The competitive Counter-Strike 2 map pool will undergo an official rotation on July 6th with the launch of Season 5. Cache is scheduled to return to active duty, replacing Overpass in the competitive selection. This update forces professional teams to rebuild their veto strategies and adapt their map preparations ahead of the upcoming competitive season.
An analysis of team performance records from 2026 indicates that this map rotation will significantly alter the competitive standing of several top-tier organizations.
The strategic advantage for teams avoiding Overpass
The removal of Overpass provides an immediate statistical boost to teams that either struggled on the map or used their permanent ban to avoid it entirely.
Team Falcons and Natus Vincere (NAVI) stand to gain significant veto flexibility. Throughout 2026, both organizations used their permanent ban on Overpass. With the map removed from the pool, these teams can reallocate their ban phase to target opponent strengths or cover other vulnerabilities in their map pools. For Team Falcons, this comes as an extra bonus on top of their Major win in Cologne.
Several other lineups will benefit simply by having a weak map removed from play. paiN Gaming holds the lowest win rate on Overpass among top teams at 30.8 percent, followed by B8 at 40 percent. FUT Esports and Team Spirit have also found limited success on the map, registering win rates of 47.4 percent and 50 percent respectively. For BetBoom Team, the map rotation removes their statistically worst battleground, where they maintained a 47.6 percent win rate.
Top-tier rosters lose a statistical stronghold
Conversely, the removal of Overpass strips multiple elite teams of their primary map choice and a near-guaranteed advantage in best-of-three series.
Team Vitality faces the heaviest impact from this rotation. The roster dominated Overpass in 2026, securing a 93.8 percent win rate. MOUZ maintained a similarly high level of execution on the map, boasting a 90.9 percent win rate. The loss of Overpass removes a critical tactical safety net for both programs.
G2 Esports and Astralis are also negatively affected by the change. G2 held a strong 68.8 percent win rate on Overpass, while Astralis relied on it as a solid pick with a 61.9 percent win rate. These teams must now dedicate practice hours to mastering Cache to maintain their depth in veto advantages.
Quick overview: Winners and losers of the map rotation
Winners
- Falcons: Erases their permanent ban, opening up veto choices.
- NAVI: Frees up their standard first-phase ban for other maps.
- paiN: Removes their lowest-performing map (30.8% win rate).
- B8: Eliminates a major vulnerability in their pool (40% win rate).
- BetBoom: Discards their statistically worst map (47.6% win rate).
- FUT & Spirit: Removes a map where they held sub-par or even records (47.4% and 50% win rates).
Losers
- Vitality: Loses their most dominant map in the pool (93.8% win rate).
- MOUZ: Stripped of a near-flawless tactical stronghold (90.9% win rate).
- G2: Loses a highly reliable map choice (68.8% win rate).
- Astralis: Deprived of a consistent win condition (61.9% win rate).
