Cologne for the last four years. From paying €150 for normal tickets to €300 for premium and last year €250 for lower reserved. These prices are outrageous. They know that Cologne sells out every time and they just don’t care about their customers.

And, the prices will go up considerably in wave two, as demonstrated on the official ESL website.

What has ESL said?

Attending Cologne will be more expensive than ever. Credit: © ESL

ESL hasn’t provided any explanation whatsoever for the noticeable increase in prices for the IEM Cologne Major 2026, even after all the negative comments that followed the announcement.

But, this strategy may as well work, as a lot of fans also thought the tickets for the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 was expensive, and it sold out in less than three days. The Majors are far more exciting than any other CS2 tournament, which is why some fans are willing to pay the price, regardless of the cost.

The IEM Cologne 2026 Major will be the first CS2 Major next year, and will run from June 2 to 21. The playoffs will take place from June 18 to 21.

Jaxon.gg reached out to ESL for comment on October 1, but hadn’t heard back at the time of publishing this article. We’ll update this story should we hear back from ESL.

Feature image credit: © ESL