CS:GO Hosts its First Major in Two Years

PGL hosted its first CS: GO ‘Major” in two years, with a prize pool of 2 million dollars, the 23rd of October in Stockholm, Sweden. The first CS:GO ‘Major’ was hosted in Sweden in November of 2013, and this will be the third ‘Major’ hosted in the country. The event had shattered previous viewership records by almost two fold with the previous highest being 1.4 million concurrent viewers.

Due to the lack of a ‘Major’, Valve has been insistent on hosting it in Sweden with a crowd. After several long months of complicated talks with Swedish authorities, the ‘Major’ had been confirmed on September 17, 2021. Especially with Valve’s first direct competitor for Counterstrike, Valorant, hot on its tail, Valve wanted to make this ‘Major’ unforgettable and a truly special experience.

The ‘Major’ is the most competitive and contested tournament of the year for CS:GO pros as it is a chance to prove who the very best teams in the game are. Due to it being two years since the last ‘Major’, the stakes were especially high for both old and new rosters to perform the best to their abilities. Not only were new rosters and unproven talents fighting to win, but also teams such as Team Liquid, FaZe and Natus Vincere, who had yet to win their first ‘Major’.

Up and coming teams such as Copenhagen Flames, Gambit, and Entropiq had their first chance to play on LAN with a crowd cheering them on. These three new rosters in particular made deep runs into the Major. Although Gambit and Entropiq both possess rosters with young talent, they had been more or less expected to make a deep run into the ‘Major’. However, Copenhagen Flames was certainly a surprise to many Counterstrike fans as they had nearly made it to the play-offs.

Billy B., a senior at AISG who had watched the ‘Major, said,” I thought they were gonna be out in the challenger stage. They were no-names but nearly made it to the play-offs.”

The finals game between G2 Esports and Natus Vincere had shattered viewership records for CS:GO reached a height of 2.7 million concurrent viewers. The record-breaking game between the two teams ended with a nail-biting 2-0 for Natus Vincere, going into overtime on the second map.

Robby B., another counterstrike fan in 12^th grade, said, “I mean Na’vi have choked majors for the past 4 years but always have played good Counter-strike. I think they were bound to win a ‘major’ at some point of their careers.”