BGMS 2026 Season 5 begins today with 24 teams, while GodLike and Orangutan miss the opening stages due to their PUBG Mobile World Cup campaign in Paris.
Key Highlights
- ₹1 crore prize pool
- 24 teams start
- GodLike gets bye
- Orangutan gets bye
The BGMI Masters Series 2026 Season 5 begins today with 24 teams competing for a prize pool of ₹1 crore. The fifth season is being hosted on NODWIN Gaming’s LAN stage and will continue until the grand final from September 4 to 6.
However, two of the biggest Indian BGMI teams will miss the opening stages. GodLike and Orangutan are currently competing at the PUBG Mobile World Cup in Paris. Their absence has led to a special change in the BGMS 2026 schedule.
GodLike and Orangutan Get a Direct Bye
GodLike and Orangutan are representing India at the PUBG Mobile World Cup, which is part of the Esports World Cup in Paris. The event runs from August 6 to 16.
Both Indian teams successfully moved through the group stage, which ended on Sunday. They are now among the 16 teams competing in the PMWC Grand Finals from August 14 to 16. The global tournament has a prize pool of $3.025 million.
This creates a major scheduling clash with BGMS Season 5. League Week 1 runs from August 10 to 13, while the Bounty Weekend takes place from August 14 to 16. Those dates directly overlap with the PMWC Grand Finals.
To solve the issue, NODWIN Gaming has given both teams a direct bye into Super Weekend 1. GodLike and Orangutan will join the competition on August 21, taking the overall field to 26 teams.
BGMS 2026 Schedule and Format
The opening 24 teams will compete in a round robin League Week from August 10 to 13. Bounty Weekend follows from August 14 to 16, while League Week 2 runs from August 17 to 20.
Super Weekend 1 will take place from August 21 to 23, marking the return of GodLike and Orangutan. League Week 3 is scheduled for August 24 to 27, followed by Super Weekend 2 from August 28 to 30.
The playoffs will run from August 31 to September 2. The season will then conclude with the grand final from September 4 to 6.
The extended format places strong importance on consistency. This could make the late entry especially challenging for the two teams coming from Paris.
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Teams Competing in BGMS Season 5
The opening field features several popular Indian BGMI teams, including Team Soul, 8Bit, Revenant XSpark, Reckoning Esports, Team Tamilas, Gladiators Esports, K9 Esports and Nebula Esports.
Apex Gaming, Genesis Esports, Wyld Fangs and Elite Nova are also part of the competition. Four teams earned their place through the TVS Raider Wicked Battles qualifier, with Santa Esports winning the event.
For Indian esports, the scheduling challenge also represents positive progress. Having two domestic teams competing at a major international PUBG Mobile event has forced BGMS to adjust its opening schedule.
GodLike and Orangutan will return to BGMS after competing against the world's best. However, joining a league after two weeks of matches could be a difficult challenge, even with their international experience and recent World Cup form.
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