All eyes are on the 16 teams that start their journey at the PGL Copenhagen Major on Sunday at the Opening Stage of the tournament. The biggest stars on the scene will enter the tournament in the next phase, where FaZe, G2, and the rest of the seeded teams for the Elimination Stage await. But until then, we will take a look at some of the players, that you should keep an eye on in the first stage of the tournament.

Filter: Against the top 50 teams (min. 15 maps) in 2024

1. João "felps" Vasconcellos (Imperial) – 1.19 rating (32 maps)

The 27-year-old Brazilian plays his sixth Major in his career. It’s been a while ago since the former SK rifler was part of any lineup that could win big tournaments, but in 2024 João "felps" Vasconcellos and his teammates have shown promising signs. The experienced Rifler is averaging a 1.25 rating overall, and a 1.19 rating against top 50 teams in the world.

2. Rafael "arrozdoce" Wing (SAW) – 1.19 rating (24 maps)

SAW is one of the most in-form teams that are going to the Copenhagen Major. With 9 wins in a row, the Portuguese fans are expecting their heroes to go far in the first CS2 Major in history. One of the key players for SAW will be Rafael "arrozdoce" Wing. The 21-year-old rifler has been amazing in the last couple of tournaments, where he has averaged between 1.21 and 1.32. Rafael "arrozdoce" Wing is one of the most in-form players at the tournament, and we can’t wait to see, what he brings to the server in Copenhagen.

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3. İsmailсan "XANTARES" Dörtkardeş (Eternal Fire) – 1.19 rating (22 maps)

The Turkish Rifler is obviously going to feature on this list. İsmailсan "XANTARES" Dörtkardeş is now 28-year-old, but he can still shoot heads. The Rifler was great in Katowice but had issues performing against the likes of FaZe and G2. Against lesser prominent opponents, İsmailсan "XANTARES" Dörtkardeş is still lethal, and has a very respectable 1.19 rating in 2024.

4. Özgür "woxic" Eker (Eternal Fire) – 1.18 rating (22 maps)

We have long stopped counting the times that Eternal Fire changed their roster in the past. But now something seems to have clicked for the Turkish side, that are expected to be among the best teams in the opening stage of the tournament. One of the reasons is Özgür "woxic" Eker. The 25-year-old AWP’er has been fairly consistent for Eternal Fire, and sometimes we see glimpses of the player that were ranked in the top 20 of the world in 2019. At the IEM Katowice Play-in, Özgür "woxic" Eker gave one of the best performances of his career with a 1.51 rating. It will be interesting to see, how Eternal Fire plays at the event after nearly a month without competitive matches.

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5. Yuri "yuurih" Boian (FURIA) – 1.18 rating (19 maps)

2318 days. That is the number of days, that Yuri "yuurih" Boian has been rifling for FURIA. The longest-standing member of the team is also the player in best shape before the start of the Copenhagen Major. The duo of Yuri "yuurih" Boian and Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato is always dangerous, and will without a doubt pose a threat to all the teams in the Opening Stage.

6. Michel "ewjerkz" Magalhães (SAW) – 1.17 rating (24 maps)

Another SAW player has found his way to the top of the ratings. Michel "ewjerkz" Magalhães has been very consistent in his performances for SAW with a minimum of 1.11 rating in the five events, that SAW has played in 2024. Michel "ewjerkz" Magalhães is 23-years-old and joined SAW in the summer of 2022. Can he bring glory to Portugal in CS2?

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7. Joakim 'jkaem' Myrbostad (Apeks) – 1.17 rating (34 maps)

The Norwegian Rifler has played competitive Counter-Strike since 2014! Copenhagen will be the 9th Major in history for Joakim 'jkaem' Myrbostad, who went all the way to the Semi-Finals with Apeks at the last Major in Paris. At 30 years old, Joakim 'jkaem' Myrbostad will be one of the keystones for Apeks to replicate the impressive result from Paris.

