Competitors from all over the world have battled it out through Casual Tournament Kits (CTKs), Accelerated Meta Tests (AMTs), District, Megacity and Continental Championships, and even the World Championship over the course of the 2025 competitive season. Now, those who achieved victory at these various levels can claim their right to compete for the title of Circuit Breaker at the 2026 Circuit Breaker Invitational (CBI)!
This year, we will be continuing with the same model we used for the 2025 CBI, running three pods for the Swiss rounds to allow players to participate in the major part of the event at a time suitable to them. These Swiss rounds will take place on Saturday 17th and Sunday 18th January, across three different timezones, and the top cut will take place on Sunday 25th January. Further details on timings and the split structure of the event can be found below.
Eligibility
To participate in the CBI you must have qualified for an invitation during the 2025 season. Events such as Casual Tournaments (supported by NSG Casual Tournament Kits), AMTs, Districts, Megacities and Continentals provide a number of invitations relative to their turnout to their highest placing players.
Events with at least 8 players award an invitation, plus an additional invitation for every 20 total players. For example, a tournament with 40 players would qualify for three (one base + two additional) total invitations. Invitations may have been passed down within the cut if top placing players already had an invite. You should have been informed at the event if an invitation was passed down to you. Note that invitations cannot be passed down outside of the top cut, or beyond second place at an event without a top cut.
Claiming your invitation
Players who qualify must have claimed their placement at the qualifying event on AlwaysBeRunning. They must then fill out the 2025 Season Circuit Breaker Invite Claims Form by 23:59 UTC-8 on January 5, 2026. If you’re looking for an opportunity to grab a last minute invitation, you can try your luck at ManintheMoon’s New Year Showdown!
Confirmation emails will be sent out on January 6th providing a link to obtain a ticket for the CBI. Please make sure you look out for and respond to this email (it will come from op@nullsignal.games), as that is how you will choose which timezone’s swiss pod you would like to participate in (see below). Entry is free of charge, but we do suggest a donation of $10 USD to help cover the shipping costs for prizes.
Event Structure
The Swiss rounds will be split into three pods, one suitable for each continental area. Each of the regional time zones – PST (UTC-8), GMT (UTC+0), and AWST (UTC+8) – will have a Swiss pod beginning at 09:00 in that timezone on either the 17th or 18th of January. The Top 5 players from each of these pods, as well as the reigning Circuit Breaker, will progress to a 16 player top cut which will be held on the following weekend.
Single-Sided Swiss rounds will be held over the weekend of January 17-18, 2026 with the following start times for the three pods.
- APAC – 09:00 AWST (UTC+8) Saturday 17th January
- Americas – 09:00 PST (UTC-8) Saturday 17th January
- EMEA – 09:00 GMT (UTC+0) Sunday 18th January
Players are limited to participating in just one of these Swiss pods, but are free to choose which one they participate in to suit themselves. Anyone found to be attempting to circumvent this restriction will be disqualified immediately, ineligible for prizing, and banned from all NSG sanctioned events for a period of one year.
Players should note that decklists for all three pods must be submitted by Friday January 16th, 7:59am PST (UTC-8) / 3:59pm GMT (UTC+0) / 11:59pm AWST (UTC+8), to ensure that all pods are on even footing for deck building. This event will be held in the Standard Format.
The 16 player Top Cut will be held the following weekend at 23:00 GMT on Saturday 24th January (UTC+0) – that’s 15:00 PST Saturday (UTC-8) and 7:00 AWST Sunday (UTC+8).
This timing is in line with our commitment to maintain a reasonable time for APAC while alternating timing between the Americas and EMEA each year.
Prizing
We have some really exciting prizes for the CBI this year, including the amazing Circuit Breaker’s likeness card:
Every qualified player who signs up will receive a playset of Sudden Commandment in foil, featuring our reigning Circuit Breaker, Kikai. Players who place in the top half of their selected Swiss group will receive a set of full art Whitespace in foil. The top 8 players after the Top Cut will receive a playmat featuring the art from Maintenance Access personalised with their name and placement. Finally, our Champion will receive the Title of ‘Circuit Breaker’ and have their likeness featured on their own Reigning Champion card at the next Circuit Breaker Invitational.
Make sure you fill out the 2025 Season Circuit Breaker Invite Claims Form by January 5th if you are eligible. We look forward to bringing 2025’s best players together, showcasing the best of the best of Netrunner play to start off 2026!
