Esports News
Call of Duty World Champion SlasheR Announces Retirement After Just 2 Matches of 2026 Season
COD veteran Austin “SlasheR” Liddicoat, the oldest player in the Call of Duty League (CDL), has officially announced his retirement from competitive play, almost 13 years after his first event. SlasheR was once heralded as one of the greatest Assault Rifle players to...
Brazil Gives Final Approval On Reduced Gambling Tax Increase
Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Lula) has approved a rise in gambling tax in the country. The new rate will increase in stages, up to 13% this year, then to 14% next year, before a final rise to 15% in 2028. The final rate of 15% is less than the...
Sources: Nium to Sign for LA Thieves Call of Duty Team After Carolina Royal Ravens U-Turn
According to Esports.net sources, Jeremiah “Nium” Harrison is set to sign for the LA Thieves in the Call of Duty League (CDL), following an incredibly quick U-turn as the Challengers star was all set to join Carolina Royal Ravens. LA Thieves have had a fairly good...
Esports Nations Cup 2026 Reveals Format, Qualification & National Team Rules
The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) has revealed more concrete details about the Esports Nations Cup 2026, confirming how the new global competition will work and how countries will qualify for its debut later this year. Set to launch in Riyadh in November 2026,...
Twitch Streamer Forsen Joins Pro League of Legends Team Despite Being Hardstuck Plat
It’s been announced that Hans “Forsen” Fors (yes, Twitch streamer Forsen) will be joining a tier 2 League of Legends pro team in Europe. If he can qualify, that is. Streamer dream teams are nothing new in League of Legends. Caedrel’s team Los Ratones actually worked...
The Troubled First Year of Counter-Strike’s VRS System According to The Analysts
Counter-Strike in 2025 saw the death of ESL and BLAST-owned partner systems in favour of a Valve-mandated VRS system, and it’s safe to say it was anything but a clean transition. From issues with cores at the start of the year that saw M80 miss out on invites due to...
HECZ Claims Call of Duty League Blocked Near-$1m OpTic Sponsor Deal
OpTic Gaming CEO Hector “HECZ” Rodriguez has claimed that the Call of Duty League blocked a sponsorship deal worth close to $1 million that would have placed a brand logo directly on the team’s skin in-game. Speaking in an interview with The Flank’s Ben Nissim, Hecz...
Counter-Strike Twitch Viewership Thrived in 2025 as Other Leading Esports Struggled
Counter-Strike 2 emerged as one of Twitch’s biggest success stories of 2025, standing out in a year where many of esports’ most established titles saw sharp declines across almost every major viewership metric. Counter-Strike accumulated 770 million hours watched in...
Colorado’s Ute Tribes Appeal To Higher Court In Argument Over Online Betting
Colorado’s Southern Ute and Ute Mountain Ute tribes have filed an appeal in federal court against a ruling that denies them the right to offer online sports betting through their tribal compacts. In October, U.S. District Court Judge Gordon Gallagher dismissed a...