Valve has not published the Singapore Major's Pick'Em rules yet, so this guide is based on how the challenge worked at IEM Cologne 2026. When the Singapore hub opens, check it for changes.
How It Works
The Pick'Em Challenge lives in the Major Hub inside Counter-Strike 2, which Valve introduced for the Cologne Major in late May 2026. You make predictions before each stage, and an active Viewer Pass is required for them to count toward rewards. The pass is a paid item in Valve's store, and browsing the hub without one does not earn anything.
With an active pass you get a Major coin that starts at Bronze. Reaching the pick target in a stage upgrades it, through Silver and Gold to Diamond. Valve said that each upgrade gave 300 tokens redeemable for stickers or souvenirs. There is also a leaderboard for active pass holders where you can compare your results with friends.
The Ten Slots
In each Swiss stage you fill ten slots. You pick two teams to go 3-0, six teams to advance, and two teams to go 0-3. The six advance picks must finish 3-1 or 3-2. Getting five of the ten right completes that stage's challenge. When the playoffs start, the format changes to seven bracket picks: four quarterfinals, two semifinals, and the final.
The Slot Trap
This is the mistake that costs the most points. According to games.gg, an advance pick earns nothing if that team finishes 3-0, because a perfect run belongs in the separate 3-0 slot. The team made the next stage, and you still get no credit for it.
That means your best team is both your safest advance pick and your biggest risk. If a dominant favorite wins every match, a pick in the advance slot is wasted, while a pick in a 3-0 slot would have scored.
The Math of Random Picks
In a 16-team Swiss stage, three wins advance and three losses eliminate, and the final records always fall the same way. Two teams finish 3-0, three finish 3-1, three finish 3-2, three finish 2-3, three finish 1-3, and two finish 0-3.
That lets us work out what random picking would earn. A random 3-0 pick has a 2 in 16 chance, and so does a 0-3 pick. A random advance pick has a 6 in 16 chance, since six teams finish 3-1 or 3-2. Across ten picks, that averages about 2.75 correct. This is my own calculation, and it assumes you picked distinct teams at random, which nobody does. Still, it shows that the 5-of-10 target takes real knowledge, not luck.
Mistakes to Avoid
Do not put all your favorites in the advance slots, because the best team in the stage may well go 3-0. Do not load the 0-3 slots with obvious weak teams without thinking, since only two teams go winless and the weakest on paper do not always manage it. Fill all ten slots, because in past Majors, placing all ten picks before the stage began counted as its own challenge. Remember that picks lock before a stage starts, so decide early.
Skipping a stage will not stop you from picking later, but at Cologne every challenge had to be completed for the Diamond coin, so one missed stage puts it out of reach.
Why Upsets Matter Here
Majors have a way of punishing confident picks. At IEM Rio 2022, the defending champions FaZe and Ninjas in Pyjamas both finished 15th to 16th. Outsiders, ranked 13th by HLTV's own power rankings, won the whole event. Build your picks with that in mind. A bracket with only favorites is a bracket with no room for chaos.
Singapore at a Glance
The PGL Major Singapore has 32 teams across three Swiss stages. Stage 1 runs from November 24 to 27 with 16 teams. Stage 2 follows from November 28 to December 1, and Stage 3 runs December 3 to 9, with the playoffs from December 10 to 13 at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. Sources disagree slightly on the start date, with some giving November 24 and others November 25, so check PGL's schedule. The prize pool is $1,250,000, with $500,000 for the champion, and it will be the first Major to include a best-of-three third-place decider.
All invitations come from Valve's regional standings of November 2. Third-party sites suggest the Pick'Em page opened about 12 days before recent Majors, which would mean around November 13, but only Valve's announcement sets the date.
Test Your Read on the Field
Predicting a Major is part knowledge, part humility. The mini games on CS Guess test the first part, covering prices, rarity, and the history behind this game, with free perks for playing well.
Head over to CS Guess and see how much of this scene you know.
