Esports News

After more than 10 years playing at the highest level, Han "Peanut" Wang-ho now says goodbye to competitive League of Legends as he heads to perform his mandatory military service. In his final professional match, Peanut faced his long-standing LCK rivals of Gen.G in the Quarterfinals of Worlds 2025. Despite the series culminating in a loss, the match delivered a stellar showdown between two heavyweights of the scene, providing Peanut and all of his fans a worthy farewell. Peanut's Final Show: Two Titans Clash Unfortunately for Peanut, Hanwha Life Esports drew none other than Gen.G — a team that hasmore

Activision has just announced another free trial period for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 Multiplayer and Zombies, launching at the exact same time as EA’s brand-new Battlefield battle royale mode, REDSEC.​ The trial, live from October 28 through November 3, opens up nearly the entire multiplayer and Zombies package for anyone to jump in... right as the FPS community’s attention pivots towards REDSEC’s debut. Activision has already done something similar before, timing major free trial launches to coincide with Battlefield’s own milestones.more

After another busy week of nonstop Dota 2, the FISSURE PLAYGROUND 2 Group Stage has finally come to an end. It’s time to review how each team performed, who advanced to the Playoffs, and how these results compare to their recent performances in other tournaments. While the BLAST Slam IV introduced a more complex structure, FISSURE PLAYGROUND 2 opted for a straightforward and traditional approach. After the Group Stage, teams advance into a double-elimination bracket for the Playoffs — amore

NRG's coronation in Paris caps an end to the 2025 VCT season for the majority of teams. With it, comes the much-anticipated off-season and annual roster shuffles (aka Rostermania). While many pieces have yet to be confirmed as we remain in the early days of the off-season, several teams have begun making major moves. Follow Strafe Esports as we continue to track and follow how the 2026 season lineup will shape up. Last Updated: December 3rd VCT Americas G2 Esports Active Members: Trent "trent" Cairns Jacob "valyn" Batio Nathan "leaf" Orf Alexander "jawgemo" Mor Former Members: Andrej "babybay" Francisty Jonah "JonahP" Pulice Sentinels (ROSTER LOCKED) Activemore

Over the past weekend, VALORANT Tier 2 competitions around the world came to a conclusion. With it, we now have the six teams joining VCT 2026 to fight alongside the 40 partnered teams. Americas: ENVY is Back! The Americas Ascension was arguably the most interesting of all the tournaments. It featured an incredible storyline and a Grand Final between two premium North American organizations, ENVY and TSM, clashing on Brazilian soil. As the dust settled, the team that started asmore

The Counter-Strike community was rocked by serious allegations on October 26, 2025, when prominent skin trader MitaoCatCS publicly accused former professional player and Major champion Jake "Stewie2k" Yip of scamming them out of approximately $25,000 worth of skins. The accusation, posted on social media, has ignited fierce debate within the CS2 scene and cast a shadow over one of North America's most decorated players. Disclaimer: Gambling can be addictive and cause financial loss. Always gamble responsibly, staying within your limits.more

The reigning World Champions of T1 haven't had an easy path at Worlds 2025 so far. After getting through the Swiss Stage with a 3-2 record, T1 will now battle Anyone's Legend in the Playoffs for a spot in the Semifinals. Following T1's last match of the Swiss Stage, Strafe Esports had the chance to talk to Lee "Gumayusi" Min-hyeong for an exclusive interview. During the discussion, the T1 ADC spoke about the possibility of landing a third consecutive Worlds title, utilizing Fearless Draft, and what the team needs to work on to secure the trophy. [Strafe] Now that you're inmore

The Historical Foundation The Battle of Stalingrad was a turning point of World War II, fought between Russian and German forces on the Eastern Front. It lasted from August 23, 1942, to February 2, 1943, becoming one of the largest and bloodiest battles in history. Millions of soldiers fought and died in the streets, buildings, and ruins of the city. Call of Duty has revisited this brutal event in several of its World War II-era games. Each version captures amore

ENVY, after a relatively dominant Grand Finals, have emerged as the 2025 Ascension winner for the Americas region. Their victory in São Paulo may come as a surprise to some people who have not been following their journey closely. But for many, it is the return of a legacy North American esports brand to one of VALORANT’s biggest stages for 2026. Nearly Flawless Run Coming into Ascension, ENVY was no doubt the most talked-about name of the teams assembled. Their story and found success in the North American Tier 2 scene in 2025 had cemented their status as a strongmore

The Swiss Stage has come to a close at Worlds 2025, and the top 8 League of Legends teams on the planet will now head to the Playoffs for a chance at ultimate glory. But before we head into the Knockout Stage, it's time to take a look back at the most picked champions and other meta trends that defined the Swiss Stage this time around. K'Sante and Sion: Two Sides of the Same Coin? In the Top Lane, K'Sante and Sion were the two most picked champions of the Swiss Stage with 19 and 15 picks each. When it camemore

