Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII – Katowice Major 2019
2019 | |
Tournament information | |
---|---|
Sport | Counter-Strike: Global Offensive |
Location | Katowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland |
Dates | February 13–March 3, 2019 |
Administrator(s) | Valve ESL |
Tournament format(s) | Two 16 team swiss-system group stages
8 team single-elimination playoff |
Venue | ESL Arena Katowice MCK Spodek |
Teams | 24 teams |
Purse | $1,000,000 USD |
Final positions | |
Champions | Astralis |
1st runners-up | ENCE |
2nd runners-up | MIBR Natus Vincere |
MVP | Emil "Magisk" Reif |
The Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII – Katowice Major 2019, also known as IEM Katowice Major 2019 or Katowice 2019, was the fourteenth Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major Championship and the world championship for the thirteenth season of the Intel Extreme Masters. It was held in Katowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland from February 13 – March 3, 2019.[1] Fourteen teams would qualify for the IEM Katowice Major 2019 based on their top fourteen placements from the last Major, the FACEIT Major: London 2018, while another ten teams would qualify from their respective regional qualifiers.[2] The top eight teams from the London Major ("Legends") received a bye to the second phase of the group stage while the other sixteen teams ("Challengers") had to go through the first and second group stages in order to reach the playoffs. It featured a US$1,000,000 prize pool, the seventh consecutive Major with that prize pool.[3][4] It was hosted by ESL, their first Major since 2016. This event was the start of the second season of the Intel Grand Slam.
Astralis, Team Liquid, MIBR, Natus Vincere, and FaZe Clan were incoming Legends who retained that status, while BIG, HellRaisers, and compLexity Gaming were knocked out in the New Legends stage. Renegades, Ninjas in Pyjamas, and ENCE advanced to the playoff stage to become Legends for the following Major.
The grand finals featured the world's number one team Astralis, which defeated Ninjas in Pyjamas and MIBR in the playoffs, and the underdog ENCE, which defeated the world's number two in Team Liquid and the world's number three in Natus Vincere. Astralis swept ENCE in two maps to take its third Major title and tie Fnatic for most Majors titles. In addition, Astralis became just the third team after Fnatic and the Brazilian roster of Luminosity Gaming and SK Gaming to win consecutive Majors.
Background[]
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) is a multiplayer first-person shooter video game developed by Hidden Path Entertainment and Valve. It is the fourth game in the Counter-Strike series. In professional CS:GO, the Valve-sponsored Majors are the most prestigious tournaments.[5][6]
The defending champions were Astralis, after winning their second championship at the FACEIT Major: London 2018. At the time, Fnatic had the most Major titles, with three.
Format[]
The Major cycle began with four Minors, or regional qualifiers: Americas, Asia, CIS, and Europe. Two teams from each qualifier moved on to the Major. In addition, because Valve reduced the number of direct Major invites from sixteen to fourteen, the third-place teams at each respective Minor advanced to a third-place qualifier to send two more teams to the Major.
The Major featured twenty-four teams. The top eight teams from the FACEIT Major: London 2018 were the Legends, and the remaining sixteen teams—the teams that placed ninth through fourteenth at the FACEIT Major and the ten teams that advanced from the Minors—were known as Challengers.
The Major was split into three stages. The first stage was the New Challengers stage, featuring all Challengers in a Swiss-system tournament: the top eight teams advanced to the next stage and the bottom eight teams were eliminated. The second stage is the New Legends stage, a second Swiss-system group stage. This stage featured the eight Legends from the London Major and the eight teams advancing from the New Challengers stage. Like the New Challengers stage, the New Legends stage also advanced the top eight teams and eliminated the bottom eight teams. All teams from this stage except the bottom two teams earned automatic invites to the following Major. The final stage was the New Champions stage, and teams that advanced to this stage received Legends status at the following Major. This stage featured an eight team, best-of-three, single elimination bracket.[7][8]
ESL announced changes for this Major in the New Challengers and the New Legends stages. Rather than only featuring best-of-threes in the fifth round of the group stages, ESL announced that any progression or elimination matches would feature a best-of-three series. Therefore, the high and low matches of round three and all matches in rounds four and five were best-of-three. ESL also made changes to the seeding protocol. Instead of having seeding determined by placement at the last Major and the Minors, each team in the Swiss-system stages ranked the other 15 teams in the stage; the rankings were then aggregated to create the final seeding for the first round of each Swiss-system stage.[9] ESL also moved away from FACEIT's Buchholz system and instead used an Elo rating system. Teams were assigned Elo ratings that matched their seeding and the rating changed after every win or loss, with the winner taking some of the loser's points. Each team's Elo rating was used to determine all matchups after the first round, instead of the random draws of previous Majors.[10][11]
Map Pool[]
The map pool remained the same as the previous Major.[12]
|
Minors[]
Each regional qualifier, called "Minors", featured eight teams. Each Minor also had a US$50,000 prize pool, with first place receiving US$30,000, second place taking in US$15,000, and third place raking in the last US$5,000. Unlike past Minors, no teams was directly invited to the Minors.[13] All Minors take place in Katowice to avoid visa issues, just like the FACEIT Major approach.[14]
Each Minor's format was similar to past Minors, but with a couple small changes. The group stages would be a GSL, double elimination format with each group featuring four teams. The opening matches would be a best of one. A new change came along with the winner's set being a best of three instead of the usual best of one. The loser's and decider's matches would also be best of three sets. The top two teams in each group would move on to a four team, best of three, double elimination bracket. The top two teams would move on to the Major. In addition, the Minor finals that used to determine seeding would be eliminated; instead, the winner of the winner's match would be the first seed going into the New Challengers stage and the winner of the loser's match would be the second seed.[15]
CIS Minor[]
The CIS Minor qualifier featured sixteen teams. Winstrike Team was automatically invited based on its top sixteen placement at the FACEIT Major and another seven teams were invited. Eight more teams qualified through four online qualifiers. The qualifier will have a sixteen team, double elimination bracket and teams will play until eight teams qualified CIS Minor.
The CIS Minor took place from January 16 to 20, 2019.[16]
|
First round | Semifinals | IEM Katowice 2019 | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Spirit | 0 | ||||||||||||
B2 | AVANGAR | 2 | ||||||||||||
B2 | AVANGAR | 2 | ||||||||||||
B1 | Winstrike Team | 1 | ||||||||||||
B1 | Winstrike Team | 2 | ||||||||||||
A2 | Gambit Esports | 1 | ||||||||||||
B2 | AVANGAR | Q | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Spirit | Q | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Spirit | 2 | ||||||||||||
A2 | Gambit Esports | 0 | ||||||||||||
B1 | Winstrike Team | 1 | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Spirit | 2 | ||||||||||||
Europe Minor[]
The Europe Minor qualifier featured sixteen teams. mousesports were automatically invited based on their top sixteen placement at the FACEIT Major and another seven teams were invited. Eight more teams qualified through four online qualifiers. The qualifier had a sixteen team, double elimination bracket and teams played until eight teams qualified for the Europe Minor.
The Europe Minor took place from January 16 to 20, 2019. ENCE eSports and Team Vitality[17] qualified for the main qualifier.
|
First round | Semifinals | IEM Katowice 2019 | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Vitality | 0 | ||||||||||||
B2 | North | 2 | ||||||||||||
B2 | North | 0 | ||||||||||||
B1 | ENCE | 2 | ||||||||||||
B1 | ENCE | 2 | ||||||||||||
A2 | Valiance | 1 | ||||||||||||
B1 | ENCE | Q | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Vitality | Q | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Vitality | 2 | ||||||||||||
A2 | Valiance | 1 | ||||||||||||
B2 | North | 1 | ||||||||||||
A1 | Team Vitality | 2 | ||||||||||||
Asia Minor[]
The Asia Minor featured two teams from Oceania, two teams from China, two teams from East Asia, one team from Southeast Asia, and one team from the Middle East. Each qualifier featured four invited teams and another four teams through two online qualifiers. Each qualifier consist of an eight team, double elimination, best of three bracket. MVP PK was the first team to qualify for any Katowice 2019 Minor after defeating compatriot GOSU and Renegades rounded up the Asia Minor lineup after defeating Tainted Minds.
The Asia Minor will take place from January 22 to 26, 2019.[18]
|
Americas Minor[]
The Americas Minor featured two qualifiers, one from North America and one from South America. The North America qualifier featured sixteen teams. Eight teams were invited and another eight teams qualified through four online qualifiers. The qualifier would have a sixteen team, double elimination bracket and teams would play until six teams qualified for the Americas Minor. The South America qualifier featured eight teams. Four teams were invited and another four teams qualified through two online qualifiers. This qualifier have an eight team, double elimination, best of three bracket. Teams would play until two teams qualified for the Minor.
