All-Women's CS2! 2025 ESL Impact Tour Schedule, Prize Pool
Counter-Strike 2's ESL Impact circuit will bring the best all-women teams together in intense international competition. New information about the tournament's 2025 season is here — let's explore everything we know about ESL Impact 2025 including its important dates, format, key information and more.
What Is Counter-Strike's ESL Impact Circuit?
Counter-Strike 2's ESL Impact circuit is an all-women pro tournament that aims to elevate women in Counter-Strike esports. The circuit was founded as part of esports organizer and production company ESL's #GGFORALL initiative in 2022, which strives to "tackle discrimination, promote mental wellbeing and progress environmental sustainability in esports."
ESL FaceIt's Counter-Strike 2 Product Manager and Game Ecosystems head Charlie Sirc commented about the event, saying:
When we initially launched the circuit in 2022, we could not have anticipated the incredible talent that would emerge within the women’s Counter-Strike scene [...] At EFG, we remain fully committed to fostering a safe and supportive environment where these players can thrive, compete, and grow. ESL Impact has set the bar for women’s esports, and we’re thrilled to see publishers and tournament organizers across the industry follow in our footsteps and find their own ways to support historically marginalized competitors.
- Charlie Sirc, ESL FaceIt Group
ESL Impact and #GGFORALL are also dedicating 700,000 USD towards "sustainably supporting teams with women’s esports programs and driving increased engagement across the ESL Impact ecosystem" in 2025. These funds are allocated based on competitive ranked standings, team visibility and content creation efforts.
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Counter-Strike 2 ESL Impact 2025: Key Info
The 2025 ESL Impact circuit will have a cumulative 300,000 USD prize pool. The tournament is split into two Seasons (Season 7 and Season 8) which occur separately. It includes participants from three regions: Europe, North America and South America.
Each 2025 ESL Impact season will conclude in a Global Finals event that occurs in front of a live audience. Season 7's Global Finals will take place in Dallas, Texas at the Dreamhack Dallas expo. Season 8's Global Finals will occur in Stockholm, Sweden. The Global Finals will each have a 150,000 USD prize pool and crown the year's best all-women Counter-Strike 2 team out of eight finalists.
Counter-Strike 2 ESL Impact 2025 Format
The 2025 ESL Impact year-long circuit is split into two individual seasons. Season 7 will last from January to May 2025, while Season 8 will last from August to November 2025. Aside from their different dates, each season's format is identical and spans three different stages. It's worth noting that the ESL Impact format has slightly shifted to accommodate overall Counter-Strike esports guidelines which require two slots to be provided for each of the game's competitive regions.
First, teams will compete in two Open Qualifiers. There are two Open Qualifiers segments available in each Season. Teams from each Counter-Strike ESL Impact region (Europe, North America and South America) will organize into their local Qualifiers and the top twelve will secure a place in the main competitive season.
During ESL Impact's main season, the 28 strongest teams will progress through online tournaments. The top eight teams (four from Europe, two from North America and two from South America) will progress to the Grand Finals. Each Grand Final event will occur live, meaning fans can attend and watch their favorite players compete on the Counter-Strike battlefield.
More information will emerge as the tournament circuit draws closer about specific bracketing, seeding and progression decisions.
Counter-Strike 2 ESL Impact Dates
Counter-Strike's 2025 ESL Impact schedule will begin on January 31 2025 and end on November 30 2025. Season 7 will occur from January 31 to May 25 2025, and Season 8 will follow from August 15 2025 to November 30 2025. For more in-depth information including dates for each individual stage (Open Qualifiers, main season and Grand Finals), check the helpful list below.
All ESL Impact 2025 Dates and Stages
Season 7
- Season 7 Open Qualifiers 1: January 31-February 2 2025
- Season 7 Open Qualifiers 2: February 4-6 2023
- Season 7 ESL Impact: February 26-April 13 2025
- Season 7 ESL Impact Grand Finals: May 23-25 2025
Season 8
- Season 8 Open Qualifiers 1: August 15-17 2025
- Season 8 Open Qualifiers 2: August 22-24 2025
- Season 8 ESL Impact: September 10-October 26 2025
- Season 8 ESL Impact Grand Finals: November 28-30 2025
Where to Watch ESL Impact 2025
ESL has not announced any official streaming platforms for ESL Impact 2025, but the season will most likely be broadcast on their main Twitch channel @ESLCS_GG. In addition, ESL Impact tournaments have previously been streamed live on the ESL Counter-Strike B YouTube account here.
