FACEIT League Season 8 will kick-off shortly after OWCS 2026 Open Qualifiers have concluded! In this article we will be providing further clarity for what teams participating in Master Division, or aspiring to, should expect for the upcoming Season. Please also review the OWCS 2026 Competitive Memo containing Open Qualifier, LCQ and Stage 1 information.
Structure
The Last Chance Qualifiers (LCQ) will be a double elimination bracket, consisting of up to 22 teams. Top Expert teams and bottom Master teams from Season 7, as well as 2025 OWCS Stage 3 teams who failed to qualify for Stage 1, will face off in the bracket. This LCQ only applies to EMEA and NA, SA and OCE will maintain a similar Move Up/ Down structure to previous Seasons.
The bracket will be played until a top 8 has been established, further rounds will not be played.
Participating Teams
This event is invite only and impacts EMEA / NA OWCS 2025 Stage 3 teams as well as Master and Expert Teams from Season 7. Teams from other divisions or regions will not be able to participate. Additionally, teams who have already qualified for OWCS via the Open Qualifier will not be required to participate.
OWCS
Teams who previously participated in OWCS Stage 3 during 2025 but did not manage to qualify for 2026 OWCS Stage 1, via the OWCS Open Qualifiers, will need to participate in order to qualify for Season 8 Master. This will total up to 8 teams. OWCS teams who are ineligible or did not participate in the OWCS Open Qualifiers, such as partnered teams, will not participate in this event nor will be replaced.
Master Division
Top 6 Master Division teams from Season 7 will maintain their spot for FACEIT League Season 8 and will NOT participate in the LCQ. If a top 6 Master Division team is ineligible, they will not be counted and will be replaced by the next team up in the standings.
Master Division teams from 7-14th place during Season 7 will need to participate in the LCQ in order to maintain their Master Division spot for Season 8.
Bottom 2 Master Division teams from Season 7 will be auto-relegated to Expert Division as with previous seasons, being replaced by the top 2 teams from Expert Division Season 7 who are auto promoted. Additionally as with previous Seasons, demotions are inclusive of ineligible or forfeited teams however promotions are not. If a team being demoted is ineligible their demotion spot will NOT be replaced by the next team along. If a team is being promoted but is ineligible, the next eligible team in the standings will replace them.
Expert Division
Top 2 Expert Division teams from Season 7 will be auto promoted into Master Division for Season 8. They will NOT be required to participate in the LCQ. If a top 2 Expert Division team is ineligible, they will not be counted and will be replaced by the next team up in the standings.
Expert Division teams from 3rd-8th place during Season 7 will need to participate in the LCQ in order to compete for the chance to participate in Master Division Season 8. If a 3rd-8th Expert Division team is ineligible, they will not be counted and will be replaced by the next team up in the standings.
Who Qualifies for Master Season 8?
In order to qualify for Master Division Season 8 you will need to reach top 8 of the LCQ, where you will join the Top 8 Master Division teams from Season 7. Teams who fail to reach top 8 in the LCQ will be moved to Expert Division for Season 8.
Seeding
Seeding will be based on standings in OWCS Stage 1 Open Qualifier results and FACEIT League Season 7 final standings.
Seeding will be done in this priority:
- 2025 OWCS Teams
- Master Division
- Expert Division
Meaning top seeds will be 2025 OWCS teams, in order of their final standings. Same will apply to following divisions listed.