With just a few days to the StarLadder Budapest Major Stage 1 starting, we’ve gathered all the info you need to know about the format, teams and storylines.
Stage 1 will decide who survives the first real test of the Major cycle. Pressure is already building for several squads that arrive with shaky form, new stand-ins or recent roster changes.
In Stage 2 and Stage 3 the real heavyweights are lined up. These are the title contenders and the established international cores. Any team that makes it through Stage 1 will face a much tougher field.
Dates and location
️ November 24 – November 27, 2025
Budapest, Hungary
Prize: 8 spots in Stage 2 of the Major
Format
- 16-team Swiss, best of one until elimination or advancement matches, which is best of three
- Top 8 advance to Stage 2 of the Major
- Map pool: Dust2, Mirage, Inferno, Nuke, Train, Overpass, Ancient
Attending teams
- FaZe (Europe)
- Legacy (Americas)
- GamerLegion (Europe)
- B8 (Europe)
- Lynn Vision (Asia)
- M80 (Americas)
- fnatic (Europe)
- Ninjas in Pyjamas (Europe)
- FlyQuest (Asia)
- PARIVISION (Europe)
- NRG (Americas)
- FLUXO (Americas)
- Imperial (Americas)
- Rare Atom (Asia)
- RED Canids (Americas)
- The Huns (Asia)
Round 1 matchups
- B8 – M80
- Imperial – Rare Atom
- Legacy – FlyQuest
- PARIVISION – The Huns
- NIP – NRG
- GamerLegion – Fluxo
- fnatic – RED Canids
- FaZe – Lynn Vision
Storylines
Haven’t followed the CS Esports world the last couple of weeks? We’ll catch you up with all the important storylines.
Can FaZe bounce back from a difficult period after benching rain and bringing in the young polish rifler jcobbb?
Will Legacy be able to build on their great latter half of 2025, where they placed 2nd at PGL Masters Bucharest and won the CS Asia Championships?
What can the American teams do, when they have to play the best in the world and not just local LANs?
Talent
Stage Host/Interviewer:
- James Banks
Desk Hosts:
- Freya Spiers
- Sam “Tech Girl” Wright
Analysts:
- Jacob “Pimp” Winneche
- Jonatan “Devilwalk” Lundberg
- Alex “Mauisnake” Ellenberg
- Teodor “Tedd” Borisov
Sideline Reporters:
- Martin “STYKO” Styk
- Edona “dona” Musliu
Commentators:
- Chad “SPUNJ” Burchill
- Alex “Machine” Richardson
- Conner “Scrawny” Girvan
- Mohan “launders” Govindasamy
- Harry “JustHarry” Russell
- Hugo Byron
- Jason “moses” O’Toole
- Adam “Dinko” Hawthorne
Betting odds
Here are the bet365 odds for each team to qualify for stage 2 of the Major.
- Legacy – 1.14
- FaZe – 1.16
- GamerLegion – 1.44
- Ninjas in Pyjamas – 1.50
- PARIVISION – 1.50
- B8 – 1.57
- fnatic – 1.57
- M80 – 1.66
- Lynn Vision – 1.80
- Imperial – 2.00
- FlyQuest – 2.10
- NRG – 3.00
- Fluxo – 3.25
- Red Canids – 5.00
- Rare Atom – 11.00
- The Huns – 11.00
How to watch
StarLadder on KICK
StarLadder on Twitch
