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November 15, 2026 | Simon Damgaard

HOTU Academy’s ayakasi passes donk’s FACEIT Elo record at 18

ayakasi reached 5,528 FACEIT Elo on 14 November, past donk's 5,513 record, and leads Europe's ladder by almost 200 Elo.

A HOTU Academy player is now first on the FACEIT ladder, more than 200 Elo ahead of the Team Spirit star.

Level 10, the highest skill level on FACEIT, starts at 2,001 Elo. On Saturday night, an 18-year-old from HOTU’s academy side went more than 3,500 past it. Aleksandr “ayakasi” Kononov reached 5,528 Elo, which beats donk‘s previous record of 5,513, according to NarT and Russian outlet Cybersport.Metaratings. FACEIT has not commented on the record itself, but his profile showed 5,528 Elo and first place in Europe on Sunday morning.

NarT posted the news shortly before midnight on Saturday.

ayakasi plays under the nickname taini- on FACEIT. He has played 551 matches in Season 9, and he took first place on the European ladder on 13 November, Cybersport.Metaratings reports.

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A record built over three seasons

The top of FACEIT has changed hands a few times in CS2, and the record has climbed each time.

  • November 2025: Liam “MaiL09” Tügel set the CS2 record at 5,415 Elo.
  • 28 July 2026: donk passed him with 5,434.
  • 4 August 2026: donk won Season 8, his sixth FACEIT season title. NarT and Cybersport.Metaratings put his peak at 5,513.
  • 1 November 2026: dem0n took first place from donk with 5,306 Elo.
  • 14 November 2026: ayakasi reached 5,528.

The record covers the CS2 era only. FACEIT’s ladder looked like this on Sunday at :

FACEIT CS2 leaderboard, Europe
#PlayerElo
1ayakasi (taini-)5,528
2KAD1M5,340
3b1st-5,306
4donk5,299
5bluewh1te5,170

Who is ayakasi?

ayakasi is not a name from the big stages yet, and most of his matches so far have come online.

His best result so far came at the end of July, when HOTU Academy finished second at the Russian Esports Championship 2026, an offline event at VK Play Arena in Moscow. HOTU is a Russian organisation from Yakutia.

HOTU Academy’s ayakasi passes donk’s FACEIT Elo record at 18

What 5,528 Elo means

FACEIT’s skill levels stop at level 10, which starts at 2,001 Elo. Everything above that is pure ladder: you gain Elo for a win and lose it for a defeat, and how much depends on the Elo gap between the two teams. At the very top, there are few players left who are rated close to you.

The number will not last long either way. Season 10 starts on 9 December with a soft Elo reset, and the players at the top fall the furthest. Until then, ayakasi has a little over three weeks to push the mark higher, and donk has the same time to take it back.

HOTU Academy’s ayakasi passes donk’s FACEIT Elo record at 18

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Simon Damgaard

Simon Damgaard writes analysis, tournament coverage and player profiles for Pley. A former semi-professional footballer, he brings an athlete's eye to competitive Counter-Strike, and he is never happier than when a story can be told through the numbers. He is also a keen fantasy manager.

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HOTU Academy’s ayakasi passes donk’s FACEIT Elo record at 18
HOTU Academy’s ayakasi passes donk’s FACEIT Elo record at 18

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