Valve declares skin betting adverts banned in major CS2 change
Valve has updated its Tournament Operating Requirements (TOR) and Limited Game Tournament License to ban the promotion of skin gambling, case‑opening, and skin trading sites at officially licensed Counter‑Strike 2 events.
Under the new rule, organisers and teams may not display logos or advertisements for these services anywhere visible in a broadcast — including on jerseys, sponsor boards or stage graphics.
The clause — particularly Section 2.4.e of the license — prohibits any content that violates Valve’s intellectual property or the Steam Subscriber Agreement, citing game case opening and skin trading sites as examples of banned material.
The ban on skins betting has already impacted the professional esports scene, with teams at the Budapest Major moving swiftly to remove material that breaches the conditions.
This change applies across all licensed tournaments and affects sponsorship deals with third‑party services tied to Valve game inventories.
Traditional cash gambling sponsors such as esports betting sites and online casinos are still allowed, as they don’t rely on in‑game items or violate Valve’s agreements.
There are fears the ban will decrease competitiveness in CS2 with many smaller teams sponsored by skins wagering platforms.
