This December at Halo Fest, eight invited teams will battle for their share of a $150,000 prize pool in the HCS Invitational. Over the past few weeks, invites to participate have been sent out to respected organizations and players in the community. Today, we're excited to reveal the 8 representatives that will have the opportunity to build and lead a roster into Halo Fest's premier competitive event. Without further ado, here they are: 

• Shopify Rebellion 
• Spacestation Gaming 
• Cloud9 
• ENVY 
• Lucid 
• SnakeBite 
• SLG 
• Soul Snipe 

Congratulations to the organizations and players that will be competing in the HCS Invitational! As a reminder, these invitees were selected through a holistic review of several factors, including:

• HCS partnered teams that are still actively involved in the community/ecosystem. 
• Top pros or teams competing consistently (and performing well). 
• Positive contributors to the Halo community and franchise. 

World champions, championship-winning organizations, fan favorites, community leaders. These are some of the most recognizable names of the competitive Halo Infinite era. Thank you to this group for the continued positive contributions to the competitive Halo ecosystem. 

It's important to note that there were more than eight deserving candidates for this event. The limited field size meant difficult decisions had to be made, and many accomplished organizations and players who strongly fit our selection criteria were ultimately unable to be included. That level of competition speaks to the talent, passion, and depth that continues to define the competitive Halo community heading into Halo Fest. 

While these invitations are now locked in, the final team rosters are not. Invitees have until 11:59PM pacific time, October 26 to submit their official roster for approval. If two or more invitees decide to form a roster together, the party that was first invited will retain their ownership spot, while the remaining spot(s) will return to HCS. HCS will then invite another organization or player to backfill the remaining spot(s). All rosters must be officially approved by HCS to compete in the HCS Invitational, and we will announce the rosters shortly after they are approved. Expect to see some shakeup as these representatives look to give themselves their best chance at the lion’s share of the $150,000 prize pool. 

The format for the HCS Invitational will be slightly different than previous LAN events, as we have the GSL format for group play. Teams will begin in one of two four-team GSL groups (seeded by 2026 HCS points), where every match matters. Win twice and advance, lose twice, and you're eliminated. The top two teams from each group will move on to the four-team championship bracket that begins Saturday night, leading into Championship Sunday where we will crown the winner! 

Halo Fest is a celebration of 25 years of Halo, and the HCS Invitational will bring together some of the most influential competitors and organizations of the Halo Infinite era. With the invitees now confirmed and roster decisions still ahead, we're excited to see who ultimately takes the stage this December.