After launching the product in 2022, ESL have announced that their women’s Counter-Strike 2 league ESL Impact will be suspended after the culmination of its eighth season.
Online play for the season is set to come to an end later this month, with the potential final, Finals to be played at the end of November during DreamHack Stockholm.
Impact to Come to an End After Season 8
In their announcement post regarding the closure of the league, ESL said that the “current economic model is simply not sustainable.” Although this is “despite significant investment.”
The future of ESL Impact: pic.twitter.com/nul6ReGGo0
— ESL Impact (@ESLImpact) October 3, 2025
They added that they will “continue to support the community,” although they haven’t yet said anything on what that support may be.
A tournament circuit that was announced under the tagline “GG for all,” many tier one CS organizations were initially involved with the project. However, over time, big names such as NAVI, VP, and G2 all pulled out.
ESL did try to combat this by adding club incentives surrounding content made by the organizations. However, this wasn’t enough to entice the organizations back to the circuit, nor was it enough to boost its viewership.
Vilga, one of the most successful ESL Impact players with four season victories, put out a statement on behalf of NIP Impact, saying that “This departure leaves a gap that cannot be overstated,” and calling on others “to step forward and invest in this community.”
Vilga was one of the most successful players in ESL Impact, winning four seasons of the event. Image Credit: ESL
The closure of the circuit has caused some controversy, something that the circuit isn’t unfamiliar with. Although prize pools have steadily increased — Season 5 had a $123,000 prizepool compared to $223,000 for Season 8 — the circuit has shrunk in size, with the South American and North American regions being merged, whilst APAC was removed altogether.
Players and talent have already begun to share their immediate reactions to the news. Many of these figures are shocked or saddened, but ultimately understanding of ESL’s position as a business that they can’t support the circuit forever if it doesn’t give them any return on investment. They have also stressed that it will not be the end for the scene and that ESL Impact has been a place for the players to grow in terms of skill.