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8. Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato (FURIA) – 1.16 rating (19 maps)

Often mentioned as the current best player from Brazil, Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato will once again be one of the key players for FURIA, if they want to succeed in Copenhagen. Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato has been named among the best 20 players in the world by HLTV four years in a row. At the last Major in Paris however, Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato and FURIA were a long way from doing damage, so it will be interesting to see, what kind of FURIA we will see this time around.

9. Garidmagnai "bLitz" Byambasuren (TheMongolz) – 1.16 rating (16 maps)

TheMongolz has been the best team out of the Asian/Oceania region in the last couple of years. One of the stars of the Asian scene is 22-year-old Garidmagnai "bLitz" Byambasuren. The rifler plowed through the RMR tournament with a 1.46 rating and has greatly contributed to the fact, that TheMongolz is one of the teams to watch in the first stage of PGL Copenhagen.

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10. Alejandro "mopoz" Fernández (KOI) – 1.15 rating (35 maps)

27-year-old Alejandro "mopoz" Fernández spent a lifetime (in Counter-Strike terms) playing under the banner of Movistar Riders from 2017 until the start of 2024. Now the team is named KOI, but it is still with the roots of Iberian Counter-Strike in mind, that the Spanish/Portuguese roster enters the first CS2 Major in history. As an entry-fragger, Alejandro "mopoz" Fernández has been an excellent spearhead for KOI in 2024, where he has averaged a 1.15 rating against the top 50 teams.

11. Henrique "HEN1" Teles (Imperial) – 1.15 rating (32 maps)

Immortals, Luminosity Gaming, FURIA, O Plano, 00 Nation, MIBR, and Imperial. The list of Brazilian teams that Henrique "HEN1" Teles has played on is long and windy, but recently Imperial has begun to climb up in the world rankings after the team has performed significantly better. Henrique "HEN1" Teles looks determined to prove his worth after a superb performance at the RMR averaging 1.62 on the four maps it took Imperial to qualify. The 28-year-old Brazilian is playing his only second Major in his career, after reaching the Grand Final back in 2017 at PGL Major Krakow with Immortals.

12. Denis "electroNic" Sharipov (Cloud9) – 1.15 rating (30 maps)

The Russian Cloud9 player is the only Major winner on our list. But since the switch from NAVI to Cloud9, the results have been lackluster, to say the least. The introduction of Kirill 'Boombl4' Mikhailov as the new in-game leader has proven to be pivotal for the experienced rifler, who has seen a significant spike in his individual ratings. At IEM Katowice and the RMRs, Denis "electroNic" Sharipov once again showed that he is reliable as ever.

The opening round at PGL Copenhagen starts this Sunday.

electronic

HEN1

mopoz

bLitz

KSCERATO

jkaem

ewjerkz

yuurih

woxic

arrozdoce

felps

At least three out of the five spots from the Americas RMR tournament will be Brazilian at the upcoming Major in Copenhagen. At the qualification tournament in Mexico, it has been the Brazilian rosters dominating the matches so far.

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FURIA secured their spot in Copenhagen with three straight victories against NA teams. Nouns and Team Liquid were defeated in bo1 matches, while FURIA took down Complexity last night after a closely fought match ending 2-1 to Kaike 'KSCERATO' Cerato and his teammates. The Brazilian rifler once again played a key part in FURIA’s win.

Imperial also qualified with an impressive run at the RMR. Throughout the four maps that they played at the RMR tournament, Imperial only lost a combined 14 rounds. In their match against paiN last night, Henrique 'HEN1' Teles and his teammates won 13-5, 13-4. The AWP’er has been in excellent form at the tournament leaving it with a stellar 1.62 rating.

The tournament continues today with some spicy matchups to determine the last three spots from the Americas. Most eye catching is the “Battle of NA” with Complexity and Liquid going head-to-head for a spot at the Major.

paiN and ODDIK will fight an all-Brazilian matchup, while Marcelo "coldzera" David and Legacy takes on the international lineup from M80 in the last of the three matches.

coldzera

FURIA

Imperial

The Brazilian super team FURIA hasn't played well during 2022. The lack of experience in the big games is still a problem for the Brazilian kings. 2022 has been a year with no prominent placement for FURIA, but despite the lack of confidence in the big games, the Brazilian team still managed to secure themselves three top four placements during 2022, ESL Pro Leauge season 15, IEM Dallas 2022, and IEM Rio Major.

