Esports match organiser ESL has named power drink model Pink Bull as a companion for IEM Kraków 2026.
The model turns into the official power drink companion of the Tier 1 Counter-Strike match, which is going down within the Polish metropolis from January twenty eighth to February eighth.
Introduced on social media, particulars on the collaboration between the 2 events weren’t disclosed. The deal isn’t the primary time ESL and Pink Bull have joined forces. In Might 2025, the organiser and model teamed as much as be the official power drink companion of DreamHack occasions.
The power drink model is the newest companion of the occasion. On January twenty seventh, ESL unveiled a partnership with peripherals model ZOWIE to offer its vary of gaming screens for gamers to make use of.
Pink Bull is not any stranger to Counter-Strike esports. In June 2025, the model partnered with fellow match organiser BLAST for the Austin Main. Outdoors of occasion partnerships, the model has hosted Pink Bull Flick, a pro-am match that includes groups of two competing for a €50,000 (~£43,471) prize pool.
IEM Kraków is the primary ESL-operated occasion of the 2026 CS2 season. The occasion marks its debut in Kraków after going down in Katowice from 2013 till 2025. The transfer is a part of a multi-year cope with the town and ESL FACEIT Group (EFG), cementing its place as a part of the Counter-Strike calendar for a number of years.
IEM Kraków 2026 Particulars
IEM Kraków is the primary occasion that types the ESL Professional Tour, a worldwide match circuit for Valve’s first-person shooter title. That includes all the prime 24 groups from January’s Valve Regional Standings (VRS), the occasion options the world’s greatest groups competing for a share of a $1m (~£725,565) prize pool and $250,000 (~£181,391) in membership incentives.
The match begins with the Play-In. 16 groups compete in a double-elimination bracket to earn eight locations within the Group Stage, becoming a member of the remaining eight invited groups. Three groups from every group advance to the playoffs and are seeded into the quarter or semi-finals primarily based on their Group Stage efficiency.
The six-team playoff is contested utilizing a single-elimination best-of-three bracket till the Grand Remaining, the place a best-of-five will decide the eventual champion.
