CS2 Update 2026: Train Out, Anubis In, and Why This Week Matters

If you have been grinding Premier lately, the January 19 CS2 update window is the one that actually changes how ranked feels. This is the moment Premier Season 3 ends, the competitive map pool shifts, and third party platforms like Faceit and tournament organizers start aligning with the new reality.

Below is a clean recap of what changed this past week, what is confirmed, and what it means for your games starting January 19.

Table of Contents

Quick summary of the January 19 CS2 update

Premier Season 3 ends on January 19, 2026.
Train is removed from the Active Duty pool and Anubis returns, tied to the Season 4 transition.
Faceit removes Train from its map pool, following the direction of the official rotation.
ESL confirms it is switching its map pool on January 19, bringing in Anubis instead of Train for events and qualifiers.

What Valve actually changed: Anubis replaces Train

Valve announced that the competitive landscape is rotating again: Anubis is back in the Active Duty pool and Train is out, with the timing linked to Premier Season 3 ending on January 19.

This matters because Active Duty is the backbone for top level competitive play and what most of the ecosystem mirrors. When Valve rotates maps, the dominoes usually fall fast across Premier, tournament pools, and third party matchmaking.

Train has been removed from FACEIT's map pool pic.twitter.com/pvMrTJlK5S
— DaddySkins (@DaddyskinsCSGO) January 19, 2026

What this means for your ranked grind

If you were a Train specialist, your time advantage disappears overnight in the default ecosystem. Train will still exist for nostalgia, community servers, and practice, but it loses competitive priority.
If you ignored Anubis, that is now a problem. Your Season 4 climb gets easier if you learn the core defaults, mid control timings, and common utility early.

Faceit update: Train removed from the map pool

Faceit has removed Train from its pool, meaning it cannot be selected in ranked matches there and will not affect ELO progress.

A week earlier, reports noted Faceit temporarily had an eight map situation after adding Anubis, with Train expected to be removed as things normalize. That is now essentially complete.

Why this is important even if you only play Premier

Faceit changes are a signal. It tells you where the serious grind is going, what scrims will look like, and what maps will get the most repetition from the player base week to week.

Tournament ecosystem: ESL switches on January 19

ESL announced it will swap Train for Anubis on January 19, which affects qualifiers and upcoming events that follow their pool.

So if you follow pro CS2, expect veto patterns to change quickly. Teams that were comfortable parking Train as a comfort pick lose that option, and Anubis prep becomes mandatory again.

The past week in CS2 updates: the real timeline

Here is the simplest timeline of what players cared about most this week, centered around the January 19 update cycle.

January 9 to 10: Valve confirms Train out, Anubis in, tied to Premier Season 3 ending January 19.
January 10: Multiple outlets publish the new Season 4 map pool list including Anubis and excluding Train.
January 11: ESL confirms its own pool changes on January 19.
Mid January: Faceit completes the move away from Train in its pool.

Gameplay and bugfix context: not a huge balance patch week

This week is less about weapon nerfs and more about structure: seasons, map pools, and platform alignment.

The notable early January angle was Valve addressing an exploit related to grenades through console command behavior, which community reporting suggested was handled quickly.

Also, January 1 brought the new 2026 Service Medal availability, which matters for anyone who cares about profile progression and flex items while the season flips.

What you should do right now to win more games after January 19

1. Build a minimum Anubis playbook

Focus on consistency, not fancy strats.

Learn one T default that gets mid info safely
Learn one B explode with two core smokes
Learn one A exec and one post plant setup
Save two anti rush molly lineups for defense

2. Update your ban logic

If your stack always banned Anubis in the past, that habit will cost you rating. Make Anubis a playable map, then ban based on opponent strength and your weakest map instead.

3. If you are a Faceit player, accept the new reality

Train is not coming back into serious rotation soon. If you are chasing ELO, all your hours should go into the maps that will actually appear in queue.

FAQs: January 19 CS2 update

Is Train removed from CS2 entirely

No. The key change is competitive relevance. Train is removed from the Active Duty style competitive rotation tied to the season update, and platforms like Faceit are removing it from ranked pools.

When does Premier Season 4 start

The confirmed date is that Season 3 ends on January 19, 2026. Most reporting expects Season 4 to begin immediately after, but the cleanest confirmed item is the Season 3 end date and the map pool change tied to it.