The Americas Minor took place from January 22 to 26, 2019, the same dates as the Asia Minor.[19]
|
First round | Semifinals | IEM Katowice 2019 | ||||||||||||
A1 | NRG Esports | 2 | ||||||||||||
B2 | Team Envy | 0 | ||||||||||||
A1 | NRG Esports | 2 | ||||||||||||
B1 | FURIA Esports | 0 | ||||||||||||
B1 | FURIA Esports | 2 | ||||||||||||
A2 | INTZ eSports | 1 | ||||||||||||
A1 | NRG Esports | Q | ||||||||||||
B1 | FURIA Esports | Q | ||||||||||||
B2 | Team Envy | 2 | ||||||||||||
A2 | INTZ eSports | 1 | ||||||||||||
B1 | FURIA Esports | 2 | ||||||||||||
B2 | Team Envy | 0 | ||||||||||||
Minor play-in[]
This qualifier featured the teams that placed third in their respective Minors. This phase was a four team, best of three, double elimination bracket. The opening matches were the Asia Minor representative against the Europe Minor representative and the CIS Minor team versus the Americans Minor team.[15]
The Minor play-in took place on January 27, 2019.[20]
|
First round | Semifinals | IEM Katowice 2019 | ||||||||||||
AS | ViCi Gaming | 1 | ||||||||||||
EU | North | 0 | ||||||||||||
AS | ViCi Gaming | 0 | ||||||||||||
CIS | Winstrike Team | 1 | ||||||||||||
CIS | Winstrike Team | 1 | ||||||||||||
AM | Team Envy | 0 | ||||||||||||
CIS | Winstrike Team | Q | ||||||||||||
AS | ViCi Gaming | Q | ||||||||||||
EU | North | 2 | ||||||||||||
AM | Team Envy | 0 | ||||||||||||
AS | ViCi Gaming | 2 | ||||||||||||
EU | North | 0 | ||||||||||||
Broadcast talent[]
Desk hosts
Stage host
Reporter
Commentators
- Henry "HenryG" Greer
- Vince Hill
- Jason "moses" O'Toole
- Matthew "Sadokist" Trivett
- Analysts and desk hosts also filled in as commentators
Analysts
- Chad "SPUNJ" Burchill
- Sean "seang@res" Gares
- Jacob "Pimp" Winneche
Observers
Broadcasts[]
The major is streamed in various languages across Twitch. It is also streamed on ESL's YouTube channel, Steam.tv, and on CS:GO's in-game viewing client GOTV.[21]
Teams competing[]
|
|
|
Top twenty players in the tournament[]
The top 20 players of 2018 were ranked by HLTV.org. Below is the list of players in the top 20 who are participating in the Major. This list was significant in that it was the first time that all five players from the same team were ranked in the top 20, as Astralis dominated 2018. Of the top twenty, Tomáš "oskar" Šťastný (#14), Miikka "suNny" Kemppi (#16), and Robin "ropz" Kool (#19), all from mousesports, did not qualify for the Major. Players who dropped out of the top 20 from 2016 include Fernando "fer" Alvarenga (#3, Brazil, SK Gaming/MIBR), Gabriel "FalleN" Toledo (#6, Brazil, SK Gaming/MIBR), Kenny "kennyS" Schrub (#7, France, G2 Esports), Abay "Hobbit" Khasenov (#11, Kazakhstan, Gambit Esports), Kristian "k0nfig" Wienecke (#14, Denmark, OpTic Gaming), Markus "Kjaerbye" Kjærbye (#15, Denmark, North), Dauren "AdreN" Kystaubayev (#17, Kazakhstan, Gambit Esports), Ricardo "boltz" Prass (#18, Brazil, Immortals/SK Gaming/MIBR), Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer (#19, Sweden, FaZe Clan), and Janusz "Snax" Pogorzelski (#20, Poland, Virtus.pro/mousesports)[22]
Most achievements have whether the player was the most valuable player of the tournament (MVP) or an extremely valuable player in the tournament (EVP).[23]
Pre-Major ranking[]
HLTV.org rank teams based on results of teams' performances. The rankings shown below reflect the February 11, 2019 rankings.[24]
The HLTV.org World Ranking ranks the best teams in the competitive field of the game. The world ranking is based on teams' achievements over the past year (with severe decay in points throughout each month), recent form over the last 2 months, and performance at the last 10 LAN events. All of that is predicated around a 3-man core each team is required to have in order to retain their past points. Points cap at 1000 points. The rankings started with the last season's Katowice World Championship, in which Fnatic defeated FaZe Clan and concluded with Astralis defeating Team Liquid at ESL Pro League Season 8.
Teams that were in the top 30 but failed to qualify for the major include North (#7, Denmark), mousesports (#10, Europe), Ghost Gaming (#16, United States), Valiance (#20, Serbia), 3DMAX (#24, France), Heroic (#25, Denmark), forZe (#26, Russia), Luminosity Gaming (#27, Brazil), Sprout Esports (#29, Germany), and x6tence Galaxy (#30, Sweden).
The following list shows the relevant tournaments to the rankings. From top to bottom, the tournament becomes more relevant to the rankings. Those in gold indicates the tournament was a Major, meaning Valve, the developers of the game, sponsored the tournament to host a CS:GO Major. A premier tournament means it offers an outstanding prize pool, is frequently played offline, and features the best players from all over the world. A major tournament simply means the tournament features a large prize pool and a good number of top teams; the major tournaments that are shown below are only shown because a team from the major participated in the event. This list also shows where the tournament took place, the number of teams at the tournament, the winner and runner-up, prize pool, and – if applicable – the most valuable player of the tournament.
New Challengers stage[]
The New Challengers stage took place from February 13 to February 17, 2019 at the ESL Arena. The Challengers stage, also known as the Preliminary stage and formerly known as the offline qualifier, was a sixteen team swiss tournament. The seeding was released on February 6, 2019. Next to each team's name under the "Team" column is each team's initial seeding. Under each of the "Rounds" columns are the team's opponent's seed at the time the round was played.[61]
Place | Team | Record | RD | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1–2 | NRG Esports (2) | 3-0 | +22 | Winstrike Team (15) 16-9 Nuke |
High match ViCi Gaming (12) 16-6 Overpass |
High match TyLoo (6) 2-0 |
New Legends stage | New Legends stage |
Renegades (9) | 3-0 | +22 | AVANGAR (8) 16-8 Train |
High match Ninjas in Pyjamas (3) 16-13 Mirage |
High match ENCE eSports (2) 2-0 |
New Legends stage | New Legends stage | |
3–5 | Team Vitality (6) | 3-1 | +16 | TyLoo (11) 8-16 Inferno |
Low match Grayhound Gaming (15) 19-17 Nuke |
Mid match Vega Squadron (11) 16-1 Overpass |
High match ViCi Gaming (11) 2-0 |
New Legends stage |
AVANGAR (8) | 3-1 | +6 | Renegades (9) 8-16 Train |
Low match FURIA Esports (14) 16-14 Mirage |
Mid match G2 Esports (7) 16-10 Overpass |
High match TyLoo (7) 2-0 |
New Legends stage | |
ENCE eSports (5) | 3-1 | +4 | Team Spirit (12) 16-10 Nuke |
High match G2 Esports (6) 16-6 Overpass |
High match Renegades (5) 0-2 |
High match Winstrike Team (12) 2-1 |
New Legends stage | |
6–8 | Ninjas in Pyjamas (4) | 3-2 | +20 | FURIA Esports (13) 16-6 Mirage |
High match Renegades (8) 13-16 Mirage |
Mid match Winstrike Team (13) 6-16 Train |
Low match Vega Squadron (13) 2-1 |
ViCi Gaming (11) 2-1 |