FURIA was sent home with a 3rd-4th place at the IEM Major Rio on home ground, hearts broken and a feeling of failure for the FURIA players. However, KSCERATO´s insane performance left him as the runner-up for the MVP medal. The Semi-Final loss against Heroic was a big blow for the Brazilians, but for KCSERATO, the experience has made him stronger.

- Even though we lost, that game gave me a lesson about myself. My family cheering for me was my best memory from 2022. I can't explain it, just feeling - KSCERATO says to [link:{"url":"https://www.hltv.org/news/35347/top-20-players-of-2022-kscerato-9","isNewTab":true,"text":"HLTV"}].

After a great year with high-level performances, has KSCERATO secured himself a number nine spot on the HLTV top 20 players list. The consistent rifler has been the highest-rated player during Lan events over the past six months.

KSCERATO´s stat line during the last six months of 2022, 1.30 Rating / 76.3% Kast / 1.31 Impact / 86.0 ADR / 0.79 KPR.

HLTV has made a Twitter post showcasing which player is most likely to convert a 1v1 situation. The stat is based on Big Events in 2022. 

KSCERATO and FURIA played well during the 2022 season despite the team not winning any titles. FURIA´s biggest success was at home ground when the Brazilian team managed to get a 3-4th place doing the IEM Rio Major 2022. Their star rifler KSCERATO was the second highest-rated player throughout the entire tournament with a stunning 1.33 rating across 10 maps. 

The past 6 months have been great for the 23-year-old rifler as he is averaging 1.28 rating / 0.56 DPR / 75.8% KAST / 1.29 IMPACT / 84.7 ADR / 0.78 KPR.

BLAST will once again honor the best CS:GO players and coaches by selecting the 2022 Team of the Year.

Taking part in the vote is a diverse selection of experts consisting of journalists, broadcast talent, and other respected voices from the world of Counter-Strike. We here at Pley.gg are among those who have been asked to nominate players and coaches within six different categories.

{cflag:EE} Robin “ropz” Kool (FaZe) - 1.14 rating in 2022 

ropz has been an important part of the huge year for FaZe. The Estonian joined the team in January and quickly proved to be the last part of the puzzle to elevate FaZe to a championship team. ropz has been one of the most consistent players all year around. 

{cflag:DK} Benjamin "blameF" Bremer (Astralis) - 1.24 rating in 2022

blameF has been one of the bright spots on a struggling Astralis roster. The Dane has consistently been the top-fragger for Astralis, and has at least statistically been one of the best players in the world in 2022. 

{cflag:IL} Lotan "Spinx" Giladi (ENCE/Team Vitality) - 1.11 rating in 2022

As one of the biggest revelations of 2022, it quickly became obvious to everybody, that ENCE would have difficulties keeping Spinx on the team with Team Vitality knocking on the door. The 22-year-old would probably be among the favorites for the award if he had kept up the impressive performances from the start of the year. But during the Rio RMR and at the Major the Israelian had problems finding his feet on his new team.

{cflag:BR} Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato (FURIA) - 1.17 rating in 2022

The FURIA lurker nearly made every Brazilian dream come true with a deep run at IEM Rio. KSCERATO rarely plays badly at events, and topped his performances with an impressive showing at IEM Rio.

{cflag:BA} Nemanja "huNter-" Kovač (G2) - 1.12 rating in 2022

Despite a troublesome year for G2 huNter- has shown consistency. The Bosnian has not had one event under a 1.00 HLTV rating all year long. Since the addition of Justin "jks" Savage on the team, huNter- is moving more and more away from the lurker role, so maybe he should be placed in a new category next year. 

ropz

blameF

Spinx

huNter

FaZe

Astralis

ENCE

Team Vitality

G2 Esports

We have arrived at the dying stages of the tournament at IEM Rio Major and the 'Most Valuable Player' award is still everyone's to take. With the semifinals being played this Saturday, we think it's a good opportunity to take a look at the best individual performers and the favourites to take home the MVP title. 

