November VRS update sets the invite paths for BLAST Bounty Malta and PGL Cluj-Napoca
Valve's 2 November rankings decided invitations for the Singapore Major, BLAST Bounty in Malta and PGL Cluj-Napoca 2027. Here is how places, qualifiers and acceptance fees work, and the key dates ahead.
Valve's November 2026 Valve Regional Standings, published on 2 November, are the official cut-off for invitations to three of the biggest events on the CS2 calendar: the PGL Major Singapore, BLAST Bounty 2027 Season 1 in Malta and PGL Cluj-Napoca 2027.
The Major field is already settled, and the same ranking now shapes the start of the 2027 season. It decided the direct invitations, the regional qualifier places and even the acceptance payments for the January and February events. The qualifiers that fill the remaining places start this month.
Why the November ranking matters
Valve publishes the standings every month, and organisers pick a specific edition to base their invitations on. The November edition locked in the Singapore Major invitations after a month of second-tier LAN events, and both BLAST and PGL tied their early-2027 invitations to the same date. A team's position on 2 November therefore decided whether it went straight to a main event, into a closed qualifier or into the open qualifiers.
For the Major, the ranking shared out 32 places across three regions: 18 for Europe, nine for the Americas and five for Asia, spread over the three Swiss stages.
BLAST Bounty Season 1: Malta in January
BLAST Bounty 2027 Season 1 opens the year at BLAST Arena Studios in Ta' Qali, Malta, from 11 to 24 January. The field has been cut from 32 teams to 16, and the event is now played entirely on LAN, with no online stage. The prize pool is US$1,250,000.
Twelve teams were invited directly through the global ranking. The other four places come from closed regional qualifiers in Europe, North America, South America and Asia. Each of these qualifiers invites four teams through the regional standings and adds four more from open qualifiers, and all qualifying matches are played online. In total, 28 teams received invitations through the VRS.
Invited teams have until 13:00 UTC on 17 November to withdraw, and seeding will be set on 7 December. New for 2027, BLAST pays acceptance fees based on each team's ranking when it was invited, worth US$400,000 in total:
- Ranks 1-4: US$60,000 each
- Ranks 5-8: US$30,000 each
- Ranks 9-16: US$5,000 each
At the event, four double-elimination play-in groups of four decide the bracket. Group winners go straight to the quarter-finals carrying US$40,000 bounties. Teams finishing second and third drop into an eight-team Last Chance Qualifier for the four remaining playoff places, and fourth-placed teams are eliminated. The playoffs are single elimination and end with a best-of-five Grand Final.
PGL Cluj-Napoca 2027: invites sent, qualifier next
PGL Cluj-Napoca 2027 runs from 11 to 21 February, with the playoffs at the BTarena, which hosted the 2015 Major in the Romanian city. It is PGL's second event of 2027 and its third in Cluj-Napoca, following the 2025 and 2026 editions. Sixteen teams will compete for a US$1,000,000 prize pool, split equally between team prize money and club share, and the winner takes US$280,000.
Fourteen teams were invited directly from the global standings of 2 November. On top of the prize pool, PGL is offering US$300,000 in ranking bonuses: the top five teams in the standings each receive US$60,000 for accepting their invitations. Seeding for the main event will use the rankings of 1 February 2027.
The last two places go to a European closed qualifier from 15 to 18 November. It brings together six teams invited from the European standings and two from the open qualifiers. The qualifier is played online in a double-elimination bracket with no final, so the two teams left at the top of the bracket both qualify.
Key dates ahead
- 15-18 November 2026: PGL Cluj-Napoca European closed qualifier
- 17 November 2026, 13:00 UTC: BLAST Bounty withdrawal deadline
| Event | Dates | Venue | Teams | Direct VRS invites | Other places |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGL Major Singapore 2026 | 24 Nov - 13 Dec 2026 | Singapore (playoffs at Singapore Indoor Stadium) | 32 | 32 | None |
| BLAST Bounty 2027 Season 1 | 11-24 Jan 2027 | BLAST Arena Studios, Ta' Qali, Malta | 16 | 12 | 4 via regional closed qualifiers |
| PGL Cluj-Napoca 2027 | 11-21 Feb 2027 | BTarena, Cluj-Napoca | 16 | 14 | 2 via European closed qualifier |
Frequently asked questions
What is the Valve Regional Standings update used for?
Valve publishes the standings monthly, and organisers choose a specific edition as the reference for their invitations. The 2 November 2026 edition decided invitations for the PGL Major Singapore, BLAST Bounty 2027 Season 1 and PGL Cluj-Napoca 2027.
How do teams reach BLAST Bounty 2027 Season 1?
Twelve teams are invited directly through the global ranking, and four more come from closed regional qualifiers in Europe, North America, South America and Asia. Each closed qualifier has four teams invited through the regional standings and four from open qualifiers.
When is the PGL Cluj-Napoca 2027 qualifier?
The European closed qualifier runs online from 15 to 18 November 2026. Six invited teams and two open-qualifier teams play a double-elimination bracket, and the top two reach the main event.
Do teams get paid for accepting invitations?
Yes. BLAST pays US$60,000 to teams ranked 1-4, US$30,000 to ranks 5-8 and US$5,000 to ranks 9-16. At PGL Cluj-Napoca, the top five ranked teams each receive US$60,000 for accepting.