G2 Esports (7) | 3-2 | +16 | Vega Squadron (10) 16-14 Cache |
High match ENCE eSports (4) 6-16 Overpass |
Mid match AVANGAR (10) 16-10 Overpass |
Low match Fnatic (10) 2-1 |
TyLoo (10) 2-1 | |
Cloud9 (3) | 3-2 | 0 | Grayhound Gaming (14) 16-11 Mirage |
High match TyLoo (9) 3-16 Overpass |
Mid match ViCi Gaming (12) 6-16 Inferno |
Low match FURIA Esports (14) 2-1 |
Winstrike Team (8) 2-0 | |
9–11 | Winstrike Team (15) | 2-3 | -3 | NRG Esports (2) 9-16 Nuke |
Low match Fnatic (5) 16-11 Train |
Mid match Ninjas in Pyjamas (3) 16-6 Train |
High match ENCE eSports (3) 1-2 |
Cloud9 (9) 0-2 |
TyLoo (11) | 2-3 | -9 | Team Vitality (6) 16-8 Inferno |
High match Cloud9 (2) 16-3 Overpass |
High match NRG Esports (1) 0-2 |
High match AVANGAR (8) 0-2 |
G2 Esports (7) 1-2 | |
ViCi Gaming (16) | 2-3 | -12 | Fnatic (1) 16-9 Train |
High match NRG Esports (1) 6-16 Overpass |
Mid match Cloud9 (4) 16-6 Inferno |
High match Team Vitality (5) 0-2 |
Ninjas in Pyjamas (6) 1-2 | |
12–14 | FURIA Esports (13) | 1-3 | -9 | Ninjas in Pyjamas (4) 6-16 Mirage |
Low match AVANGAR (10) 14-16 Mirage |
Low match Team Spirit (14) 2-0 |
Low match Cloud9 (14) 1-2 |
Eliminated |
Fnatic (1) | 1-3 | -11 | ViCi Gaming (16) 9-16 Overpass |
Low match Winstrike Team (16) 11-16 Train |
Low match Grayhound Gaming (16) 2-0 |
Low match G2 Esports (9) 1-2 |
Eliminated | |
Vega Squadron (10) | 1-3 | -26 | G2 Esports (7) 14-16 Cache |
Low match Team Spirit (13) 16-14 Mirage |
Mid match Team Vitality (8) 1-16 Overpass |
Low match Ninjas in Pyjamas (6) 1-2 |
Eliminated | |
15–16 | Team Spirit (12) | 0-3 | -17 | ENCE eSports (5) 10-16 Nuke |
Low match Vega Squadron (11) 14-16 Mirage |
Low match FURIA Esports (15) 0-2 |
Eliminated | Eliminated |
Grayhound Gaming (14) | 0-3 | -19 | Cloud9 (3) 11-16 Mirage |
Low match Team Vitality (7) 17-19 Nuke |
Low match Fnatic (9) 0-2 |
Eliminated | Eliminated |
New Legends stage[]
The New Legends stage, formerly known as the Group stage, used the same format as the Challengers stage. This stage takes place from February 20 to February 24, 2019 live at the International Congress Center in Katowice. The seeding was released on February 19, 2019.[62] Next to each team's name under the "Team" column is each team's initial seeding. Under each of the "Rounds" columns are the team's opponent's seed at the time the round was played.[63]
Place | Team | Record | RD | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1–2 | Astralis (1) | 3-0 | +45 | compLexity Gaming (16) 16-6 Nuke |
High match Cloud9 (12) 16-0 Train |
High match Renegades (8) 2-1 |
New Champions stage | New Champions stage |
Team Liquid (2) | 3-0 | +16 | AVANGAR (15) 16-12 Overpass |
High match Ninjas in Pyjamas (10) 16-13 Overpass |
High match Natus Vincere (3) 2-0 |
New Champions stage | New Champions stage | |
3–5 | Natus Vincere (3) | 3-1 | +18 | G2 Esports (14) 16-7 Inferno |
High match Team Vitality (11) 25-22 Mirage |
High match Team Liquid (2) 0-2 |
High match AVANGAR (10) 2-0 |
New Champions stage |
MIBR (4) | 3-1 | +10 | Cloud9 (13) 3-16 Inferno |
Low match compLexity Gaming (16) 16-9 Mirage |
Mid match G2 Esports (14) 16-12 Inferno |
High match Ninjas in Pyjamas (8) 2-0 |
New Champions stage | |
Renegades (9) | 3-1 | -4 | ENCE eSports (8) 16-13 Inferno |
High match FaZe Clan (4) 16-14 Inferno |
High match Astralis (1) 1-2 |
High match Team Vitality (7) 2-1 |
New Champions stage | |
6–8 | FaZe Clan (5) | 3-2 | +15 | HellRaisers (12) 16-4 Train |
High match Renegades (8) 14-16 Inferno |
Mid match AVANGAR (15) 13-16 Mirage |
Low match compLexity Gaming (14) 2-1 |
Cloud9 (11) 2-0 |
ENCE eSports (8) | 3-2 | +11 | Renegades (9) 13-16 Inferno |
Low match HellRaisers (13) 12-16 Dust II |
Low match BIG (7) 2-1 |
Low match G2 Esports (14) 2-0 |
AVANGAR (10) 2-0 | |
Ninjas in Pyjamas (11) | 3-2 | +8 | NRG Esports (6) 16-14 Nuke |
High match Team Liquid (2) 13-16 Overpass |
Mid match HellRaisers (13) 16-5 Overpass |
High match MIBR (4) 0-2 |
Team Vitality (9) 2-1 | |
9–11 | Cloud9 (13) | 2-3 | -2 | MIBR (4) 16-3 Inferno |
High match Astralis (1) 0-16 Train |
Mid match Team Vitality (11) 14-16 Mirage |
Low match HellRaisers (12) 2-0 |
FaZe Clan (6) 0-2 |
Team Vitality (10) | 2-3 | -16 | BIG (7) 16-11 Mirage |
High match Natus Vincere (3) 22-25 Mirage |
Mid match Cloud9 (12) 16-14 Mirage |
High match Renegades (5) 1-2 |
Ninjas in Pyjamas (8) 1-2 | |
AVANGAR (15) | 2-3 | -26 | Team Liquid (2) 12-16 Overpass |
Low match NRG Sports (6) 16-13 Overpass |
Mid match FaZe Clan (4) 16-13 Mirage |
High match Natus Vincere (3) 0-2 |
ENCE eSports (7) 0-2 | |
12–14 | compLexity Gaming (16) | 1-3 | -10 | Astralis (1) 6-16 Nuke |
Low match MIBR (5) 9-16 Mirage |
Low match NRG Esports (6) 2-0 |
Low match FaZe Clan (6) 1-2 |
Eliminated |
G2 Esports (14) | 1-3 | -18 | Natus Vincere (3) 7-16 Inferno |
Low match BIG (7) 16-13 Mirage |
Mid match MIBR (5) 12-16 Inferno |
Low match ENCE eSports (8) 2-0 |
Eliminated | |
HellRaisers (12) | 1-3 | -31 | FaZe Clan (5) 4-16 Train |
Low match ENCE eSports (9) 16-12 Dust II |
Mid match Ninjas in Pyjamas (10) 5-16 Overpass |
Low match Cloud9 (11) 0-2 |
Eliminated | |
15–16 | BIG (7) | 0-3 | -5 | Team Vitality (10) 11-16 Mirage |
Low match G2 Esports (14) 13-16 Mirage |
Low match ENCE eSports (9) 1-2 |
Eliminated | Eliminated |
NRG Esports (6) | 0-3 | -11 | Ninjas in Pyjamas (11) 14-16 Nuke |
Low match AVANGAR (15) 13-16 Overpass |
Low match compLexity Gaming (16) 0-2 |
Eliminated | Eliminated |
New Champions stage[]
The New Champions Stage, also known as the Playoffs, is a best of three double elimination bracket. Teams play until a winner is decided. This stage is taking place at the Spodek from February 28 to March 3, 2019. Brackets were revealed shortly after FaZe defeated Cloud9 in the last map of the group stages. Teams were seeded first based on their record in the New Legends stage and based on the strength of their schedule.
Bracket[]
Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||||||
3 | Natus Vincere | 2 | ||||||||||||
6 | FaZe Clan | 0 | ||||||||||||
3 | Natus Vincere | 1 | ||||||||||||
7 | ENCE eSports | 2 | ||||||||||||
2 | Team Liquid | 0 | ||||||||||||
7 | ENCE eSports | 2 | ||||||||||||
7 | ENCE eSports | 0 | ||||||||||||
1 | Astralis | 2 | ||||||||||||
4 | MIBR | 2 | ||||||||||||
5 | Renegades | 0 | ||||||||||||
4 | MIBR | 0 | ||||||||||||
1 | Astralis | 2 | ||||||||||||
1 | Astralis | 2 | ||||||||||||
8 | Ninjas in Pyjamas | 0 |
Quarterfinals[]
Natus Vincere vs. FaZe Clan[]
The first set at the Spodek matched up Natus Vincere and FaZe Clan and pit up the two best players in the world, with s1mple on Na'Vi and NiKo on FaZe. Historically, Na'Vi has an 14-11 head-to-head map lead over FaZe, but FaZe defeated Na'Vi in their most recent best of three at EPICENTER 2018. In addition, olofmeister continued his streak as the only player in history to become a Legend at every Major. 81% of Pick'Em predictions had Natus Vincere winning.
