Hello, PUBG Esports fans!
After two circuits in Seoul, the PUBG Global Series is moving to Shanghai, China. PGS Circuit 3, featuring PGS 7, PGS 8, and PGS 9, will take place across three weeks from August 5 to 23.Circuit 3 also marks the beginning of the second half of the 2026 PGS season—and from this point forward, the numbers change. Every series in Circuits 3 and 4 will award twice as many PGS Points as the first half of the season. With the race to PGC 2026 entering a decisive phase, here is everything you need to know about the next three weeks in Shanghai.
Circuit 3 Overview
Dates: August 5–23, 2026
Location: Shanghai, China
Participating Teams: 24
12 Global Partner Teams
12 Regional Qualifiers
Total Prize Pool: $500,000
PGS 7: $100,000
PGS 8: $100,000
PGS 9: $300,000
Match Start Time: 10:00 UTC daily
PGS 7 Group Stage on August 5 begins at 05:00 UTC
All matches except the PGS 7 Group Stage begin at 10:00 UTC (12:00 CEST / 17:00 ICT / 03:00 PDT).The PGS 7 Group Stage begins at 05:00 UTC on August 5 (07:00 CEST / 12:00 ICT / 22:00 PDT on August 4).
Tournament Schedule
Series
Date
Stage
Start Time
PGS 7
August 5
Group Stage
05:00 UTC
August 6
Winners Stage
10:00 UTC
August 7
Survival Stage
August 8–9
Final Stage
PGS 8
August 13
Winners Stage
August 14
Survival Stage
August 15–16
Final Stage
PGS 9
August 20
Survival Stage
August 21–23
Grand Finals
Tournament Format
Circuit 3 follows a progressive stage system, with the results of each series determining how teams enter the next.
PGS 7 — August 5–9
Group Stage: All 24 teams are divided into Groups A, B, and C. Nine matches will be played, with each team competing in six.
Top 16 → Winners Stage
Bottom 8 → Survival Stage
Winners Stage: 16 teams compete in five matches.
Top 8 → Advance directly to the Final Stage and receive Advantage Points
Bottom 8 → Survival Stage
Survival Stage: 16 teams compete in five matches.
Top 8 → Final Stage
Bottom 8 → Eliminated
Final Stage: 16 teams compete across 10 matches over two days to determine the final PGS 7 standings.
PGS 8 — August 13–16
PGS 8 does not include a Group Stage. Teams are seeded directly according to their final PGS 7 standings.
PGS 7 Top 16 → Winners Stage
PGS 7 Bottom 8 → Survival Stage
Following the Winners and Survival Stages, 16 teams advance to the 10-match Final Stage across two days.
PGS 9 — Circuit Final, August 20–23
Seeding for PGS 9 is determined by the PGS Points earned within Circuit 3 across PGS 7 and PGS 8.
Top 8 in cumulative Circuit 3 PGS Points → Advance directly to the Grand Finals
Remaining 16 teams → Survival Stage
Survival Stage Top 8 → Grand Finals
Grand Finals: 16 teams compete across 15 matches over three days to crown the Circuit 3 champion.
Advantage Points
The top eight teams in the PGS 7 and PGS 8 Winners Stages receive Advantage Points, which are added to their standings at the start of the respective Final Stage.
Winners Stage Placement
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
6th
7th
8th
Advantage Points
10
6
5
4
3
2
1
1
Participating Teams
Circuit 3 brings together 12 Global Partner Teams and 12 teams that qualified through their regional leagues.
Region
Global Partner Teams
Regional League Qualifiers
Korea
DN SOOPers, Gen.G Esports
Geekay Esports, T1
China
17Gaming, FOUR ANGRY MEN, Petrichor Road
JD Gaming, TYLOO
Thailand
FULL SENSE, eArena
Made in Thailand, Sharper Esports
Vietnam
Anyone's Legend
GAM The Expendables, The Vicious Esports
EMEA
Twisted Minds, Virtus.pro , Natus Vincere
Team Vitality, Team Nemesis
Americas
Falcons
TEAM LIQUID, Godlike
Group Stage Draw
Group A
Group B
Group C
17Gaming
Petrichor Road
FOUR ANGRY MEN
JD Gaming
TYLOO
DN SOOPers
Gen.G Esports
Geekay Esports
T1
eArena
Anyone's Legend
FULL SENSE
Made in Thailand
Sharper Esports
GAM The Expendables
The Vicious Esports
Virtus.pro
Natus Vincere
Twisted Minds
Team Vitality
Team Nemesis
Falcons
TEAM LIQUID
Godlike
The Group Stage will be played in the order of A&B, B&C, and A&C. Each group matchup features one match on Erangel, Miramar, and Taego, with every team competing in six of the nine total matches.
PGS Points — Double Points in the Second Half
Circuits 3 and 4 award twice as many PGS Points as the first half of the season. The champions of PGS 7 and PGS 8 will earn 60 points each, while the PGS 9 champion will earn 120 points.
Final Placement
PGS 7
PGS 8
PGS 9
1st
60
60
120
2nd
48
48
96
3rd
40
40
80
4th
34
34
68
5th
30
30
60
6th
26
26
52
7th
22
22
44
8th
18
18
36
9th
14
14
28
10th
10
10
20
11th
8
8
16
12th
6
6
12
13th
4
4
8
14th–16th
2
2
4
17th–24th
0
0
0
PGS Points are awarded only to the top 16 teams in each series. At the end of PGS 12, the top eight teams in the annual PGS Points standings will qualify directly for PGC 2026. For the teams that built an advantage in the first half, Shanghai is where they must defend it. For those chasing from behind, the doubled points create an opportunity to turn the standings around. One strong circuit could reshape the entire PGC race.
Map Pool and Order
Circuit 3 will be played across Erangel, Miramar, Taego, and Rondo.
Stage
Match 1
Match 2
Match 3
Match 4
Match 5
Group Stage
Erangel
Miramar
Taego
—
—
Winners / Survival / Final Day 1 / Grand Finals Days 1 & 3
Erangel
Miramar
Taego
Rondo
Erangel
Final Day 2 / Grand Finals Day 2
Taego
Erangel
Rondo
Miramar
Taego
The Group Stage repeats the same Erangel → Miramar → Taego order across all three group matchups for Matches 1 through 9.
Prize Pool
The total prize pool for Circuit 3 is $500,000, distributed across the three series.
PGS 7: $100,000 — $30,000 for the champion
PGS 8: $100,000 — $30,000 for the champion
PGS 9: $300,000 — $100,000 for the champion
Placement prizes will be awarded to the top eight teams in PGS 7 and PGS 8, and to all 16 Grand Finalists in PGS 9. Each series also features separate match-win and MVP prizes.Across four circuits and 12 series, the total prize pool for the 2026 PGS season is $2,000,000.
How to Watch
All PGS 7–9 matches will be broadcast live on official PUBG Esports channels.Matches begin at 10:00 UTC daily, except for the PGS 7 Group Stage on August 5, which begins at 05:00 UTC.Detailed broadcast channels and viewing links will be announced separately.A new city, double the points, and 24 teams fighting for their place at PGC 2026. Circuit 3 will set the direction for the second half of the 2026 season.See you in Shanghai on August 5!