(Image credit: deli)

Dzień dobry, howdy and welcome to poLANd.tf 2026!

Twice now the greatest teams in Europe have descended upon Łódź, Poland, to do battle and decide who truly can call themselves the best, in hard-fought, gritty battles of will and determination. This time, the competition goes a step beyond: North America is sending its representatives, too! No longer will the last team standing be champions of the continent, but of the world!

On Friday, February 27th, fourteen teams will enter the bear pit. Over the next couple days, they will fight it out live on stage until by the end of Sunday, March 1st, only one team remains! Who is the best in the world? Find out on https://twitch.tv/essentialstf!

(Image credit: Metalcloud)

United Dodgeball League is excited to relaunch with a brand new tournament! This time, teams consisting of 3 players will compete throughout a marathon of four weeks in a Swiss style tournament bracket. Medals will be given out to all participants, and the 3 teams that finish on top will be given medals as well as prizes.

Players of all skill levels are welcome to sign up! Teams will face opponents with the same amount of points each week.

Signups will open on the 16th of February and will close on the 28th of February.

You can find additional information and a detailed FAQ section on the website and join their Discord server for support and important announcements using the links below.

Important Links:

• Discord
  
• Website
  
• Twitch
  

(Image credit: SFM Render/Compositing/Overlays - Breez, Organization - IanTheAwsm, CyberWizard, and Dynam)

Seasonalander has arrived for the Winter of 2026! Seasonalander is a charity-funding Highlander 9v9 tournament that raises funds for various causes around the world, collectively raising over $10,000 since the Summer of 2021 for missions such as the Sarcoma Foundation of America, The British Red Cross and the Trevor Project. Every third global season, Seasonalander brings together more than 72 content creators to play! Participants range from YouTubers and Artists to Cosplayers and Streamers across primarily North America and Europe! Participants are divided into their respective divisions in hopes of bringing the Team Fortress 2 community together for several various causes!

Their winter event will raise funds for Child's Play through Tiltify, with a current goal of $2,000! Child’s Play is a game industry charity dedicated to improving the lives of children and teens in children’s hospitals around the world. Child’s Play currently has a network of over 190 children’s hospitals worldwide and has powered millions of hours of play.

Help get the word out and be sure to tune in on the 7th and 8th of February!
European games will start at 4:00pm GMT / 11:00am EST each day.
North American games will start at roughly 8:30pm GMT / 3:30pm EST each day.

Come see your favorite personalities entertain by throwing hands and raising funds for those in need!

Important Links:

• Donation Link (Tiltify)
  
• Twitch
  
• YouTube
  
• BlueSky
  
• Twitter
  
• Steam Group
  

Behold, The Americana contest!

TF2 Painter's Workshop is proud to announce their second War Paint contest, aimed at capturing the 1950s! Think rock 'n' roll, diners serving bacon, eggs and waffles, and classic Cadillacs! There are two categories this time around, ranked individually with a total prize pool of 40 500+ keys!

War Paints. The typical kind, applies to all 44 weapons.
Limited Skins. UV skins/decorated weapons, and Dragon Slayer type war paints.

Categories are scored separately with their own prize pools.

All entries must be submitted to the TF2 Steam workshop before March 31st , 2026. Entries will be scored after the deadline.

Visit their Discord Server for full details.

(Image credit: MetalCloud)

After years of waiting and anticipation, Fruit Mixes is back for its 4th season!

Sign-ups for the tournament started on February 1st and will run through February 20th! Matches take place February 20th through February 22nd. All skill levels are welcome! Skill levels will be broken up before the tournament starts based on previous competitive experience.

Sign up on the TFArena website.

More information can be found on their Discord server.

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include:

• Updated the Team Recognition Unusual effect to fix a console warning
  
• Updated The Fists of Steel to use the RED team version for the backpack image
  
• Updated backpack images for Festivized versions of The Killing Gloves of Boxing, The Gloves of Running Urgently, The Apoco-Fists, and The Fists of Steel
  
• Updated 2koth_abbey to fix the Engineer being able to build in the respawn room rafters
  
