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Vitality jumps in CSGO team rankings, Furia tops Americas Counter-Strike Vitality jumps in CSGO team rankings, Furia tops Americas By Steven Rondina G2 Esports tops BLAST group as new addition NiKo dominates Counter-Strike G2 Esports tops BLAST group as new addition NiKo dominates By William Davis G2 NiKo puts up a big performance for his new team vs Astralis Counter-Strike G2 NiKo puts up a big performance for his new team vs Astralis By M Alzamora
Is Valorant killing CSGO? It’s a fight between Riot and Valve Counter-Strike
Is Valorant killing CSGO? It’s a fight between Riot and Valve M Alzamora Many pro players and some teams have recently spoken to the possibility that Riot Games’ new tactical first-person shooter Valorant could soon overtake Counter-Strike: Global Offensive in popularity. But how is that happening, and is there anything that CSGO developer Valve can do about it? In terms of professional talent, Valorant has seemingly taken the most from CSGO teams. The game has sometimes struggled to develop its new talent, with …
Watch Astralis’ dev1ce get killed by a smoke grenade versus MIBR Counter-Strike
Watch Astralis’ dev1ce get killed by a smoke grenade versus MIBR M Alzamora An unlucky grenade toss led to Astralis’ Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz’s shocking demise on Vertigo. BLAST Premier’s matchup between Astralis and MIBR didn’t go exactly as planned for the Danish team at first. MIBR, with a completely fresh roster and seemingly little hope of even taking a map off Astralis, surprised everyone by taking the series to the full three maps. Although Astralis eventually took the match on the decider Inferno, …
CSPPA announces player committee to work on world ranking rules Counter-Strike
CSPPA announces player committee to work on world ranking rules M Alzamora The Counter-Strike Professional Players Association has announced a player committee dedicated to working on refining the rules that dictate its own world rankings. In a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive world where there exist several different sets of world rankings that claim to be definitive, the one organization that should be focusing on player health and well-being wants in on the ranking game too. A one-page press release distributed on November 2 …
Vitality’s Nivera substitution leads to BLAST Premier win Counter-Strike
Vitality’s Nivera substitution leads to BLAST Premier win M Alzamora Team Vitality won a close match against BIG with the most effective substitution fans have seen so far in pro Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Map substitutions are the newest addition to tournament level CSGO, with organizers starting to allow teams to substitute players in between maps for the first time in the game’s esports history. In Vitality’s close series against BIG at BLAST Premier, it seems to have made a huge …
Here’s how to make a new jump throw bind in CSGO Counter-Strike Here’s how to make a new jump throw bind in CSGO By M Alzamora New MIBR roster debuts against Astralis at BLAST Premier Counter-Strike New MIBR roster debuts against Astralis at BLAST Premier By M Alzamora s1mple banned from Twitch again, says it’s for homophobic slurs Counter-Strike s1mple banned from Twitch again, says it’s for homophobic slurs By Steven Rondina
Watch Neymar show his CSGO mastery by outsmarting his opponents Counter-Strike
Watch Neymar show his CSGO mastery by outsmarting his opponents M Alzamora Brazil’s passion for both Counter-Strike and football are unmatched, especially when the two cross over thanks to Neymar de Silva Santos, a professional soccer player and avid CSGO fan. The Brazilian football star is well-known for his ability on the pitch, and for the past several years he’s also become a virtual superstar in CSGO, often streaming his matches to thousands of football fans on Twitch. He’s nabbed clip-worthy aces …
Vitality vs. Complexity BLAST Fall Series betting odds, predictions Counter-Strike
Vitality vs. Complexity BLAST Fall Series betting odds, predictions M Alzamora Both Vitality and Complexity are coming into their upper-bracket match at BLAST Premier Fall Series with something to prove, but both are also coming in from very different places. While Complexity will enter the series with a brand new player in former 100 Thieves rifler Justin “jks” Savage, Vitality comes in after a crushing loss to Heroic at DreamHack Open Fall. While the markets have Vitality as heavy favorites, fan …
FaZe Clan drops coach YnK shortly after NiKo’s move to G2 Esports Counter-Strike
FaZe Clan drops coach YnK shortly after NiKo’s move to G2 Esports M Alzamora Alongside the announcement of Nikola “NiKo” Kovač’s transfer to G2 Esports, FaZe Clan confirmed the release of head coach Yanko “YNk” Paunović. The two high-profile changes came soon after FaZe announced the return of Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer Gustafsson following a six-month break from professional CSGO. The timing is curious, and may indicate that olof’s break was related to his relationship with the two. Regardless, FaZe is now down a head …
NiKo goes from FaZe to G2 Esports in “biggest CSGO signing in history” Counter-Strike
NiKo goes from FaZe to G2 Esports in “biggest CSGO signing in history” Fariha Bhatti After much delay, the transfer of FaZe Clan’s Nikola “NiKo” Kovač to G2 Esports has finally materialized. The Bosnian superstar will now enter the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive battlegrounds in G2’s jersey. The rifler aptly announced the move with a new profile pic on Twitter.  Rumors of G2 making a move from FaZe to G2 first started swirling in September and have been circulating since then, but neither G2 nor the …