Casters: HenryG & Sadokist
The first game at the Spodek was a surprise one as many did not expect FaZe to pick Inferno instead of leaving it as the decider. This map started off with a bang. flamie found a kill onto AdreN, but FaZe planted the bomb fairly quickly before flamie found another one onto GuardiaN. olofmeister took down two in Zeus and Edward, but flamie was able to trade. rain took down s1mple but could not follow up onto flamie. NiKo was able to find electronic, but flamie was able to take down NiKo for the ace and defuse the bomb. Na`Vi was able to take the next round, but an eight-round surge from FaZe suddenly put Na`Vi in a struggle. Na`Vi found a third round heading into the twelfth round. There, flamie found a quick kill onto olofmeister. Some moments later, GuardiaN killed his former teammate and then rain ran in to find s1mple. NiKo took down Zeus before being traded by Edward, but Edward was then traded by GuardiaN. electronic could not do much in a 1 vs 3 deficit, so he backed away and saved his gun, resetting Na`Vi's economy. Na`Vi's star player s1mple had struggled for the first half, but he came alive at just the right time in the last round of the half to give Na`Vi a saving grace and being down only 10–5. In the second half pistol round, NiKo took down s1mple, but flamie found two onto NiKo and AdreN as Edward planted the bomb. rain took down Zeus, but three uninterrupted kills from flamie gave Russian player another pistol ace. flamie's two aces was the first time in Major history in which a player had two aces on the same map. The score later reached 12–9 in FaZe's favor. In the following round, Zeus was tagged down to very low health near the start of the round. Na`Vi decided to head to the A bombsite with a less than ideal inventory. rain took down s1mple, but Zeus, while still on low health, bounced around and somehow took down rain. GuardiaN took down flamie before electronic traded and the bomb was planted. Zeus then took down GuardiaN, which led FaZe to just back off and find some kills while giving up the round as Zeus's heroics saved his team. This led Na`Vi to find success while on the terrorist side, shutting down FaZe's defenses. In the 28th round, with now Na`Vi up 15–13, electronic took down AdreN. GuardiaN traded right away, but flamie was able to take down olofmeister. GuardiaN found two impressive kills onto flamie and s1mple while stuck on the A bombsite before being downed by Edward. The bomb was planted in a 2 vs. 2 scenario. rain tried to sneak in close by to where the two Na`Vi players were standing, but he was killed by Edward, forcing NiKo to back away and giving Na`Vi map point. The next round, Na`Vi swarmed the A bombsite as FaZe could not get much done, giving Na`Vi the advantage on FaZe's map pick. flamie and rain led the way for their respective teams with 23 kills each and electronic had 22 kills.
FaZe took a conventional 2–0 lead on Mirage, but Na`Vi won the economy round, only winning with pistols. This led to four straight wins for Na`Vi. In the seventh round, flamie was trying to peek into the A bombsite from the palace area, which is one of two ways to get from the terrorist spawn to the A bombsite, but GuardiaN was there to spot him and take him down. NiKo tried to get more information for his team by peeking out to the middle area, but s1mple had a quick shot to make it a 4 vs. 4. rain and electronic spotted each other near the palace area and rain was able to win that duel. GuardiaN found s1mple as Na`Vi was heading to the A bombsite. Zeus was able to take down rain and tried to get rid of GuardiaN, but instead GuardiaN killed Edward, who was trying to plant the bomb. olofmeister came in to help and killed Zeus and FaZe took another round. Na`Vi still held strong and took a 9–6 lead into the second half. FaZe was able to take another pistol round and brought it to 9–7. Na`Vi decided to force up in the second round instead of the traditional method of saving in the second round ever since Valve increased the loss bonus from losing the pistol round. There, olofmeister found the first kill onto Zeus, who was trying to get aggressive, in the apartments area, which connects the terrorist spawn to the B bombsite. FaZe then was taking control of the middle area, but electronic found a quick shot onto NiKo in the connector area, which connects the middle area to the A bombsite. electronic found another kill onto AdreN on the A bombsite with his pistol as FaZe headed to the B bombsite with twenty seconds left. flamie took down olofmeister, but was traded out by rain. Edward then traded rain and then s1mple took down GuardiaN and the force buy worked for Na`Vi. This spurred Na`Vi to go up 15–7, as Zeus continued to find high impact frags for his team. In the 23rd round, Zeus found olofmeister early in the round. FaZe decided to execute to the A bombsite. With under fifty seconds left, Zeus caught out NiKo in middle trying to sneak up the connector area. GuardiaN caught s1mple off guard, but s1mple won the fight with the virtue of having in AWP, normally a one shot, one kill weapon. electronic took out AdreN in the palace area and Edward too down rain and Na`Vi eliminated FaZe in two maps. electronic led all players with 24 kills and was able to lift his team despite s1mple at the bottom of the scoreboard. NiKo led FaZe with 15 kills, but his team ended up well short.
Natus Vincere vs. FaZe Clan scores | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Score | Map | Score | Team |
Natus Vincere | 16 | Inferno | 13 | FaZe Clan |
Natus Vincere | 16 | Mirage | 7 | FaZe Clan |
Natus Vincere | – | Dust II | – | FaZe Clan |
Team Liquid vs. ENCE eSports[]
Team Liquid was able to sweep up the competition in the Legends stage while ENCE had to come back from an 0–2 deficit and reach the playoffs with its wins. This is the first meeting between the two teams. 96% of Pick'Em predictions had Team Liquid winning.
Casters: Vince Hill & moses
The set started on Mirage, ENCE's map pick. ENCE took the pistol round and the anti-economy round for the 2–0 lead and then the two teams traded four rounds each. In the eleventh round, ENCE took early middle control. After taking a high explosive grenade for nearly half his health, Aleksib was taken down by ELiGE in that middle area while trying to look into connector. ELiGE was able to deal huge damage to Aerial, but Aerial was able to kill ELiGE to even the playing field, but NAF was able to trade. Twistzz was blinded by a flashbang near the apartments area, but a lucky spray allowed the Canadian to kill xseveN and the followed up onto allu. sergej was rushing down the catwalk area, which leads from the middle area to the B bombsite, but NAF heard him all the way and shut him down. Liquid was able to take a brief lead at 7–6, but ENCE ended up winning the half 8–7. The game was later tied 10-10. In the 21st round, ENCE decided to change its defensive setup with two AWPs instead of only allu holding the sniper rifle, but that left the Finns with almost no grenades. With under forty seconds left, Liquid chose to go to the B bombsite. Stewie2K and ELiGE ran up the catwalk area, but xseveN shut them down from near the apartments area. The rest of Liquid were in apartments and needed to rush into the site, but Aleksib took down Twistzz with the second AWP. This left Liquid with just two against five ENCE players and the two were needed to save their weapons for the next round as winning this round was unlikely. However, NAF died to xseveN with under five seconds left in the round. nitr0 traded and saved his AWP, but ENCE took back the lead. In the 23rd round, with ENCE up 12–10, Liquid had to save for a second consecutive round, but still had the AWP. Aleksib and allu took down nitr0 and Stewie2K with their AWPs early in the round and then allu followed up with another one on ELiGE. With about thirty seconds left, NAF and Twistzz attempted to make a play. NAF peeked into the B bombsite from catwalk and completely caught Aleksib off guard, followed up onto xseveN, and then planted the bomb with about fifteen seconds left in the round. NAF then took down Aerial, but Twistzz was caught by sergej. NAF then peeked to the catwalk area and flicked onto sergej and then hid inside a smoke grenade. allu desperately pushed into the smoke, but NAF was there to clutch and Liquid had some life. However, ENCE then took a 15–11 lead and Liquid took its final timeout. In the 27th round, Liquid executed to the A bombsite with 1:10 on the clock. sergej was patient enough and peeked at the right time to take down NAF, Stewie2K, and ELiGE before being downed by nitr0. nitr0 tried to fall back, but Aerial was already on the flank to catch him. Twistzz was on the other side of the map during all this and found a headshot onto xseveN. Twistzz had to run into the middle area to try to retrieve the bomb that was dropped by nitr0, but allu found the final kill and ENCE took the first map. Stewie2K had 19 kills to lead Liquid, but sergej and xseveN had 22 each to lead ENCE.