Taking a quick look at the statistics and numbers it stands clear that there is a group of players that have been levels above the rest - and it's not the usual suspects in Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut and Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev. You can take a look yourself down below, where especially Cloud9's Dmitry "sh1ro" Sokolov and a certain FURIA duo are heavily represented.

Top 5 leaderboards | IEM Rio Legends + Champions Stage

It was a Friday night in Rio filled with tension and excitement before one of the most anticipated matches of the year took place. In Jeunesse Arena the crowd had found their way to the brawl between FURIA and NAVI.

On paper NAVI were the clear favorites, but what would 18.000 screaming fans do to the equation?

We quickly got the answer. On Nuke, NAVI’s map pick, the match was much closer than expected. FURIA kept up, and even had a golden chance to steal the map away in the end, but lost to an eco buy from NAVI to effectively hand NAVI the map.

FURIA did not take the flat ending to the first map with them to Ancient. On their own map pick they dominated the T-side leading 10-5 at the half. The Brazilians won the map 16-11 to put the Arena into ecstasy!

But it was not the noise level or the fantastic atmosphere that stood out the most. It was s1mple! The Ukrainian mastermind was lowest on the scoreboard after the two first maps! A 0.84 rating told the story of a superstar that had missed a couple of sitters. Was the crowd getting to him?

Mirage was the third and final map of the game. Normally a good map for both teams. It was FURIA who took an 8-7 lead to the second half. In a nailbiter of a second half the two teams fought each other in the inferno of Jeunesse Arena.

At 10-10 the match took a turn. For the first time on the map, FURIA created a gap. Everything went in the way of FURIA! The Arena erupted while all the kills went in the way of FURIA. FURIA won 16-10 and is ready for the Semi-Finals, while NAVI and s1mple are out of the tournament after a lackluster performance.

FURIA will now go up against Heroic tomorrow.

FURIA - NAVI 2-1 | IEM Rio Major Champions Stage

14-16 (Nuke) | {cflag:UA} sdy – 1.23 Rating / 21-16 K-D / 76.6 ADR

16-14 (Ancient) | {cflag:BR} KSCERATO – 1.68 Rating / 24-15 K-D / 107.4 ADR

16-10 (Mirage) | {cflag:BR} drop – 1.65 Rating / 29-14 K-D / 102.7 ADR

MVP: {cflag:BR} Kaike “kscerato” Cerato - 1.37 rating

Lowest rated: Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev 0.87 rating

s1mple

drop

Natus Vincere

It is safe to say, that you don’t just have to face FURIA, when going head-to-head with the Brazilians on the server at IEM Rio. You also have to handle the pressure from more than 4000 spectators cheering their countrymen to victory. A fact that Team Spirit had to realize today in Rio.

Against FURIA it was all Team Spirit in the first 13 rounds. An 11-2 lead was established after a stellar CT side. But then things took a drastic turn. Spearheaded by the youngster André "drop" Abreu and Kaike “kscerato” Cerato, FURIA started an incredible comeback. At 14-13, FURIA went ahead while the home crowd went completely amok.

Team Spirit was shell-shocked and did not manage to recover. FURIA completed the comeback and won the match and probably all the remaining hearts in Riocentro, that weren't already on the "FURIA" bandwagon. The Brazilians are now 2-0 up and are now one win away from playing in the playoffs next week. 

Team Spirit - FURIA 0-1 | IEM Rio Major Legends Stage

13-16 (Mirage) | {cflag:BR} KSCERATO – 1.42 Rating / 26-18 K-D / 89.8 ADR

It was more a sense of relief than joy for the players of FURIA, after their overtime victory against OG. Because playing on home soil in front of thousands of Brazilian fans and supporters, who all hope to see you succeed, can be a tough burden to have on your shoulders.

Something we spoke with Kaike “kscerato” Cerato about after yesterday’s match, where he explains how the emotions of playing in Brazil are difficult to handle.