• Updated cppl_gavle
  
  
  • Significant optimization pass, especially around the first point
    
  • Fixed a large number of small visual issues
    
  • Fixed some clipping issues/ bugs around the map
  
  
• Updated pd_nutcracker
  
  
  • Fixed out of bound exploit at BLU spawn
    
  • Adjusted clipping outside of RED spawn
    
  • Fixed misaligned fence prop in BLU lounge
    
  • Added nobuild to middle route on both sides
    
  • Removed steps from Pipe rooms and adjusted clipping
    
  • Minor detailing and clipping adjustments
    
  • Fixed Nutcracker voice being cut off at start of round
  
  

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include:

• Updated the Team Recognition Unusual effect to fix a console warning
  
• Updated The Fists of Steel to use the RED team version for the backpack image
  
• Updated backpack images for Festivized versions of The Killing Gloves of Boxing, The Gloves of Running Urgently, The Apoco-Fists, and The Fists of Steel
  
• Updated 2koth_abbey to fix the Engineer being able to build in the respawn room rafters
  
• Updated cppl_gavle
  • Significant optimization pass, especially around the first point
    
  • Fixed a large number of small visual issues
    
  • Fixed some clipping issues/ bugs around the map
• Updated pd_nutcracker
  • Fixed out of bound exploit at BLU spawn
    
  • Adjusted clipping outside of RED spawn
    
  • Fixed misaligned fence prop in BLU lounge
    
  • Added nobuild to middle route on both sides
    
  • Removed steps from Pipe rooms and adjusted clipping
    
  • Minor detailing and clipping adjustments
    
  • Fixed Nutcracker voice being cut off at start of round

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include:

• Added smoke effect to the Scrooge McCrocket
  
• Fixed prediction error when crouch jumping (community fix from ficool2)
  
• Updated the Snow Dome Unusual effect to decrease brightness and opacity of the glass and floor textures
  
• Updated the Festive Fleece to fix LOD issues
  
• Updated the Puncher's Polar Puffer to fix some skinning issues
  
• Updated The Conscientious Objector to fix missing material parameters (community fix from Lindon)
  
• Updated koth_winter_ridge to fix a collision error with projectiles on the dead tree at mid
  
• Updated 2koth_abbey
  
  
  • Fixed small gaps in doorways outside of spawn
    
  • Updated tall crates to add nobuild triggers and make it more obvious they cannot be stood on
    
  • Updated clipping in the river
    
  • Fixed Snipers wearing the Razorback being immune to freezing
  
  

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include:

• Added smoke effect to the Scrooge McCrocket
  
• Fixed prediction error when crouch jumping (community fix from ficool2)
  
• Updated the Snow Dome Unusual effect to decrease brightness and opacity of the glass and floor textures
  
• Updated the Festive Fleece to fix LOD issues
  
• Updated the Puncher's Polar Puffer to fix some skinning issues
  
• Updated The Conscientious Objector to fix missing material parameters (community fix from Lindon)
  
• Updated koth_winter_ridge to fix a collision error with projectiles on the dead tree at mid
  
• Updated 2koth_abbey
  • Fixed small gaps in doorways outside of spawn
    
  • Updated tall crates to add nobuild triggers and make it more obvious they cannot be stood on
    
  • Updated clipping in the river
    
  • Fixed Snipers wearing the Razorback being immune to freezing

An update to Team Fortress 2 has been released. The update will be applied automatically when you restart Team Fortress 2. The major changes include:

• Fixed minor z-fighting issue with the Wrap Assassin Festivizer
  
• Fixed the Taunt: The Critical Fail ending at the incorrect time for the Medic
  
• Updated the Hard Carry Unusual effect to fix detachment issues when using the "adjust unusual" slider
  
• Updated the Scorching Sensation and Burning Sensation Unusual effects to improve visibility in bright areas
  
• Updated the Team Recognition Unusual effect to fix a problem with the parent-child particle system
  
• Updated the Frostfire, Spectrum Inferno, and Chromatic Blaze Unusual effects to fix issues with the trail and brightness
  
• Updated the Cryogenic Unusual effect to fix obscuring parts of the characters
  
• Updated the Air Head to fix a problem with mipmapping
  
• Updated 2koth_abbey
  
  
  • Fixed broken cliff displacements
    
  • Swapped expensive water for cheap water to improve FPS
    
  • Various fixes and improvements
  
  
• Updated plr_matterhorn
  
  
  • Fixed hole in spawn barrier (thanks Ctena!)
    
  • Fixed a desync issue with lifts (thanks Skin King!)
    
  • Disabled team swap on new round
    
  • Clipping improvements
    
  • Bread optimization