Liquid took the pistol round, but ENCE proceeded to win five of the next six rounds to take the lead. In the next round, Liquid executed to the B bombsite with just over fifty seconds left in the round, but xseveN took down Stewie2K trying to open up the site. Aleksib tried to follow up, but Twistzz was there to deny it. xseveN traded Twistzz out, but ELiGE traded xseveN and Liquid had the B bombsite as ELiGE planted the bomb. NAF spotted allu, but allu was quicker to the trigger to give ENCE the man advantage. ELiGE took down Aerial and lit up the other to ENCE members before he died. nitr0 the flashed his way in to kill sergej, who was defusing the bomb. allu was able to trade, but he could not defuse the bomb in time and Liquid found a third. This led Liquid to a winning streak and Liquid was up 10–5. ENCE took the first three rounds of the second half, but Liquid took five and it looked like a third map between the two teams. In the 24th round, ENCE was down to potentially its last buy. With under thirty seconds left, Stewie2K caught sergej trying to creep in. xseveN took down ELiGE on the other bombsite about ten second later and then followed up onto Twistzz. Aleksib took down Stewie2K on B. NAF was able to trade out Aleksib, but allu took down nitr0, and ENCE was still alive. This led to a surge in the Finns' offense and then suddenly tied the game and it headed to overtime. Liquid found one round in the first half of overtime, but ENCE took two and then one more to get to map and set point at 18–16. Liquid was on the terrorist side in the fifth round of overtime and wanted to head to the A bombsite. The team went up the middle area, but allu was there to catch ELiGE. However, allu was only a distraction for sergej and Aerial to pounce from the other side as nitr0 and NAF went down. Stewie2K was able to take down Aerial, but when he needed to make a play, allu made sure he did not, leaving just Twistzz. Twistzz took down sergej, but allu traded right away, and ENCE pulled off a massive upset. allu dominated with 36 kills. Although Twistzz and ELiGE had 30 kills each, but Liquid could not hold it together. Some have referenced this to another Liquid choke, most notably at MLG Major Championship: Columbus, when Liquid had 15-9 and 15-6 leads against Luminosity Gaming (the current roster of MIBR) and the lost both games in overtime.[64]
Team Liquid vs. ENCE eSports scores | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Score | Map | Score | Team |
Team Liquid | 11 | Mirage | 16 | ENCE eSports |
Team Liquid | 16 | Inferno | 19 | ENCE eSports |
Team Liquid | – | Overpass | – | ENCE eSports |
MIBR vs. Renegades[]
Renegades were the surprise team of the Major, as it took a map off of Astralis and defeated FaZe Clan. Made in Brazil struggled massively its first match, but soon recovered well and won out the rest of the group stage. MIBR also continued its streak as the only team to become Legends since its Major debut. MIBR has an 8–2 record against Renegades that stretched back to when the Brazilians were with SK Gaming. On LAN, MIBR is 4–0 against Renegades. 60% of Pick'Em predictions had MIBR winning.
Casters: HenryG & Sadokist
Renegades chose Dust II, a pick in which the analyst desk was quite confused with. MIBR took an early 5–1 lead. In the seventh round, Renegades executed to the A bombsite from the catwalk area, which connects the middle are to the A bombsite. Renegades threw in flashbangs, forcing MIBR to back away from the site and try to retake it. Gratisfaction planted the bomb with about 45 seconds left. fer caught AZR, but Liazz and Gratisfaction found two. coldzera took down jks and Gratisfaction killed fer. coldzera tried to fish for more kills, but Liazz was there to deny it. FalleN did take out Gratisfaction, but he was too far away to find kills and defuse the bomb, so he backed off, giving Renegades a second round. Renegades found three more in the half, but MIBR took a sizable 10–5 lead at the half. Renegades took the second half pistol with jks's heroics, giving Renegades a chance to close the gap. Rather than saving for the next round to get better guns, MIBR force bought with the weaker sniper rifle and four pistols. As soon as the round started, FalleN tagged jkaem through the middle doors all the way down to 18 health points. TACO and fer pushed to the A bombsite from the catwalk area and they tagged Liazz all the way to one point of health and MIBR planted the bomb as Renegades fell back and let the Brazilians have the site. AZR tried to push in, but fer found an immediate headshot and felps followed up onto jks. felps then took out jkaem and FalleN found a headshot onto Liazz. Gratisfaction found felps, but an immediate trade from fer made the force buy successful. After that steal, MIBR cruised the rest of the way, winning six consecutive rounds to close out the map. fer had 21 kills to lead the way and coldzera had 20. jks had 17 kills, but the rest of Renegades struggled as MIBR was efficient in the win.
Map 2 was on Train, a map MIBR was once considered to be the undisputed best team on, as its counter-terrorist sides were able to shut down anything. However, the Oceanic team did not let history or the last map bother it. Renegades took the first three rounds before MIBR took one. In the fifth round, Renegades was on a low buy and relied on Gratisfaction with his saved AWP to carry the round. However, it was not initially needed as jkaem found two headshots with his upgraded pistol in the desert eagle onto coldzera and felps before being traded by fer. fer tried to push up later on in the round, but Gratisfaction was there to stop him. TACO found one onto AZR, but Liazz caught him out trying to receive the bomb to FalleN. FalleN found Gratisfaction, but he was sandwiched between the last two Renegades players as jks found the kill, resetting MIBR's economy. This led Renegades to go up 10–1, as MIBR could not get the signature AWP onto FalleN. MIBR somewhat recovered with four rounds at the end of the half, but Renegades had a seven-round lead as MIBR went to its counter-terrorist side. MIBR took the first two rounds of the second half, but Renegades took the next round. In the 19th round, TACO found a lot of damage with a high explosive grenade, bringing three players' health points down as Renegades was trying to execute to the B bombsite. TACO then took the fight against jkaem, but AZR traded. felps took out AZR and coldzera, who was hiding on the B site bomb train, caught jks off guard. felps killed Liazz and then coldzera swung around to take down Grtisfaction, resetting Renegades's economy. Renegades then struggled as MIBR went from being 4-11 down to going up 15–12. In the 28th round, Renegades took a timeout to discuss things over. Three Renegades players were in the Ivy area, which is the longer way to get to the A bombsite from the terrorist spawn, but coldzera was hiding nearby. jkaem did not check the position where coldzera was and he was immediately brought down. coldzera kept shooting and was able to take down Liazz. Gratisfaction tried to trade him out, but FalleN's flashbang blinded him, helping coldzera take down a third player. AZR went in to try to do something about the situation, but coldzera also found him. MIBR tried to give coldzera the ace, but jks was able to take him down. TACO brought jks down low and FalleN finished the series and MIBR moved on to another Major top four. Gratisfaction had a huge first half with 18 kills, but had limited impact in the second half with just 5, although did end up at the top of the server with 24 kills. FalleN continued to put up huge performances on Train and he, TACO, and fer had 23 kills each as the Renegades Cinderella came to an end.
MIBR vs. Renegades scores | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Score | Map | Score | Team |
MIBR | 16 | Dust II | 6 | Renegades |
MIBR | 16 | Train | 12 | Renegades |
MIBR | – | Mirage | – | Renegades |
Astralis vs. Ninjas in Pyjamas[]
This set featured a historic rivalry between two legendary cores in the core of dev1ce, dupreeh, and Xyp9x against the core of GeT_RiGhT and f0rest. Astralis came in as unequivocally the best team of 2018 and defending Major champions while NiP reached its first Legends status for the first time since MLG Major Championship: Columbus in 2016. Historically, between the two rosters, Astralis leads 14–9, but between the two aforementioned cores, the Danes led 54–52. 97% of Pick'Em predictions had Astralis winning.
Casters: Vince Hill & moses
The first map on Mirage started with Astralis on the counter-terrorist side as NiP took quick middle control with GeT_RiGhT rushing up the catwalk area. dupreeh was blinded by a flashbang but somehow took out REZ before Lekr0 traded. The bomb tried to make its way out of the apartments area, but two quick headshots onto f0rest and Lekr0 by gla1ve denied that. Xyp9x killed GeT_RiGhT and gla1ve took down dennis and Astralis swept away the pistol round. This would set the tone for the rest of the half as Astralis put up a 15-0 scoreline. In the second half pistol, Astralis was the only team to 16-0 any team at a Major, including one against Cloud9 this tournament, and looked to add a third. In the 16th round, Lekr0 took an aggressive position in the apartments area as Astralis was going B and was caught out early, falling to dupreeh. f0rest traded out gla1ve. dev1ce then found two very quick kills onto dennis and GeT_RiGhT, making it look like another 16–0. However, during all this, REZ was hiding near the van area, which is next to the apartments area. dupreeh tried to plant the bomb, but REZ sneaked up and killed dupreeh and Xyp9x in succession then won a fight against dev1ce. Magisk was able come from the apartments area and finally take REZ down, but f0rest won the long range fight from catwalk and NiP got its first. The success would be limited, however, as the Swedes only got one more before Astralis got the one round it needed. Magisk led the way with 23 kills in the stomp. Only Lekr0 had at least ten kills on NiP.
