Fortnite Reload Elite Series Announced with $2.5 Mil Prize Pool

Fortnite is getting a major new tournament series this year, The Reload Elite Series. A tournament just for the sweaty Reload mode, which will culminate in a brand-new LAN happening at the Esports World Cup. It’s part of a major expansion for competitive Fortnite this year. We’re seeing new events launching across the game, not just Battle Royale. With Blitz Royale getting the Mobile Series, and now Reload.

This new tournament series brings more events to Reload throughout the year. But it also means Epic is going to have Fortnite as part of the upcoming Esports World Cup. There have been some side events, but Fortnite was absent from the 2025 Esports World Cup. With this new tournament they’ll be an event with a $1,000,000 prize pool next year!

This is how the Reload Elite Series is going to work and when players can get involved:

Reload Elite Series

The Reload Elite Series is a new tournament format launching for the Reload game mode. That’s the side Battle Royale where players can respawn. It’s much more focused on the gunplay side of Fortnite, which makes it a good pick for these events. Although, the respawn feature does have some quirks too.

At the last Pro-Am. We saw some players being infinitely farmed for kills. Shot out of the sky repeatedly on respawn. But with a more balanced lobby of top Fortnite players, that shouldn’t be a worry in the Reload Elite Series.

The Reload Elite Series will be an ongoing tournament throughout 2026. With qualifiers held regularly. In the summer, at the Esports World Cup, we’ll see the Finals take place. A LAN with just the best players from across all different regions. The format is going to take a little while to wind down to the finals. But the Reload Elite Series is pretty wide.

How to Qualify for the Reload Elite Series

The Reload Elite Series will have four different chances for players to qualify. Spread out between January and June, with each round moving more players on to the Reload Elite Series finals.

Players looking to get involved in the Reload Elite Series will have to start with the first Qualifiers. This round is a 12-match open, held twice for each qualifier. A certain number of players will move forward in each Fortnite region too:

• 2,000 Duos – EU
• 1,000 Duos – NAC
• 500 Duos – OCE, Asia, Middle East, Brazil, North America West

These players move on to the Play ins. That’s another two-round part of the tournaments, with 12 more matches. It narrows the teams down to the top 80 for the Heats. Where the top 20 from four different heats move on.

Eventually, we get to the final of the qualifier. Just 20 Duos per region, with eight matches to try and secure their slots. 3 teams move forward in EU, 2 in NAC, and one team everywhere else.

Reload Elite Series

Outside of taking part and performing well, players will need to hit some requirements to take part in the Reload Elite Series. You need to pass the 14-tournament rule, so take part within 14 other tournaments in 180 days. And have an account level of 350. Players also need to get to Elite or above for Fortnite Ranked in Reload.

Qualifier 1 Schedule

• Open 1 – Jan 8th
• Open 2 – Jan 16th
• Open 3 – Jan 23rd
• Open 4 – Jan 28th
• Heat 1-4 – Feb 1st
• Final – Feb 8th

Qualifier 2 Schedule

• Open 1 – Feb 13th
• Open 2 – Feb 15th
• Open 3 – Feb 20th
• Open 4 – Feb 22nd
• Heat 1-4 – Feb 27
• Final –  March 1st

Qualifier 3 Schedule

• Open 1 – May 1st
• Open 2 -May 3rd
• Open 3 – May 8th
• Open 4 – May 10th
• Heat 1-4 – May 15th
• Final – May 17th

Qualifier 4 Schedule

• Open 1 – June 12th
• Open 2 – June 14th
• Open 3 – June 19th
• Open 4 – June 21st
• Heat 1-4 -June 26th
• Final – June 28th

Prize Pool

The Reload Elite Series is going to feature a $2,500,000 prize pool in total! That’s huge for a separate mode in Fortnite. But it will be spread across all the server regions, and different Fortnite esports events. The biggest share is at the LAN.

That’s getting $1,000,000 in total. However, The Reload Elite Series will also have $1,500,000 prize money for the qualifiers. So, there’s plenty of incentive to get involved. This is how the prize pool breaks down for these qualifiers:

The Reload Elite Series will be starting off very soon! With the FNCS 2026 getting delayed to Chapter 7 Season 2, players are going to have these tournaments to look at instead. Reload plays a little differently, but it is still quite a competitive mode. We’ll likely see quite a few of the best Fortnite players taking part in the reload Elite Series.