- I’m relieved. I almost threw up after that defuse by drop – it’s still here [KSCERATO points towards his throat]. Because there is so much emotion, we play for love and for everyone, so it’s hard. But now it’s a good feeling, KSCERATO said and continued to talk about the atmosphere inside the arena:

- The support which the Brazilians give to us, I think it’s insane and it gives me goosebumps. We can feel the screaming and roars, and we can feel the ground shaking, it’s insane. It’s a different atmosphere, and I think we need more tournaments here.

You can watch the entire interview with the FURIA star down below. 

FURIA is now the only South American team alongside 9z that is still remaining at IEM Rio Major after both Imperial and 00Nation were knocked out of the tournament yesterday. You can follow all the action from the prestigious Major right here on Pley.gg.

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In a fast-paced game of Counter-Strike, 00Nation and FURIA kicked off round 2 of IEM Rio Challengers Stage with a match on Mirage.

With both teams coming into the match with a loss in the luggage, the pressure was on from the loud audience, who did not want to see two of their favorite teams go head to head at this point of the tournament.

FURIA started on their T side and did excellently to power through the defense of 00Nation. Kaike “kscerato” Cerato was pivotal for FURIA with six multi-kill rounds in the first half alone. FURIA’s superstar dropped 32 kills during the match. FURIA won 16-6 to go into the 1-1 bracket tomorrow, while 00Nation could be out of IEM Rio tomorrow if they lose one more match.

FURIA – 00NATION 1-0 | IEM Rio RMR (Challenger Stage)

16-9 (Vertigo) | {cflag:BR} Kaike “kscerato” Cerato – 2.25 Rating / 32–10 K-D / 145.8 ADR

00Nation

Four out of six teams had everything to play for on the last day of ESL Pro League Group D.

For both FURIA and Team Liquid the mission was clear. Win, and they would advance to the next stage no matter what. Against the undefeated Cloud9, Team Liquid had to dig deep to get the result, they needed. It took a masterclass from Mareks 'YEKINDAR' Gaļinskis to get the win on Overpass to seal the victory for Team Liquid with the Latvian putting up 41 kills during the 19-17 win after overtime. 

FURIA took down Evil Geniuses after two-second halves on both maps, where the Brazilians were in control. Again it was Kaike 'KSCERATO' Cerato, who continued his impressive performances at ESL Pro League with another impactful performance that saw FURIA win 2-0. KSCERATO is now the second highest player of all the groups with a 1.41 rating!

In the last match, Eternal Fire won 2-0 against Movistar Riders, but the win proved to be in vain with Team Liquid winning their match. 

Group D ends with Cloud9, FURIA, and Team Liquid making it through to the playoffs.

YEKINDAR

Eternal Fire

Evil Geniuses

Team Liquid

Cloud9

Movistar Riders

We started with 16 teams, now we are down to just 8 as both FURIA and Liquid came out on top in the first two brawls of day 4 of IEM Cologne 2022. Securing victory against their opponents, Team Liquid and FURIA managed to secure a spot in the Upper Final of Group B where they are set to lock horns against each other tomorrow. 

With the addition of "YEKINDAR" as a stand-in, Team Liquid have looked a scary opponent to face as of late and when battling against the otherwise clinical and very cohesive roster of Cloud 9, Team Liquid proved themselves once again. With superstar "YEKINDAR" showcasing just why he is regarded as one of the best individuals in the world of professional Counter-Strike, Liquid managed to claim victory against Cloud 9 in just two maps. Confident victories on both Dust 2 and Vertigo meant that Liquid were able to walk away from their brawl against Cloud 9 with yet another victory to their belt and a spot in the Upper Final of Group B secured. 

16-11 (Dust 2) | {cflag:US} oSee - 1.35 Rating / 21-11 K-D / 78.0 ADR

16-9 (Vertigo) | {cflag:LV} YEKINDAR - 1.73 Rating / 28-16 K-D / 113.2 ADR

MVP: {cflag:LV} Mareks "YEKINDAR" Gaļinskis - 1.47 Rating / 48-36 K-D / 93.5 ADR

FURIA is not a new name in the world of Counter-Strike, and for good reason. For a long time now, the Brazilians have proved themselves a scary prospect for any opponents thanks to their creative and aggressive strategies orchestrated by "arT". Whilst Team Spirit are currently on the rise and have played incredible Counter-Strike as of late, it was the Brazilians to prove the more resilient roster as they took home the victory after three close and intense maps. 