Fortunes did not look bright for NiP as to fell to an 8–1 deficit on Dust II. The team finally picked up two heading into the twelfth round. With under 45 seconds left, Astralis executed to the A bombsite. f0rest was able to take dupreeh from the counter-terrorist spawn, which is essentially right under the A bombsite, before being traded by Xyp9x. Lekr0 found dev1ce and gla1ve found GeT_RiGhT. Lekr0 missed a crucial shot onto Magisk, which allowed Xyp9x to punish. The bomb was planted and then dennis found Magisk. gla1ve peeked out to find dennis, but REZ caught Xyp9x in the long area, which leads from the terrorist spawn to the A bombsite. REZ ran up to the A bombsite, but gla1ve was there to take him down and Astralis took the round. The Danes led 11–4 at the half. It looked like a clean sweep, but NiP went on a run, winning seven of the next nine rounds, and only down 13–11. In round 25, dennis quickly went up the catwalk area and took down the unwary dev1ce and Xyp9x to singlehandedly take over the A bombsite. gla1ve took down GeT_RiGhT in the long area and Lekr0 was downed by dupreeh. f0rest was able to kill gla1ve after the bomb was planted. Astralis was forced away and NiP had reset Astralis's economy. The Ninjas then went up 14–13, but Astralis regained the lead at 15-14 thanks to some clutch plays by Xyp9x. In the 30th round, NiP was on a very low but desperate buy with just pistols and f0rest's saved AWP from the last round. dupreeh went very aggressive in the tunnels area, which leads from the terrorist spawn to the B bombsite, as NiP was prepared to execute to the site, and it paid off as he took down dennis. Xyp9x killed f0rest before REZ killed dupreeh. Magisk was in the corner of the B bombsite and took down Lekr0 before being traded by REZ. GeT_RiGhT planted the bomb, but REZ died to Xyp9x. GeT_RiGhT tried to play some tricks and hid in a smoke, but Xyp9x fished him out and Astralis booked a spot in the semifinals against MIBR. REZ had 21 kills and f0rest had 19 for NiP, but Xypyx's 22 kills led the server as Astralis just about edged out the Swedes.
Astralis vs. Ninjas in Pyjamas scores | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Score | Map | Score | Team |
Astralis | 16 | Mirage | 2 | Ninjas in Pyjamas |
Astralis | 16 | Dust II | 14 | Ninjas in Pyjamas |
Astralis | – | Overpass | – | Ninjas in Pyjamas |
Semifinals[]
Natus Vincere vs. ENCE eSports[]
The fan favorite in ENCE took on the CIS giants in Natus Vincere. Na`Vi did not have too much trouble handling FaZe Clan, which included only allowing one round in the second half of the second half. Meanwhile, ENCE pulled off one of the biggest upsets in Major history as the Finns took down Team Liquid in a sweep. These two teams have only met once in the past at ESL One Cologne 2018, where Natus Vincere won two games to one. 90% of Pick'Ems had Na`Vi winning.
Casters: HenryG & Sadokist
Na`Vi took a 7–2 lead on the more favored side on Train before ENCE took two more. In the twelfth round, with under a minute left, Edward took down Aleksib. Edward found another kill onto sergej as ENCE was executing to the A bombsite with about 25 seconds left in the round. Aerial took down a peeking s1mple near the terrorist connector area, which is the closest area to get into the A bombsite from the terrorist spawn. electronic as able to take down Aerial before allu traded, but time was dwindling. xseveN completely caught flamie off guard on the A site bomb train, giving ENCE a chance. Zeus was able to trade out xseveN from the connector area, which connects the A and B sites. allu desperately tried to plant the bomb with four seconds left, and was able to, but did not have time to adjust to a creeping Zeus, who defused the bomb. The following round, ENCE took a timeout. The Finns burst out of the terrorist connector and took down three Na`Vi players in exchange for one of their own. Zeus and s1mple tried to save their weapons because the team had a low economy, but ENCE was able to steal them away. ENCE recovered to a 7-8 halftime score. Na`Vi would make it 14–10 advantage in the second half. About thirty seconds into the round, Aerial took out flamie in the terrorist connector. In the ivy area, which is the longest way to the A bombsite from the terrorist spawn, electronic tried to creep in, but xseveN won the duel. xseveN tried to back out, but Zeus traded. Zeus tried to plant the bomb, but Aerial was close by to deny it with less than twenty seconds in the round. With a significant disadvantage and time running low, Edward and s1mple backed off to save their weapons. This would be a huge turning point as ENCE came back all the way to stun Na`Vi 16–14 to take the first map. Although s1mple had 23 kills, sergej led all players with 26.
Na`Vi took a 2–0 lead and then a 7–1 lead on Dust II. ENCE took another round by running out the time. In the tenth round, Na`Vi made a very quick play. ENCE threw an incendiary grenade in the tunnels area, which leads from the terrorist spawn to the B bombsite, to stop any early aggression from Na`Vi, but Zeus ran through the flames and found a quick headshot onto sergej. Zeus them followed up onto xseveN despite being on very low health before a high explosive grenade took down the Na`Vi captain. With the bomb planted on B and the rest of ENCE on A, the Finns decided to save their weapons as their economy was low. This would spur Na`Vi to a 13-2 half and then took the second half pistol round. ENCE decided to force buy this round. flamie took out xseveN in the middle area. Zeus brought down Aleksib low from the same area, but he ran out of bullets, allowing Aleksib to trade. ENCE executed to the A bombsite from the catwalk area and Aerial took out s1mple. electronic found Aleksib, but Aerial was there to trade and ENCE took over the site. flamie and Edward thought it was best to save their weapons and ENCE had some life. Na`Vi had a force buy of its own in the next round. With just over a minute left, Aerial took down flamie in the middle area. Edward took down xseveN in the B bombsite. Alexsib took out electronic in the middle area and then sergej followed up onto s1mple. However, Edward was also there and Alexsib and sergej both fell to him. Zeus came out from the catwalk area to take down allu in the middle area. Aerial went to the B bombsite, where he found Edward just outside of the site. Aerial planted the bomb, but the low health hurt his as Zeus took him down. Na`Vi would easily close out the map to force a third game. flamie and s1mple led the server with 18 kills each while Edward had 17. Aerial at 13 kills was the only player on ENCE to reach double digits.
ENCE took the pistol round this time in on Mirage, but Na`Vi took a 7–3 lead. ENCE managed to recover at 9–6 at the half, but it still had a lot of work to do. In the second half pistol round, Na`Vi went all in to the B bombsite, where Na`Vi took out three while only flamie fell on its side. Zeus followed up onto allu. Aerial caught Zeus fro, behind, but s1mple was there to trade. Na`Vi went up 12–6, but ENCE managed to tie the score up at 12-12. The score was tied again at 13. Aerial took out flamie in the middle area as he was sneaking up, but Edward traded right away. electronic tried to make his way through the window area, which allows the counter-terrorist to peek in the middle area, but Aleksib was waiting from the ladder room, which is located on the catwalk area and peers into the window area. Na`Vi slowly made its way to the A bombsite. s1mple quickly peeked and took down allu, but sergej found Zeus and Edward, who was trying to plant the bomb, was caught out by xseveN with just ten seconds left. s1mple traded out Aleksib with the AWP. He switched weapons to the AK-47. ENCE knew s1mple had to either take down the last two ENCE members or plant the bomb, so they both hid in relatively safe spots, but s1mple managed to find a spray onto sergej, who was hiding behind a structure and he planted the bomb. xseveN and s1mple spotted each other as s1mple made his way to the counter-terrorist spawn. s1mple peeked again and the two missed bullets on each other. s1mple switched back to the AWP and missed another shot and was tagged low. xseveN knew s1mple had to reposition and finally won the duel as prevented a nearly impossible clutch from s1mple and ENCE took back the lead. The score was tied again 14-14 and ENCE won the round, resetting Na`Vi's economy. In the last round of regulation, with under 40 seconds left, allu found electronic near the bottom of middle. Edward tried to trade from the top of middle, but xseveN was there to make sure allu doesn't get backstabbed. flamie came out of the palace area, but Aerial was there for the kill. s1mple also came out of palace, but sergej won the battle. Zeus desperately ran into the A bombsite, but sergej was there and the Cinderella story continued for ENCE. s1mple had a huge game with 32 kills, but the rest of Na`Vi fell flat. Aerial and xseveN led their team as ENCE went on to face the winner of Astralis and MIBR.
