QL European Nations Cup opens Sunday with 11-team Swiss CTF tournament
Update, September 16: Russia has joined the CTF tournament, expanding the field to 11 teams. The original two-group round-robin format has been replaced by five Swiss rounds.
The Quake Live European Nations Cup — Fall 2026 begins on Sunday, September 20, with an 11-team 4v4 CTF tournament. The opening round starts at 13:00 UTC, with the Grand Final scheduled for 20:35 UTC.
Organized through the House of Quake community, the Nations Cup consists of three one-day competitions. CTF will be followed by Duel on September 27 and TDM on October 4. Teams will collect points from their results in all three modes, with the combined standings deciding the overall Nations Cup champion.
Format:
All 11 teams will play five rounds under the Swiss system. The opening round was seeded in advance based on the average CTF rating of each team's four highest-rated players. Pairings for Rounds 2–5 will be determined live from the current standings.
After five rounds, the top four teams will advance to the playoffs. The first-placed team will face fourth place in one semifinal, while second place will meet third place in the other. The semifinal winners will then play in the Grand Final.
Round 1:
Full schedule:
Map pool:
Team rosters:
The Quake Live European Nations Cup — Fall 2026 begins on Sunday, September 20, with an 11-team 4v4 CTF tournament. The opening round starts at 13:00 UTC, with the Grand Final scheduled for 20:35 UTC.
Organized through the House of Quake community, the Nations Cup consists of three one-day competitions. CTF will be followed by Duel on September 27 and TDM on October 4. Teams will collect points from their results in all three modes, with the combined standings deciding the overall Nations Cup champion.
Format:
All 11 teams will play five rounds under the Swiss system. The opening round was seeded in advance based on the average CTF rating of each team's four highest-rated players. Pairings for Rounds 2–5 will be determined live from the current standings.
After five rounds, the top four teams will advance to the playoffs. The first-placed team will face fourth place in one semifinal, while second place will meet third place in the other. The semifinal winners will then play in the Grand Final.
Round 1:
- UK vs France
- Denmark vs Sweden #1
- Benelux vs Czech Republic
- Poland vs Russia
- Germany vs Sweden #2
Full schedule:
- 13:00 UTC–14:05 UTC — Round 1
- 14:10 UTC–15:15 UTC — Round 2
- 15:20 UTC–16:25 UTC — Round 3
- 16:30 UTC–17:35 UTC — Round 4
- 17:40 UTC–18:10 UTC — Dinner break
- 18:15 UTC–19:20 UTC — Round 5
- 19:25 UTC–20:30 UTC — Semifinals: 1st vs 4th and 2nd vs 3rd
- 20:35 UTC–21:45 UTC — Grand Final
Map pool:
- Spider Crossings
- Japanese Castles
- Infinity
- Troubled waters
- Ironworks
Team rosters:
- UK: Drayan, knz, lithz, rasharn, fo_tbh, sno
- Sweden #1: SPART1E, Knetic, icemen, ani, jensa
- Sweden #2: bl4jnd, stickan, purri, fresARN
- Benelux: apex, Grandbolus, ion, dem0n
- Spain: Baldur, cham, Chet0, Lokario, re4
- Czech Republic: Manty, fr0z, Needy, Dlbq the Firm, rindo
- Denmark: enesy, jcb, Juven1le, PULZ, laaars
- Germany: oddi, mezz, Osnart, k1llsen, pengelephant, eddiiii
- Poland: lihensior, kirson, lumi, PYTON, dehumazineR, spooky
- France: HEADZ, l1nkin, Lanf3ust, unity, eki, ioRek
- Russia: latrommi, pavel, cherepoff, 102ash, rell
