North American esports organisation Cloud9 is looking to return to Halo esports for the opening event of the 2026 season.
The organisation’s coach, Trevor ‘SenscR’ Frees, shared plans for the organisation to compete in the upcoming DreamHack Birmingham event.
On January 28th, 2026, SenscR advised interested teams looking to compete at the Halo event, which forms part of the gaming and esports festival in the UK from March 27th to 29th.
Cloud9 is no stranger to the Halo esports scene. The organisation has fielded a roster in the arena shooter title since 2014. Most recently, it competed at the 2025 Halo World Championship, scoring a top-six finish.
Throughout its 12-year tenure in Halo esports, Cloud9 has achieved plenty of success. In 2022, the organisation scored three second-place finishes at Kansas City and Orlando Majors before ending the season finishing runners-up to OpTic Gaming in the World Championship.
Following the departure of Halo Infinite from the HCS, several organisations parted ways with their rosters, alongside withdrawing from the esport altogether. In October 2025, Cloud9 was named as one of four partnered teams for the 2026 season, joining Shopify Rebellion, Spacestation Gaming, and FaZe Clan.
Halo Esports In 2026
The 2026 Halo esports season is continuing in 2026 through a partnership with ESL FACEIT Group (EFG). As a result of the deal, several Halo tournaments are taking place at DreamHack Birmingham.
To qualify for the LAN event, teams from across the world will compete in two online Open Series and an online qualifier taking place throughout February.
Teams earn points during the two Open Series, with the top earners securing a place in the online qualifier, which determines the top four seeds for the DreamHack Birmingham Halo Open. The 4v4 tournament sees teams competing for a share of a $4,000 (~£2,911) prize pool.
