The Valve Regional Standings, also known commonly as Valve rankings or VRS, are the primary factor that determines which CS2 teams go the illustrious Majors. In previous years, Major participants were determined by the results of prior Majors and/or RMR qualifier events. But under the new system as of 2025, it’s VRS over anything else.
Checking out pro CS2 for the first time or returning after a while? Here’s a full breakdown of the Valve Regional Standings used in Counter-Strike 2.
What are the Valve Regional Standings?
The Valve Regional Standings are four sets of rankings for CS2 teams: one global standings, and three regional standings. Each of the regional standings ranks the teams from the three primary CS2 regions: Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific.
The standings themselves rank teams based on their performances in ranked tournaments and matches. Each match played features several different factors that determine how a match affects a team’s standing. The primary factors are the result of the match, strength of opponent, weight (importance) of an event, and recency. These rankings are updated weekly, usually on Mondays.
How are the Valve Regional Standings used?
Valve Regional Standings are used to determine invites to tournaments and tournament qualifiers. For the more prestigious events, organizers will use the global standings to determine who’s invited to the event. Tournament organizers will also use the regional standings to invite teams to regional closed qualifiers.
As mentioned above, the Valve Regional Standings influence which teams are invited to the Major. Specifically, the Major uses the regional rankings and the regional results of the previous Major to decide how many teams from each region are invited and what stage they start in.
For example, at the upcoming BLAST.tv Austin Major, the top six European teams according to the VRS will be invited directly to Stage 3, alongside the number one ranked teams from Americas and Asia-Pacific. The regional rankings will also determine which teams from each region are invited to Stage 2, and which ones that will be invited to the closed regional qualifiers.
Where are the Valve Regional Standings?
The Valve Regional Standings are hosted on a GitHub page operated by Valve. From the main page, click on either the invitation or live folder, go to the current year, and select the regional standings page with the most current date. Sites like HLTV and BLAST also host the global and regional rankings, and update them each week.
Are the VRS good for the CS2 esports scene? Let us know what you think down below or in the official Insider Gaming forums.
Check out more of the latest esports news, and don’t forget to sign up for our weekly newsletter.
SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter
No replies yet
Loading new replies...
Join the full discussion at the Insider Gaming Forums →