CS2 Season 3 release date made clear with Season 2 ending set

Valve has revealed the official end date for Counter-Strike 2 Premier season 2, making clear that the season 3 start date will be just around the corner.

In September 2023, Valve introduced a major shift in how updates are delivered to CS2 by launching its first seasonal content model. Season 1 debuted with the new Armory Pass system, and the follow-up with season 2 made it clear that Valve would be moving away from unpredictable updates. Instead, the new seasonal format gives players a clearer roadmap for new updates and content, allowing them to track these changes and look forward to planned major content drops.

Now that we have an official date for the end of season 2, we naturally know the CS2 season 3 release date.

When is CS2 season 3 starting?

According to the official CS2 page, Season 2 will wrap up on July 14, which means the next CS2 season will start between July 15 and 16.

Considering that season 1 ended on January 28 and season 2 began on January 29, clear that the next season to launch on July 15, following the conclusion of season 2. Notably, Valve often pushes major updates on Tuesdays, making the July 15 date, which falls on a Tuesday, even more apparent.

That means players hoping to earn a season 2 medal should consider jumping back in now rather than risk waiting any longer, especially if their in-game rating is currently inactive. Ineligible players won’t receive a medal for the season, but the good news is that if your rating was already activated and has since lapsed due to inactivity, you can reactivate it by simply winning one game.

Players still hungry for Cache in CS2

While Valve hasn’t yet confirmed the exact release date for Cache being added to CS2, players and fans alike are now speculating that it may be released in season 3, possibly as soon as the new season’s launch in mid-July.

Valve recently purchased popular Counter-Strike Cache from original creator FMPONE, which suggests that the developer aims to add it to the game’s active pool at some point in the future. However, Cache may still not be added as soon as in season 3, considering Valve released the newly-remade version of Train just five months ago in January. It’s not typical for Valve to update the competitive map pool within the space of just a few short months, as major map rotations usually happen with longer gaps to allow the player base to adjust and for the competitive meta to settle.