Natus Vincere vs. ENCE eSports scores | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Score | Map | Score | Team |
Natus Vincere | 14 | Train | 16 | ENCE eSports |
Natus Vincere | 16 | Dust II | 3 | ENCE eSports |
Natus Vincere | 14 | Mirage | 16 | ENCE eSports |
MIBR vs. Astralis[]
MIBR handled Renegades with convincing fashion and Astralis, after battering Ninjas in Pyjamas in the first map, just about closed out the second map. These two teams are both looking for their third Major title. This matchup goes way back, with Astralis leading the head-to-head 28–21. The two teams split sets in the last event they played together at ECS Season 6, with MIBR winning 2–1 in the group stage and Astralis winning 2–0 in the finals. 94% of Pick'Ems had Astralis winning.[65]
Casters: Vince Hill & moses
The first map went to Overpass, a historically dominant MIBR map when the Brazilians were at their prime. Astralis took an early 4–0 lead before MIBR took three. In the eighth round, MIBR headed to the A bombsite with about 50 seconds left. felps found an opening kill onto dupreeh. Xyp9x was able to trade out fer. TACO planted the bomb and then felps took down Xyp9x before dev1ce traded. dev1ce won an AWP duel against FalleN and then Magisk followed up onto TACO. coldzera took down gla1ve and Magisk and tried to transfer over to dev1ce, but the number two player in the world was able to deny it and secure the round. MIBR would win the next round, but Astralis immediately took a two-round lead back despite being on an economy round. The eleventh round would prove to be crucial as both teams were low on money. FalleN started off the round with a pick onto an aggressive Magisk. FalleN quickly rotated to shade over to the A bombsite, where dupreeh fell to the MIBR captain. dev1ce needed to get aggressive in order to give Astralis a better chance at winning the round, but fer was ready. fer was traded out by Xyp9x on the A bombsite and then Xyp9x took down felps. coldzera was nearly taken down, but he was able to trade. With the bomb almost about to explode, gla1ve made his move and took down coldzera. gla1ve followed up onto FalleN as the baited him out with a tap to the bomb. TACO desperately sprayed into the smoke grenade gla1ve put down as the Astralis captain was defusing the bomb, but he missed his bullets. However, gla1ve was just about one second away from getting the full defuse as the bomb exploded and MIBR took the round. The Brazilians would not allow the Danes to get another round in the half as MIBR took a 9–6 lead and moved on to the more favored side of the map. Astralis would tie things up at 9-9 and then 10-10. In the 21st round, MIBR was on a low buy. fer and FalleN got aggressive since the two only had pistols and it looked like it paid off as fer took down dev1ce before being traded out by Magisk and FalleN found gla1ve. However, dupreeh traded him out and it was back to a 3 v 3. coldzera caught Xyp9x off guard as Astralis was executing to the B bombsite, but he was traded by dupreeh. Magisk took down felps, who was trying to catch Astralis off guard, and then TACO was taken down by Magisk and Astralis took back the lead. MIBR recovered and was down 13-14 heading into the 28th round. fer and FalleN once again went aggressive to the middle area. While dev1ce was able to pick off FalleN, fer found two in dupreeh and dev1ce and then picked up FalleN's AWP. Magisk tried to trade, but fer was ready and took him down. coldzera spotted out gla1ve and relayed the information to felps, who took down gla1ve. Xyp9x was able to trade and then planted the bomb at B. Xyp9x was able to kill TACO, but he was brought down to three health points. fer threw a high explosive grenade to finish off the player considered to be the best clutch player in the world and MIBR tied things up. Astralis went all in despite having low money in the round and somehow pulled off the win to get the map point. Astralis finished things off with ease and the Danes went up in the series. Magisk led the way with 26 kills. fer and coldzera showed their forms from 2017, when they were ranked in the top three, in the loss as both had big impact.
The next map was Inferno, a dominant Astralis map in which it looked almost unbeatable on. However, MIBR appeared to be the closest team to be able to knock down Astralis on the map. The Danes took an early 5–0 lead before MIBR ran out the clock twice in its favor to close the gap to three. In the eighth round, Astralis slowly headed to the A bombsite. dev1ce took down felps and then with 35 seconds left in the round, Astralis executed. TACO missed some big shots as Magisk took advantage of it. coldzera tried to peek out, but dev1ce was ready to punish. fer and FalleN fled the A bombsite to save their weapons and Astralis took a 6–2 lead. The score would be 9–6 in favor of Astralis at the end of the half and the Danes were able to get their infamous counter-terrorist side on the map. Astralis won the pistol round and then following anti-economy round to go up 11–6. In the 18th round, fer caught dev1ce with a grenade in his hands very early into the round. Magisk was able to take out TACO, but fer traded immediately. gla1ve lost a duel to fer, but fer fell to the incendiary grenade gla1ve threw out. FalleN found a quick headshot onto Xyp9x and MIBR ran to the B bombsite and planted the bomb. dupreeh tried to sneak his way into the B bombsite, but felps found him on the other side of the map to get MIBR its first round of the half. MIBR would see limited success as Astralis went up 15–7. In the 23rd round, Xyp9x took down FalleN and felps in the banana area. fer was able to take down dev1ce near the A bombsite. MIBR started towards the B bombsite, where coldzera took down gla1ve to even the playing field. Xyp9x and Magisk took down coldzera and TACO, respectively, as Astralis started the retake. fer was able to kill dupreeh, but Magisk traded and Xyp9x defused the bomb as Astralis headed to another Major grand finals. dupreeh had the most kills with 22 and Magisk had 20. felps had 21 kills in the loss as his teammates were unable to scamper past Astralis.
MIBR vs. Astralis scores | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Score | Map | Score | Team |
MIBR | 14 | Overpass | 16 | Astralis |
MIBR | 7 | Inferno | 16 | Astralis |
MIBR | – | Train | – | Astralis |
Finals[]
The underdog and the world's best went against each other in the first Major of 2019. These two teams have only played one map against each other, which Astralis won 16–5 at ESL One Cologne 2018. 99% of Pick'Ems had Astralis winning the matchup.[citation needed]
Casters: HenryG & Sadokist
ENCE eSports vs. Astralis scores | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | Score | Map | Score | Team |
ENCE eSports | 11 | Train | 16 | Astralis |
ENCE eSports | 4 | Inferno | 16 | Astralis |
ENCE eSports | – | Overpass | – | Astralis |
Final standings[]
The final placings are shown below. In addition, the prize distribution, seed for the next major, roster, and coaches are shown. Each team's in-game leader is shown first.
Place | Prize Money | Team | Seed | Roster | Coach |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st | US$500,000 | Astralis | Berlin 2019 Legends | gla1ve, dev1ce, dupreeh, Magisk, Xyp9x | zonic |
2nd | US$150,000 | ENCE | Aleksib, Aerial, allu, sergej, xseven | Twista | |
3rd – 4th | US$70,000 | MIBR | FalleN, coldzera, felps, fer, TACO | zews | |
Natus Vincere | Zeus, Edward, s1mple, electronic, flamie | kane | |||
5th – 8th | US$35,000 | FaZe Clan | NiKo, AdreN, GuardiaN, olofmeister, rain | YNk | |
Ninjas in Pyjamas | Lekr0, dennis, f0rest, GeT RiGhT, REZ | pita | |||
Renegades | AZR, jks, Liazz, Gratisfaction, jkaem | kassad | |||
Team Liquid | nitr0, ELiGE, Stewie2K, NAF, Twistzz | adreN | |||
9th – 11th | US$8,750 | AVANGAR | Berlin 2019 Challengers | Jame, buster, fitch, KrizzeN, qikert | dastan |
Cloud9 | Zellsis [1], autimatic, RUSH, flusha, kioShiMa | – | |||
Team Vitality | NBK-, apEX, Rpk, ZywOo, ALEX | XTQZZZ | |||
12th – 14th | US$8,750 | compLexity Gaming | stanislaw, n0thing, ShahZaM, dephh, Rickeh | Warden | |
G2 Esports | shox, bodyy, JaCkz, kennyS, Lucky | maLeK | |||
HellRaisers | ANGE1, DeadFox, HObbit, ISSAA, woxic | ami | |||
15th – 16th | US$8,750 | BIG | – | gob b, nex, tabseN, tiziaN, XANTARES | kakafu |
NRG Esports | daps, Brehze, Ethan, FugLy, CeRq | ImAPet | |||
17th – 19th | – | TyLoo | Attacker, somebody, Summer, xccurate, BnTeT | Johnta | |
ViCi Gaming | advent, aumaN, zhokiNg, Freeman, kaze | – | |||
Winstrike Team | Boombl4, n0rb3r7, WorldEdit, Kvik, wayLander | iksou | |||
20th – 22nd | – | Fnatic | Xizt, Brollan, JW, KRiMZ, twist | Jumpy | |
FURIA Esports | arT, ableJ, KSCERATO, VINI, yuurih | guierri | |||
Vega Squadron | chopper, hutji, tonyblack, crush, jR | Fierce | |||
23rd – 24th | – | Grayhound Gaming | dexter, DickStacy, malta, sterling, erkaSt | – | |
Team Spirit | S0tF1k, DavCost, Dima, COLDYY1, somedieyoung | Certus |
Post-Major ranking[]
The rankings shown below reflect the March 4, 2019 rankings, the first ranking after the Major.[66]
- Notes
- 1.^ Golden was unable to attend due to health issues, but due to Cloud9 having him listed on the roster after the rosters were locked, they were forced to list Zellsis as a coach so he could stand-in for Golden.[67][68]
Showmatch[]
The showmatch featured Counter-Strike's newly implemented game mode Danger Zone, a multiplayer battle royale game. Eight duos fought in three rounds and the winner would be immortalized on the Danger Zone map in the form of graffiti.
