The organizers have officially presented ZOWIE eXTREMESLAND CS Asia Open 2026 — a major Asian tournament with regional qualifiers for players from more than 40 countries. The qualifiers will start at the end of September, while the final LAN stage will take place in China from December 16 to 20.
12 teams will play at the main LAN
The main tournament will bring together 12 teams. Eight spots will go to the winners of regional qualifiers, while four more rosters will be invited directly by the organizers through the Asian VRS. The Main Event itself has the status of a Tier 2 Ranked Tournament, and its main prize pool will be $150,000.
The VRS invites will be distributed on November 2 based on the Asian ranking current at that time. At the same time, teams that are in the top 12 of Global VRS will not be able to receive such an invite. The organizers will move down the Asian list until all four invited rosters are determined.
The qualifiers will cover eight regions
The eight LAN spots will be contested by China, Mongolia, Oceania, Central Asia, Southeast Asia, Japan and South Korea, South Asia, and the Middle East. The first open qualifier will start on September 25 in the Middle Eastern region, after which the qualification cycle will continue until mid-November.
Formats will depend on the specific region. Some stages will be held fully online, while Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Vietnam, India, Japan, and South Korea will receive separate LAN stages. Each of the eight regions will ultimately determine only one representative for the main tournament.
Japan and South Korea were merged into one region
One of the main changes this year was the merger of Japan and South Korea into one joint qualification region. Both countries will hold their own open qualifiers on October 17–18, and the winners will meet on October 24 in a Closed Qualifier for the single spot at the Main Event.
The Japanese and South Korean Open Qualifiers will be able to accept up to 64 teams each. All matches will be played in a Bo3 format, while the finals of the national qualifiers will take place on LAN. The teams that finish second will play a separate match for third place in the regional qualifier on October 25.
The Main Event will be played in three stages
All eight winners of the regional qualifiers will compete in the first stage. They will be divided into two GSL groups of four teams each: the opening matches and winners’ matches will be played in Bo1, while elimination and decider matches will be Bo3. The two best teams from each group will advance further.
In the second stage, the four winners of the first stage will be joined by four direct VRS invites. The format again features two GSL groups, after which four participants will remain. They will then contest the title in a single-elimination playoff, where all series will be played in Bo3.
The total prize pool will be $162,000
In addition to the $150,000 at the main LAN, each of the eight regional qualifiers will receive $1,500 in prize money. At the Main Event, the champion will earn $70,000, the finalist will receive $30,000, and the teams in 3rd–4th place will get $10,000 each.
The organizers will also cover flights and accommodation for six representatives of each team that receives a confirmed LAN slot. Separate warmup areas will be provided for all participants, and if necessary, the tournament will provide visa support.
The tournament will close the Asian season in December
The main stage of ZOWIE eXTREMESLAND CS Asia Open 2026 is scheduled for December 16–20 in China, while the organizers will announce the specific venue later. The map pool will include Ancient, Anubis, Cache, Dust II, Inferno, Mirage, and Nuke, although the list may change together with the official Active Duty Map Pool.
Thus, eXTREMESLAND will have a much broader qualification system this year: eight regional winners will pass through the first stage, while the four strongest available teams by Asian VRS will start directly from the second stage. This creates a separate path both for young regional rosters and for already established Asian teams with a high ranking.
