Quick answer: Delta Force runs two official circuits. The RISE Series is the Operations league — 3v3v3 extraction, 12 teams per region, $200,000 per region per season, with open qualifiers any squad can enter. The Delta Force Invitational (DFI) is the 20v20 Warfare world championship. Season 2 is live now (September 19 – October 18), and the top two teams per region qualify for DFI 2026.
The two circuits
| Circuit | Mode | Format | Money |
|---|---|---|---|
| RISE Series | Operations (extraction) | 3v3v3 with Mandelbrick objectives; 12 teams per region; groups, survivor stage, finals | $200,000 per region per season; $1,000,000 annual pool |
| Delta Force Invitational (DFI) | Warfare | 20v20 world championship, held live (the 2026 edition wrapped in Wuhan) | $440,000+ prize pool |
RISE is the first franchised extraction-shooter league in esports: 16 organizations hold Global Partner Team slots — FaZe Clan, Team Liquid, Evil Geniuses, Fnatic, Gen.G, Spacestation Gaming, Leviatán, Fluxo W7M, Team Nadeshot, NTMR, Alliance, Aurora Gaming, FLC Clan, Team Gotaga, SPF and WLGaming Esports. Partner slots feed the regional leagues; the rest of each league is filled by open qualifier teams — the part that matters if you are not an org.
2026 calendar
| Event | Dates | Regions | Prize pool | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RISE Series Season 1 | Jul 10 – Aug 9, 2026 | Americas, EMEA | $230,000 per region | Finished |
| RISE Series Season 2 | Sep 19 – Oct 18, 2026 | Americas, EMEA, Korea, Pan-Pacific | $200,000 per region | Live now |
| DFI 2026 (Warfare world championship) | Held earlier in 2026; 2027 edition TBA | Global | $440,000+ | Finished — RISE top two qualify for the next one |
| Asian league | TBA | Asia (Gen.G and Superfect confirmed as partners) | TBA | Announced, no schedule |
Calendar: Liquipedia's Delta Force tournament pages and the publisher's esports announcements, read October 11, 2026. The Chinese server runs its own separate national circuit (The Major Six, DFNC Ops and related cups), which does not feed the RISE Series.
The $200,000 prize split
Each regional season splits its pool across two tracks — you can earn at the group stage even if you never reach the finals. The table below is the published Americas Season 2 split; the other regions follow the same structure.
| Playoff placement | Prize | Also grants |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | $40,000 | DFI 2026 spot + Season 3 seat |
| 2nd | $20,000 | DFI 2026 spot + Season 3 seat |
| 3rd | $15,000 | Season 3 seat |
| 4th | $10,000 | — |
| 5th | $7,500 | — |
| 6th | $5,000 | — |
| Group-stage placement | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1st | $20,000 |
| 2nd | $17,500 |
| 3rd | $13,500 |
| 4th | $11,000 |
| 5th | $8,500 |
| 6th | $7,000 |
| 7th–12th | share the remainder |
Prize split: Liquipedia's RISE Series Americas Season 2 page (A-Tier), read October 11, 2026. Season 1 additionally ran a $75,000 kill-bounty pool at $50 per kill during the regular season, per the season guide cited below. RISE pays cash only — no in-game items.
How to enter: the Open Qualifier
- Build a squad. The league format is 3v3v3, and registration is team-based: the Season 2 rulebook (ยง2.6.4) requires a minimum of three players per team, with up to two substitutes allowed — there is no solo sign-up or random team matching, so you bring your own two teammates. No organization is required, and at most one player per roster may come from outside the team's region (EMEA or Americas).
- Check eligibility. RISE is a PC-only, Operations-mode tournament; your region decides which league you enter (Americas, EMEA, Korea, Pan-Pacific).
- Sign up on the esports portal when registration for the next Open Qualifier opens — deltaforceesports.com is the publisher's own page for it. Season 2's registration window ran August 10–22, with the qualifier itself played August 25–30; the next window had not been announced when this page was last checked.
- Win through. Qualifier teams fill the non-partner league slots — four made it in the Americas in Season 1, seven in EMEA, and sides like GENIUS and Agartha proved the path exists. From the league, the top two per region reach DFI 2026.
The competitive format, briefly
- Groups: teams are drawn into four groups; each match scores 10, 6, 5, 3, 2, 1 by placement, with a maximum of seven rounds per game.
- Survivor stage, then finals: the group field narrows before the playoff bracket that pays the $40,000 first place.
- Locked patch and map pool: Season 2 runs on the Season 10 Meltdown patch, with Brakkesh, Space City and Zero Dam as the Operations map pool — practice on those three.
Operators the competitive meta favours
Community rankings tracking the live game put N-Two, D-Wolf and Hackclaw at the top for October 2026. Our own all-16 operator guides cover each pick's abilities, gadgets and loadouts; watch a RISE broadcast and you will see the same names drafted around Mandelbrick control.
Sources: the publisher's esports portal (deltaforceesports.com) and news pages (playdeltaforce.com), both followed; Liquipedia's Delta Force wiki for the prize split and calendar (CC BY-SA); and Topuplist's RISE Series guide (July 16, 2026) for Season 1 figures, and the Season 2 rulebook (linked from the esports portal) for the roster rules. Read October 11, 2026 and re-worded. See also: the Delta Force game page, Season 11 event guides and operator guides.
Update Rule
Esports schedules move fast: seasons, qualifiers and prize structures are re-checked against the esports portal and Liquipedia at least monthly while the circuit runs. The date at the top is the date these facts were last read, not when a season ends.