# | Team | Total | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
P | K | P | K | P | K | |||
1 | Furlan GruBy |
97 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
2 | seang@res Twistzz |
83 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
3 | Gratisfaction HenryG |
75 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
4 | NAF Sadokist |
73 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 1 |
5 | jks SPUNJ |
57 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
6 | CAth rain |
51 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
7 | Pimp Rushly |
22 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 7 | 3 |
8 | Stewie2K stunna |
22 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
Country representation[]
The major featured players representing 27 countries around the world.[69][70]
# | Country | Number of Players | ΔPrev. Major | Players |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Russia | 13 | -1 | flamie, electronic, chopper, hutji, tonyblack, Jame, S0tF1k, DavCost, Dima, Boombl4, n0rb3r7, WorldEdit, WayLander |
2 | Sweden | 12 | 0 | olofmeister, f0rest, GeT RiGhT, REZ, dennis, Lekr0, KRiMZ, JW, Xizt, twist, Brollan, flusha |
3 | United States | 11 | -2 | nitr0, EliGE, Stewie2K, n0thing, ShahZaM, autimatic, RUSH, FugLy, Brehze, nahtE, Zellsis |
3 | France | 10 | +6 | shox, bodyy, kennyS, Lucky, JaCkz, kioShiMa, NBK-, apEX, RpK, ZywOo |
3 | Brazil | 10 | +6 | FalleN, fer, coldzera, TACO, felps, yuurih, arT, VINI, kscerato, AbleJ |
6 | Ukraine | 8 | -1 | Edward, s1mple, Zeus, jR, crush, ANGE1, COLDYY1, somedieyoung |
7 | Australia | 7 | +6 | Rickeh, AZR, jks, liazz, dexter, DickStacy, malta |
8 | Kazakhstan | 6 | +3 | Hobbit, AdreN, buster, qikert, KrizzeN, fitch |
8 | China | 6 | +3 | Summer, Attacker, somebody, aumaN, advent, zhokiNg |
10 | Denmark | 5 | -12 | device, dupreeh, Xyp9X, gla1ve, Magisk |
10 | Finland | 5 | +4 | allu, Aleksib, sergej, Aerial, xseveN |
12 | Canada | 4 | 0 | Twistzz, NAF, stanislaw, daps |
12 | Germany | 4 | 0 | gob b, tabseN, tiziaN, nex |
14 | United Kingdom | 2 | 0 | dephh, ALEX |
14 | Indonesia | 2 | 0 | BnTeT, xccurate |
14 | New Zealand | 2 | +2 | Gratisfaction, sterling |
14 | Norway | 2 | 0 | rain, jkaem |
14 | Turkey | 2 | -4 | XANTARES, woxic |
19 | Bosnia and Herzegovina | 1 | 0 | NiKo |
19 | Hungary | 1 | 0 | DeadFox |
19 | Jordan | 1 | 0 | ISSAA |
19 | Slovakia | 1 | -1 | GuardiaN |
19 | Mongolia | 1 | +1 | erkaSt |
19 | Bulgaria | 1 | +1 | CeRq |
19 | Hong Kong | 1 | +1 | Freeman |
19 | Malaysia | 1 | +1 | kaze |
19 | Lithuania | 1 | 0 | Kvik |
References[]
- ^ "IEM Katowice 2019". www.intelextrememasters.com. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ "ESL to host Major at IEM Katowice". HLTV.org. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ "Valve Grants ESL the First CS:GO Major of 2019 for IEM Katowice - The Esports Observer". The Esports Observer. 2018-07-12. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ "IEM Katowice 2019". Red Bull. Retrieved 2018-09-10.
- ^ Chiu, Stephen. "Retrospective of the Majors: Lineups with 2 Major Wins and Players with 3". VPEsports. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
- ^ Kovanen, Tomi. "Why CS:GO needs major events". HLTV.org. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
- ^ "The IEM Katowice 2019 CS:GO Major format explained". www.eslgaming.com. Retrieved 2018-12-16.
- ^ "Winning is Everything". Valve. 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2019-01-12.
- ^ Mira, Luís. "ESL announces IEM Katowice Major format and seeding method". HLTV.org. Retrieved 15 February 2021.
- ^ Mira, Luis (January 21, 2018). "ESL announces IEM Katowice Major format and seeding method". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 21, 2018.
- ^ Villanueva, Jamie (January 21, 2018). "ESL introduces changes to the Valve Major format ahead of IEM Katowice". Dot Esports. Retrieved January 21, 2018.
- ^ "IEM Katowice 2019 overview; Map Pool". HLTV.org. Retrieved 2019-01-30.
- ^ Cropley, Steven (October 9, 2018). "ESL Removes Minor Invites Ahead of IEM Katowice Major". VPEsports. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
- ^ Mira, Luis (October 9, 2018). "ESL to host all Minors in Katowice". HLTV.org. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Cropley, Steven (December 21, 2018). "ESL Reveals Change to Minor Format, Eliminates Grand Final". VPEsports. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- ^ "CIS Minor - IEM Katowice 2019 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
- ^ "Europe Minor - IEM Katowice 2019 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
- ^ "Asia Minor - IEM Katowice 2019 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved November 16, 2018.
- ^ "Americas Minor - IEM Katowice 2019 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
- ^ "IEM Katowice 2019 Minor Playoff overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- ^ "IEM Katowice CS:GO Major Adds Fresh Blood to Talent Lineup". VPEsports. 2019-02-08. Retrieved 2019-02-09.
- ^ "Top 20 players of 2017: Introduction". HLTV.org. December 31, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2018.
- ^ "Top 20 players of 2018: Introduction". HLTV.org. January 1, 2018. Retrieved January 11, 2018.
- ^ "CS:GO Ranking – World Ranking". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2019.
- ^ "IEM Katowice 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ "WESG 2017 World Finals overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
- ^ "V4 Future Sports Festival overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ "DreamHack Masters Marseille 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ "IEM Sydney 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ "ESEA Season 27 MDL Global Challenge overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved May 13, 2018.
- ^ "ESL Pro League Season 7 Finals overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 7, 2018.
- ^ "DreamHack Open Tours 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "Adrenaline Cyber League 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved May 24, 2018.
- ^ "StarSeries & i-League Season 5 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
- ^ "DreamHack Open Austin 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "ECS Season 5 Finals overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "ESL One Belo Horizonte overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
- ^ "CS:GO Asia Championships 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved June 3, 2018.
- ^ "DreamHack Open Summer 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "ESL One Cologne 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "DreamHack Open Valencia 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "ELEAGUE CS:GO Premier 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "IEM Shangahi 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "ZOTAC Cup Masters 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
- ^ "DreamHack Masters Stockholm 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "FACEIT Major 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "ESL One New York 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "BLAST Pro Series Istanbul 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "StatSeries i-League Season 6 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "eXTREMESLAND 2018 Asia Finals overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "EPICENTER 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "BLAST Pro Series Copenhagen 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "cs_summit 3 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "EPICENTER 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "SuperNova CS:GO Malta overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "ESEA MDL Season 29 Global Challenge overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "ESL Pro League Season 8 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 11, 2018.
- ^ "BLAST Pro Series Lisbon 2018 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "iBUYPOWER Masters 2019 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
- ^ "ELEAGUE CS:GO Invitational 2019 overview". HLTV.org. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
- ^ Burazin, Zvonimir (February 6, 2019). "IEM Katowice New Challengers stage seeding, first matchup determined". HLTV.org. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
- ^ "Legends Stage First Round matchups and initial seeding announced - IEM Katowice 2019". Retrieved 2019-02-19.
- ^ "IEM Katowice Major New Legends Stage viewer's guide". HLTV.org. Retrieved 2019-02-19.
- ^ Villanueva, Jaime (February 28, 2019). "ENCE win the second quarterfinal of IEM Katowice as Liquid choke". Dot Esports. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
- ^ "Astralis zwycięża drugi półfinał! Duńczycy zagrają w finale IEM Katowice Major 2019!". Daniel Gabryś (in Polish). Retrieved 2019-03-03.
- ^ "CS:GO Ranking – World Ranking". HLTV.org. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
- ^ Švejda, Milan "Striker". "Cloud9 list Zellsis as coach for IEM Katowice 2019". HLTV. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ Švejda, Milan "Striker". "refrezh to step in for Cloud9 at BLAST Pro Series Lisbon as Golden is ruled out". HLTV. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ "Teams - IEM Katowice 2019". Retrieved 2019-01-30.
- ^ "Teams Minor Championship - IEM Katowice 2019". Retrieved 2019-01-30.
- 2019 first-person shooter tournaments
- Counter-Strike competitions
- Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Majors
- Intel Extreme Masters