Spirit Forfeits $420,550 ACI Share for Skipping IEM Atlanta

Spirit has forfeited a $420,550 share of ESL’s 2026 Annual Club Incentive after declining to attend IEM Atlanta, ESL confirmed. The decline was the team’s third during the 2025–2026 eligibility period and exceeded the allowed limit under ESL’s rules.

ESL reported that Spirit had been tied with FURIA for first in the ACI standings following IEM Rio, with a projected share of $420,550. Rather than travel to Atlanta, Spirit entered PGL Astana, where the team finished first and earned $256,000 in prize money plus an equal amount credited as a club share. Spirit had previously declined invitations to IEM Melbourne and IEM Dallas in 2025.

Under the standard rule, teams may decline up to three EFG tournament invites in a two-year window provided they do not skip more than two events in a single calendar year. ESL noted an exception: if an EFG event is elevated to Major status, the maximum number of allowable declines during the period falls to two. IEM Cologne has been designated a Major for 2026, and that exception reduced the permitted declines for the current cycle, putting Spirit over the threshold.

As a result, Spirit will not be eligible to participate in the ACI program again until 2027. ESL added that any tournament declines recorded this year will count toward eligibility for the 2027 ACI cycle. The forfeiture removes the projected $420,550 club payout from Spirit’s ACI total despite the team’s on-site earnings at PGL Astana.

The Annual Club Incentive pays teams based on their engagement with the ESL Pro Tour, including tournament attendance, viewership and promotional activity related to ESL events. For 2026 the program will reward the top 16 teams in the standings. Following IEM Atlanta, ESL released projected ACI shares for the leading teams: Natus Vincere $452,715; B8 and FURIA $268,470 each; Team Vitality $236,886; G2 $213,197; FaZe $181,612; MOUZ $157,924; Legacy $136,867; Astralis $130,287; and Team Liquid and Passion UA tied at $126,339.