The latest Counter-Strike 2 Major is about to hit as IEM Cologne 2026 approaches on the horizon, and developer Valve has some big changes in store regarding in-game stickers and the Major storefront compared to prior events.
CS2 Majors are a celebration for all of the game’s players and fans, and in-game cosmetics and goods have long been a part of that. The presence of stickers featuring team and player branding goes back many years now, with the rarest among them being worth quite a bit more than the capsules they came from.
Speaking of capsules, they’re gone this year. Valve is overhauling the its Major shop, and these are the key details players and fans need to know as the event in Cologne gets underway.
How to purchase IEM Cologne 2026 stickers
Unlike in years past, stickers for the IEM Cologne 2026 Major will be available for purchase directly rather than through random draw via in-game capsules. That’s a big change from years past, when stickers were only available through what were essentially controversial loot boxes, unless they were purchased them directly from other players on the Steam Marketplace.
Valve claims that the change is in response to to player demand to be able to purchase desired stickers directly. The publisher also admits that laws in some regions preventing the sale of capsules, given their essential similarity to loot boxes, had something to do with the decision.
Valve would likely prefer to continue gating stickers behind it random capsule draws, incentivizing players to pull again and again in search of their favorite players and teams. But the prospect of not being able to sell capsules in some valued regions may have outweighed that desire for the gaming giant.
That doesn’t mean these stickers will be without their own controversies, however. While all CS2 stickers associated with the IEM Cologne 2026 Major will initially be priced the same, Valve will then adjust the pricing for each sticker based on market demand.
This means that stickers involved top teams and players are likely to grow expensive quickly, while those that feature lesser-known players and teams could be relatively cheap.
What’s more, players will only be able to purchase stickers using in-game tokens. Valve claims here that this is down to such factors as it not being fair for players to refund sticker purchases, given that these purchases will have a direct effect on the market value of those digital goods. Of course, this is a “problem” that is entirely of Valve’s own making, and it’s not hard to otherwise understand why the company would like to force players to use its owned token currency rather than cash.
It is worth mentioning that players will at least be able to refund token purchases, so long as they haven’t yet spent those tokens on any digital goods on Steam.
How to get weapon Souvenir skins during IEM Cologne 2026
One less controversial change is the added ability for players to convert their weapon skins into Souvenir skins during IEM Cologne 2026. To do so, players need only select a player from a completed match at the Major, and assign the change to their desired weapon.
There are some things to keep in mind in doing so. First, only Normal and Souvenir skins may be converted to IEM Cologne 2026 Souvenir weapons. Second, any stickers already applied to a chosen skin will be wiped out in favor of the new cosmetics, so be sure that you aren’t throwing your best CS2 skins and stickers into the mix.
It’s also notable that these sales will go towards both event organizers and the teams competing at IEM Cologne 2026. One change to that formula is that top-ranked teams in Valve’s VRS point system will actually receive more money than lower-ranked teams, and the same will apply after the event’s conclusion based on the final standings at the Major.
In this way, it seems that the rich will be getting richer, while struggling teams will continue to fight for relative scraps.