12-16 (Nuke) | {cflag:RU} chopper - 1.59 Rating / 27-16 K-D / 108.2 ADR

16-14 (Mirage) | {cflag:BR} KSCERATO - 1.15 Rating / 22-17 K-D / 82.9 ADR

16-10 (Overpass) | {cflag:BR} KSCERATO - 1.56 Rating / 21-11 K-D / 93.5 ADR

MVP: {cflag:BR} Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato - 1.25 Rating / 59-45 K-D / 84.5 ADR

Spirit

It is a lonely job playing B site on Vertigo as most teams will often use a lot of energy around the Ramp and A site areas. And that is why it is important for you to know how to hold it properly.

One of the most successful teams on the map in recent times is the Brazilians of FURIA. They post the best CT-side winrate of any team versus Top20 in 2022, and of the reasons is 'KSCERATO', who is the B-site anchor. Content creator "Glaze" showcases some of the Brazilian's positions, decisions, and utility usage against two top teams in G2 and ENCE.

So if you want to get better at holding, controlling, and dominating the B site of Vertigo, you can watch how down below.

A playoff spot was on the line when the Ninjas In Pyjamas took on FURIA. It looked ly a close matchup on paper, but the Brazilians had a hard time containing the Scandinavians.

The action began on Nuke, the pick of FURIA, but the Brazilians would quickly come to regret that. Led by "Plopski", the Ninjas shut down everything the FURIA squad threw at them, and without any hiccups secured the first map at 16-2.

NIP were still going strong as they arrived on their map pick of Inferno. They got off to a great early start on the T side, with a 5-1 lead, but "KSCERATO" and a reinvigorated FURIA finally fought back and took the halftime lead at 8-7.

The Ninjas took over the game as they arrived on the CT side. With "Brollan" doing great work in Banana, FRUIA struggled to find openings. The Brazilians only took two rounds before being pushed out of the server by the Ninjas.

With the win, NIP secure a place in the playoffs while FURIA will have an all-or-nothing match tomorrow.

NIP - FURIA 2-0 | PGL Major Antwerp Legends Stage

16-2 (Nuke) | {cflag:SE} Plopski - 1.84 Rating / 22-8 K-D / 120.1 ADR

16-10 (Inferno) | {cflag:SE} Brollan - 1.61 Rating / 24-15 K-D / 102.2 ADR

MVP: {cflag:SE} Ludvig "Brollan" Brolin - 1.46 Rating / 36-27 K-D / 100.2 ADR

Plopski

Brollan

Ninjas in Pyjamas

The Brazilians from FURIA seem to have found their form here three months into 2022, with the team presenting a stunning performance at ESL Pro League Season 15. The South American heavy hitter is now alone in front of Group B after taking down Vitality this Friday.

Andrei “arT” Piovezan and his men began the match in flying fashion on Vertigo where they quickly showed the French/Danish squad what they could expect in today’s matchup – fast-paced Counter-Strike. The aggressive and offensive playstyle from FURIA kept giving Vitality big problems on the first map, which the 16-4 scoreline in favor of FURIA clearly proved.

On Inferno, Vitality looked much more confident and comfortable, despite FURIA’s powerful duo in yuurih and KSCERATO continuing their strong levels from Vertigo. The two teams were tough to separate in the first half - however, after the switch, Vitality pushed the throttle on their CT side and managed to win four consecutive retakes, which in the end secured them a 16-12 map win.

The brawl continued on Nuke, where FURIA came out strong on their CT-side. A 9-6 lead at the break left some hope in the Vitality camp. And despite a good start to the second half, the French/Danish roster could not distance themselves from FURIA on the scoreboard. The Brazilians closed out multiple rounds in the end winning some important clutches, while Vitality once again missed their star player, Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut, who was playing well below his normal level of Counter-Strike on all three maps. A 16-14 victory for FURIA puts them into a big step closer to the playoffs, while Team Vitality needs to win their last two matches to stay in contention for a spot in the next phase of the tournament.

