Berlin, Germany, January 19, 2026 BIG opened the 2026 season with an outstanding weekend across our Counter-Strike projects: our CS2 main team lifted its first trophy with the newly rebuilt roster, BIG Academy advanced into the IEM Rio 2026 Closed Qualifier, and our women team BIG EQUIPA secured a main event spot for the upcoming JB Pro League Female Season 1.
Just days after unveiling key roster upgrades, the CS2 lineup delivered immediate results by winning Roman Imperium Cup IV in Portugal.
First week – First trophy 🏆
We are your Roman Imperium Cup IV Champions 🔥
🇩🇰 @blameFFFFF
🇩🇪 @tabseNcs
🇩🇪 @JDC_CS
🇩🇪 @faven
🇧🇾 @gr1ks24🇩🇪 @xenncs2 (C)
🇩🇪 @tizianCS (AC) pic.twitter.com/Ra674sqq8k— BIG (@BIGCLANgg) January 18, 2026
Individually, Benjamin “blameF” Bremer, who recently joined BIG from fnatic, led the event with an exceptional 1.60 rating across the tournament run. The early performances from our new core are exactly the kind of foundation we aimed to create going into 2026.
Won Roman Emperium Cup, super happy to win my first tournament with @BIGCLANgg 🥰 i feel super comfortable in this team and I am very lucky that all the guys is trusting me and gave me such a warm welcome to the team 🥰❤️ pic.twitter.com/lMe80Vcr1U
— Benjamin Vang Bremer (@blameFFFFF) January 18, 2026
The positive weekend continued on the development side: BIG Academy finished 1st 4th in the IEM Rio 2026 Open Qualifier, earning a place in the IEM Rio 2026 Closed Qualifier. The Closed Qualifier is scheduled for January 21–23, 2026.
Completing the weekend, BIG EQUIPA secured a Main Event slot for JB Pro League Female Season 1 through Open Qualifier #1, finishing 2nd (Main Event qualification) according to the qualifier’s published results.
Absolutely insane weekend for us 🔥
Main team winning in Portugal 🏆
Academy secures Rio closed Quals ✅
Equipa secures JB Pro League Group Stage ✅ pic.twitter.com/mxY1EhL5hv— BIG (@BIGCLANgg) January 18, 2026
Links & coverage
- HLTV: BIG take Roman Imperium Cup IV title
https://www.hltv.org/news/43663/big-take-roman-imperium-cup-iv-title - HLTV: IEM Rio 2026 Open Qualifier (BIG Academy 1–4th / Closed Qualifier spot)
https://www.hltv.org/events/8900/iem-rio-2026-open-qualifier - HLTV: IEM Rio 2026 Closed Qualifier (Jan 21–23)
https://www.hltv.org/events/8899/iem-rio-2026-closed-qualifier - JB Pro League Female OQ #1 results (Main Event qualification)
https://egamersworld.com/counterstrike/event/jb-pro-league-female-2026-1-open-qualifier-1-9kuCOAayN - BIG IG Post
https://www.instagram.com/p/DTqn-bJjBHJ/?igsh=enZha2k5M3pvcGw4
