Valve is currently working on bringing a breath of fresh air to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, also known as CS:GO, with the upcoming Counter-Strike 2. With its release date approaching, Valve has announced a series of new rules for competitive league tournaments.

Franchise leagues will be banned in Counter-Strike 2!

Valve is making a significant rule change for competitive tournaments. The company has revealed some of these new rules, indicating that there will be a notable shift in tournaments with the arrival of Counter-Strike 2.

According to the rules announced by Valve, franchise leagues will be banned with the introduction of Counter-Strike 2. For those unfamiliar, franchise leagues refer to tournaments where esports teams pay a participation fee to be included.

However, the most-watched leagues like ESL Pro League and BLAST, where teams pay to participate, are exempt from this rule change. Instead, teams will be invited to tournaments based on Valve’s ranking system and determined through open qualifiers.

Additionally, Valve has declared that in competitive tournaments, payments to teams, in other words, prize money, will be required to be publicly disclosed. This transparency move will also make team bonus payments visible.

These new rules announced by Valve will become effective starting in 2025 to allow franchise tournaments with existing long-term contracts to make adjustments and changes accordingly. This means there is a grace period for these leagues to comply with the new regulations.

Counter-Strike 2, which will be released as an update for the existing CS:GO, is expected to launch in the coming weeks. The new game will bring many innovations along with it.

With Valve’s new rules, major leagues will undergo significant changes. What are your thoughts on this matter? Do you find the company’s move reasonable for the leagues? Feel free to share your opinions with us in the comments section below.