The organizers of StarLadder have announced the first teams that will compete in the StarSeries Fall 2026 tournament. The list of invited teams includes four top-tier organizations: Vitality, Natus Vincere, FURIA, and MOUZ.
The tournament, with a total prize pool of $500,000, will be held as a LAN event in Europe from September 17 to 20, 2026. However, StarLadder has not yet revealed the exact venue—all that is known is that the event will take place in one of the Schengen Area countries.
This year’s roster of participants looks significantly stronger than at the previous StarSeries Fall. Last season, only one team from the world’s top 20—NAVI—competed among the top-tier teams. It was the Ukrainian organization that went on to win the tournament and claim the championship trophy.
Four more spots in the main stage of StarSeries Fall 2026 will be decided through closed qualifiers. Two teams will advance from the European qualifiers, and one participant each will be determined in North and South America. The qualifying matches will begin in late July.
The current list of participants is as follows:
- Vitality — direct invite
- Natus Vincere — direct invite
- FURIA — direct invite
- MOUZ — direct invite
- Europe — qualifiers (2 spots)
- North America — qualifiers (1 spot)
- South America — qualifiers (1 spot)
StarLadder’s Business Director, Xeozor, also commented on the return of StarSeries and the announcement of the fall tournament. According to him, this brand means much more to the organization than just the name of a single competition.
“StarSeries is much more than just a tournament brand. Under this name, StarLadder has hosted over 40 major international tournaments in Counter-Strike, Dota 2, Hearthstone, PUBG, and League of Legends since 2012,” the company representative noted.
Over the years, StarLadder has hosted StarSeries events in various countries around the world, including China, the U.S., Turkey, and Hungary. At the same time, the largest number of StarSeries tournaments took place in Kyiv—the organization’s hometown.
Xeozor specifically highlighted NAVI’s role in the brand’s history. The Ukrainian esports organization remains the most successful team in StarSeries history, having won 12 championship titles across various disciplines.
Counter-Strike holds a special place in the series’ history. This discipline has become the cornerstone of StarSeries’ legacy: over the course of 14 years, the brand has hosted 20 tournament seasons and organized competitions in five countries around the world.
“This year, like true esports necromancers, we’re continuing to bring StarSeries back to life. It may be in a studio format for now, but it already features some of the world’s best teams,” said Xeozor.
At the same time, StarLadder doesn’t plan to stop at the studio format. The organization sees the next step as bringing StarSeries back to large arenas—to live audiences, packed stands, and new host cities.
“The legacy continues. But our biggest and most important dream is that one day, the next chapter in StarSeries’ history will be written back home—in Ukraine,” concluded StarLadder’s business director.