FURIA – Vitality 2-1 | ESL Pro League Season 15 (Group B)

16-4 (Vertigo) | {cflag:BR} yuurih – 2.09 Rating / 21-10 K-D / 139.8 ADR

12-16 (Inferno) | {cflag:BR} yuurih – 1.31 Rating / 22-14 K-D / 78.5 ADR

16-14 (Nuke) | {cflag:BR} apEX - 1.33 Rating / 25-17 K-D / 91.1 ADR

MVP: {cflag:BR} Yuri 'yuurih' Santos - 1.44 Rating / 67-43 K-D / 91.0 ADR

apEX

ZywOo

The second day of play in Group B at the ESL Pro League Season 15 saw FURIA lock horns with German-based Sprout. FURIA were the heavy favorites going into the Bo3-series and came straight from a 2-1 victory against Outsiders in yesterday's Bo3-series. It was also FURIA to prove themselves the stronger team, with great individual performances from star-players "KSECERATO" and "arT". In a quick manner, FURIA decapitated Sprout and joined ENCE at the top of Group B. The 2-0 victory marks the second win for FURIA at the ESL Pro League Season 15. 

The first map of the series was set to be played on Ancient and was the choice of Sprout. Ancient is the most played map for Sprout, as of recent times, and despite being a very successful map for the Brazilians it is one of their least played maps in the past three months. Despite this, however, it was FURIA to dominate from early on. A beautiful ACE from "saffee" in the first pistol-round saw FURIA embark on their dominating CT-path to an 11-4 scoreline at halftime. The second half showed a more potent and dangerous Sprout roster, with young "Staehr" delivering a great performance. Unfortunately for Sprout, however, it was too late. The 11-4 lead proved too much to come back from and FURIA closed out Ancient at the scoreline of 16-11. 

The second map of the series was Mirage and was, of course, picked by FUIRA. Mirage is one of FURIA's most dangerous maps in the official map pool. The open spaces of Mirage make for an array of creative strategies, that the Brazilians are scarily good at utilizing. This time it was the Brazilians to start on the T-side, and once again it was FURIA to secure advantage going into the second half. An impressive performance from "arT" led FURIA to a 9-6 scoreline on their T-side of Mirage. After FURIA winning the second pistol-round things looked bleak for Sprout, and they were. At 16-12, it was FURIA to take home Mirage and the Bo3-series with an impressive 2-0 victory against Sprout. 

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FURIA - Sprout 2-0 | ESL Pro League Season 15 (Group B)

16-11 (Ancient) | {cflag:BR} KSCERATO – 1.66 Rating / 29-14 K-D / 107.4 ADR

16-12 (Mirage) | {cflag:BR} arT – 1.50 Rating / 28-18 K-D / 96.6 ADR

MVP: {cflag:BR} Kaike ”KSCERATO” Cerato – 1.27 Rating / 45-29 K-D / 79.5 ADR

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Sprout

Outsiders. You might not have heard of the team - but it’s are actually consisting some of CS:GO’s very best players. Due to [link:{"url":"https://pley.gg/news/esl-issues-statement-regarding-ukraine/","isNewTab":true,"text":"ESL's decision"}] to sanction Russian-based teams, Virtus.pro’s roster led by Dzami “Jame” Ali has been forced to play under a neutral name at ESL Pro League.

[slugORMA:{"slug":"virtus-pro-roster-will-play-esl-pro-league-under-new-name","isNewTab":true}]

Jame and company debuted the new banner tonight when they took the Brazilians from FURIA at Group B. A match that ended up in favour of FURIA through an impressive re-sweep after losing the first map in a close 16-14 fight.

Andrei “arT” Piovezan and the rest of FURIA showed great character on the last two maps of Overpass and Vertigo, where they showcased their aggressive playstyle to perfection, making it very difficult for Outsiders to pick rounds – both on the T and CT sides.

15 rounds. That’s was the total amount of rounds Outsiders managed to win in the last two maps, which ended with dominant scorelines in 16-8 / 16-7.

