// SEASON OUTLOOK · TIER 1 ACCESS

Who's locked in — and who's grinding

Tier 1 invites go out off the Valve Regional Standings, so the teams inside the line lock in a full season of big events — while the rest race for Major qualification through open qualifiers and the odd tier 1½ LAN. This page pivots our invite projection onto teams: who is set up with regular tier 1 access next season, and who is on the outside. Each event is weighted by its impact on the VRS — a model read from prize pool, field strength and the next Major-cutoff timing.

Built off the same model as the Race to Tier 1 Invites.

VRS standings
Sep 7, 2026
Invite events
5
Locked in
12
Grinding
28
// THE SLATE · CONFIRMED INVITE EVENTS
ESL Pro League Season 24
Global top 12 · Oct 3
84Prime VRS farm
Thunderpick World Championship 2026
Europe top 24 · Oct 14
71High stakes
PGL Belgrade 2026
Global top 12 · Oct 22
85Prime VRS farm
PGL Masters Bucharest 2026
Global top 12 · Oct 24
84Prime VRS farm
Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026
Global top 11 · Nov 2 · next cycle
71High stakes
# Team VRS Confirmed invites next season Tier 1 Season score
Locked in — projected into at least half of the 4 tier 1 events next season
1 Spirit 2,031 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
2 MOUZ 1,902 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
3 Falcons 1,881 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
4 FUT 1,846 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
5 Vitality 1,841 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
8 G2 1,723 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
11 Natus Vincere 1,579 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
12 Aurora 1,552 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 395
6 Legacy 1,783 ESL Pro League Season 24 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 324
7 FURIA 1,754 ESL Pro League Season 24 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 324
9 9z 1,606 ESL Pro League Season 24 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 Intel Extreme Masters Beijing 2026 4/4 324
10 FaZe 1,599 ESL Pro League Season 24 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 PGL Belgrade 2026 PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 3/4 324
The grinders ↓ — under half the tier 1 circuit · racing for the next Major qualification through the open circuit
13 B8 1,515 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
14 Inner Circle 1,502 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
15 BETBOOM 1,499 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
16 BIG 1,480 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
17 Liquid 1,465 Open circuit only 0/4
18 PARIVISION 1,461 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
19 The MongolZ 1,460 Open circuit only 0/4
20 Astralis 1,446 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
21 MIBR 1,408 Open circuit only 0/4
22 Alliance 1,402 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
23 magic 1,402 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
24 HEROIC 1,379 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
25 HOTU 1,371 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
26 TYLOO 1,364 Open circuit only 0/4
27 100 Thieves 1,347 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
28 GamerLegion 1,345 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
29 Ninjas in Pyjamas 1,338 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
30 Betclic 1,331 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
31 1win 1,314 Thunderpick World Championship 2026 0/4 71
32 JiJieHao 1,313 Open circuit only 0/4
33 fnatic 1,310 Open circuit only 0/4
34 DENDELE 1,301 Open circuit only 0/4
35 3DMAX 1,298 Open circuit only 0/4
36 EYEBALLERS 1,290 Open circuit only 0/4
37 K27 1,283 Open circuit only 0/4
38 BC.Game 1,276 Open circuit only 0/4
39 Lynn Vision 1,274 Open circuit only 0/4
40 Virtus.pro 1,270 Open circuit only 0/4

A team is locked in once it is projected into at least half of the 4 global tier 1 events; the rest are grinding. Regional invites still show as chips but sit outside that count, so a team isn't judged on events its region can't attend. Season score sums the impact of every event a team is projected into — a relative index of how much VRS opportunity their season holds, not a points total. Teams are placed by projected invites at each event's cutoff, updated for results since the last official ranking, so the board can shift before an event locks. Event data via Liquipedia.

Not betting advice. Every percentage on this page describes what past results imply, not what will happen. The model knows match results and nothing else — it cannot see a roster change until the new lineup has played, and it has no opinion on map vetoes or on whether a match is online or on LAN. We publish its hit rate and calibration so you can judge it for yourself. No bookmaker odds or affiliate links appear on this site.