Now that the Swiss Stage is officially over, it's time to start making your playoffs picks at Worlds 2025! The Knockout Stage Pick'Ems are officially open, so let's take a look at how to make your picks and how you can better guide your selections for the best chance at scoring big rewards. Remember not to take too long to make your picks as the Knockout Stage predictions close on October 28th at 9:15 am CET with the start of themore

The final day of the Worlds 2025 Swiss Stage is behind us! That means we now have the final three teams qualified for the Knockout Stage—Top Esports, CTBC Flying Oysters, and T1. With that, the last three teams to exit the biggest stage of competition in the Swiss Stage were FlyQuest, Bilibili Gaming, and Movistar KOI. While not many expected KOI to make it to the Knockout Stage, the biggest surprises for fans of the game were the eliminations ofmore

Now that the Swiss Stage has drawn to a close, it's do-or-die time at Worlds 2025 as we head straight into the Playoffs. With the Quarterfinals matchups drawn, it's time to take a look at the playoffs bracket and the stunning clashes that are coming our way. The Worlds 2025 Quarterfinals are Set! We're down to the last 8 teams standing at Worlds 2025, and now we know our Quarterfinals matchups. With the bracket set, teams will know exactly what lies in their path to the title. This year's Worlds Playoffs kick off on Tuesday, October 28th, where a stellarmore

Team Vitality has officially announced the signing of Timofey "Chronicle" Khromov for the upcoming 2026 VALORANT Champions Tour season. The move was confirmed by both the player and the organization on X, sparking excitement across the EMEA scene. Chronicle, a three-time international champion, will now represent the Golden Hornets as he takes on a new challenge following a decorated stint with Fnatic. Chronicle’s Legacy with Fnatic Chronicle’s time with Fnatic, beginning in November 2022, was nothing short of legendary. Joiningmore

On October 22nd, Valve released one of the most disruptive updates to Counter-Strike 2. The update introduced an unexpected Red-to-Gold trade-up functionality that heavily affected the CS skins market. In the aftermath, the market lost $3 billion in valuation — 50% of its recent high — in less than 48 hours. Previously highly sought-after rare knives and gloves dropped up to 80% in value. On the surface, the update should mean cheaper knives and gloves for the majority of themore

Hearthstone's latest expansion, Across the Timeways, launches on November 4, 2025, bringing 145 new cards and two groundbreaking mechanics that promise to shake up the competitive scene. As the third expansion in the Year of the Raptor, this time-warping set pulls legendary Warcraft heroes from across different timelines into an epic showdown against Murozond, Lord of the Infinite.​ The Story Behind the Timeways At the expansion's heart lies Chromie, the Bronze Dragonflight's chronomancer who discovers that Murozond is manipulating allmore

The Counter-Strike 2 circuit is a living, breathing collection of tournaments all-year round, spanning multiple continents and countries. Even as we continue to ramp up for the remainder of 2025’s events, a bevy of tournaments already await us in the coming years. Let’s check out what 2026, 2027 and 2028 has in store for the Counter-Strike scene and event calendar. The following includes all major announced tournaments. We have done our best to match the information pertaining to those tournaments to the best of our abilities and will update accordingly if necessary. January 2026 Mythical LAN Las Vegas 2026 (fl0m)more

Blizzard Entertainment and NetEase-owned Thunder Fire Group have finally announced it: StarCraft II returns to mainland China! On October 28, 2025, the real-time strategy title completes Blizzard's phased comeback to the world's largest gaming market, following the earlier restoration of World of Warcraft, Hearthstone, Overwatch 2, and Diablo 3.​ A Bitter Split Reaches Resolution The announcement closes a turbulent chapter that began in November 2022 when Blizzard and NetEase failed to renew their 14-year publishing partnership. Chinese players lost accessmore

Just days after their elimination from Worlds 2025, Fnatic are already making moves in preparation for next season. First up, the team has announced they are parting ways with Mihael "Mikyx" Mehle, who is now free to explore his options. A Shocking Move Once a powerhouse of the European League of Legends scene, Fnatic haven't managed to lift an LEC title since 2018. After becoming the first team to exit the Swiss Stage at Worlds 2025, it was clear Fnatic was inmore

We have arrived at the final day of the Swiss Stage at Worlds 2025. Only three spots remain in the Quarterfinals, which means that every time a team takes the stage for a match now, it might be their last. The draw has been revealed for the last day of Swiss Stage matches, so let's have a look! Worlds 2025 Swiss Stage: Final Day Draw This is it. If the remaining teams in the Swiss Stage have any hopes of moving on to the playoffs at Worlds 2025, the time to lock in is now. The final day of themore