Outsiders – FURIA 2-0 | ESL Pro League Season 15 (Group B)

16-14 (Mirage) | {cflag:RU} FL1T – 1.39 Rating / 26-19 K-D / 109.7 ADR

16-8 (Overpass) | {cflag:BR} KSCERATO – 1.32 Rating / 18-15 K-D / 90.8 ADR

16-7 (Vertigo) | {cflag:BR} KSCERATO – 1.54 Rating / 22-9 K-D / 91.7 ADR

MVP: {cflag:BR} Kaike ”KSCERATO” Cerato – 1.30 Rating / 61-42 K-D / 86.9 ADR

Outsiders

NAVI has started 2022 on shaky ground after mixed results at BLAST Premier Spring Groups and a narrow victory against ENCE yesterday. But to be fair to s1mple and company, there has still been an aura surrounding the team, that when things get serious, NAVI is still in control and above all else.

Today the Ukrainian/Russian roster had the opportunity to qualify for the playoffs at IEM Katowice. FURIA was in their way, but not for long. A near-perfect CT side on Mirage gave NAVI a 13-2 lead on the first map that finished before four of the FURIA players had scored double digits on the scoreboard.

On Nuke NAVI just continued their grind towards a quick win. As commentator Mohan "launders" Govindasamy stated in the first half "it almost looks like a scrim" after NAVI tried to execute the same opening four times in a row. In the second half, FURIA tried to make a comeback with Kaike "kscerato" Cerato in excellent shape, but the Brazilian could not do it alone. NAVI won the map and can now look forward to a meeting with either FaZe or Fnatic in the battle for a direct spot in the Semi-Finals at IEM Katowice. FURIA drops down to the lower bracket, where G2 awaits. 

16-2 (Mirage) | {cflag:RU} electroNic – 1.96 Rating / 21-6 K-D / 116.3 ADR

16-12 (Nuke) | {cflag:BR} kscerato- - 1.77 Rating / 34-18 K-D / 130.4 ADR

MVP: {cflag:RU} Denis "electroNic" Sharipov - 1.45 Rating / 41-23 K-D / 97.0 ADR

IEM Katowice is already well underway as we near the end of day one. With Group A having already played their opening matches it was time for the teams within Group B to prove themselves. A clash between the all-Brazilian FURIA and the all-Danish Astralis would send either one of the teams off to a great start to IEM Katowice. Whilst the former Astralis duo in “Magisk” and “dupreeh” managed to win with Vitality earlier today, the actual Astralis roster struggled. The Danes would have to see themselves bested by an impressive FURIA roster in just two maps.

The first map was the choice of Astralis and saw the Bo3-series start on Overpass. Despite having picked the map it was Astralis to start the slowest on Overpass. A CT-sided FURIA seemed to have the answers for the Astralis offense and secured a three-round lead at 9-6 going into the second half. Whilst it was a closer affair in the second half of Overpass the great performances from “blameF” and “k0nfig” weren’t enough to get the Danes over the line. At 16-12 it was FURIA to claim Overpass and set themselves up for a potential 2-0 victory in their opening match at IEM Katowice.

The second map of the series was to be played on Mirage and was, of course, picked by FURIA. Whilst Astralis have played Mirage 11 times in the past three months, it is still worth considering the many years of the map being an instant ban for the Danes. The first half didn’t turn out great for “gla1ve” and his troops either. Despite “k0nfig” yet again doing absolutely everything in his ability to keep Astralis in the game it was a, this time T-sided, FURIA roster to secure another 9-6 lead at halftime. The second half started with a seemingly more confident Astralis roster. This, however, was only until FURIA shifted into gear once again. At the scoreline of 16-11, FURIA closed out Mirage and secured their first victory at IEM Katowice, sending a beaten-down Astralis to the lower bracket.

FURIA – Astralis (2-0) | IEM Katowice 2022

16-12 (Overpass) | {cflag:BR} saffee – 1.29 Rating / 24-17 K-D / 81.5 ADR

16-11 (Mirage) | {cflag:BR} arT - 1.75 Rating / 26-16 K-D / 111.7 ADR

	30 days	90 days
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