BLAST introduces new rules that target CSGO coaching exploits Olivia Richman Counter-Strike The BLAST Premier Fall Series tournament organizer is letting Counter-Strike: Global Offensive fans know that it is addressing the coaching bug scandal.  BLAST introduced some changes to its rulebook that will prevent CSGO coaches from using the spectating bug that has seen 37 coaches banned from competitive play. After the Esports Integrity Commission uncovered the prevalent usage of the unfair coaching exploit, many CSGO organizations have opted to keep the …
New CSGO update brings many engine changes, new translations M Alzamora Counter-Strike The most recent CSGO update was quite large considering how little it really changed. Translations made up the majority of the update, but there were also a number of changes inside the game’s engine itself. These are difficult to track, with each change directly related to a process inside CSGO. Although this update changed 2,000 lines of code, there’s a catch. Steam Database tracks every change, whether it’s changing a …
Olofmeister reportedly returns to FaZe for BLAST Premier Fall Fariha Bhatti Counter-Strike Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer is set to return to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive following Nikola “NiKo” Kovači’s imminent departure from Faze. The rifler will lurk the maps for FaZe in Blast Premier Fall Series, according to a report by Cybersport.pl.  olofmeister announced his break from CSGO in May and attributed his temporary departure to a lack of motivation. The CSGO maestro took indefinite time to recuperate and recharge to come back stronger. …
Cloud9 drops current CSGO roster for breach of contract Olivia Richman Counter-Strike Cloud9 has terminated the contracts of four members of its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster due to multiple breaches of contract.  Johnny “JT” Theodosiou, Ian “Motm” Hardy, Aran “Sonic” Groesbeek, and coach Tiaan “T.c” Coertzen are all free agents after violating some rules the organization set in place due to the ongoing global health crisis.   Dust2.us and Rush B Media reported earlier this weekend that these CSGO players breached their contracts multiple …
MIBR adds three stand-ins to roster for BLAST Premier Fall Series Fariha Bhatti Counter-Strike MIBR has announced the addition of three stand-ins to its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster for BLAST Premier Fall Series and Flashpoint Season 2. Lucas “LUCAS1” Teles, Leonardo “leo_drk” Oliveira, and Vinicius “v$m” Moreira will be wearing the MIBR jersey until the end of this year.  The Brazilian beacons have made a heroic re-entry into the professional scene of CSGO with a new roster of five. The addition of this latest …
FaZe NiKo’s transfer to G2 Esports appears all but official M Alzamora Counter-Strike Reports from two outlets claim that FaZe Clan will transfer Nikola “⁠NiKo⁠” Kovač to G2 Esports in the coming days. Both teams have struggled in recent tournaments, but rumors of a deal for one of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s best players have been making the rounds since first reported in mid-September. The terms of the reported contract have not been revealed. Despite the lack of public information, reports from FaZe’s initial …
Vitality’s ZywOo pulls incredible 1 HP clutch versus Astralis M Alzamora Counter-Strike In Team Vitality’s semifinal matchup versus Astralis, Vitality AWPer Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut showed why he’s considered one of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s greatest players. DreamHack Fall’s upper bracket final was always going to be good, but ZywOo’s one-versus-four clutch against the Danes was something else. With the game tied at 4-4 on Dust 2, Astralis’ Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander had taken out four of Vitality’s players. ZywOo wasn’t in a good spot, …
Complexity signs 100 Thieves’ jks ahead of BLAST Premier Fall M Alzamora Counter-Strike Complexity has announced the signing of former 100 Thieves rifler Justin “jks” Savage to its under-manned Counter-Strike Global Offensive roster just days ahead of BLAST Premier Fall’s opening rounds. The North American organization revealed the signing on its official Twitter account alongside an overview of jks’s greatest moments. The rifler spent almost a year on 100T CSGO roster before the organization’s founder decided to pull the plug and begin dismantling …
ESIC bans seven CSGO players for betting-related offences in MDL Fariha Bhatti Counter-Strike The Counter-Strike: Global Offensive community has been shaken by another cheating scandal.  The Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC) has released an initial report in which seven players have been issued a 12-month ban for their involvement in betting offenses.  ESIC issues 12 month bans to seven CS:GO players for betting related offences. ESIC has also referred the matter to law enforcement.MDL match fixing investigations are still ongoing and further updates are …
cogu returns to MIBR as coach after TACO, fer, and FalleN benched M Alzamora Counter-Strike Brazilian Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team MIBR announced the signing of ESWC 2006 winner and former MIBR player Raphael “cogu” Camargo as the team’s new head coach. The hiring comes only days before MIBR’s planned return to Counter-Strike after benching two of Brazil’s veteran players in Fernando “fer” Alvarenga and Epitácio “TACO” de Melo, which saw in-game leader Gabriel “FalleN” Toldeo to bench himself in protest. Cogu now joins an MIBR …
This CSGO player built a custom wooden gun controller M Alzamora Counter-Strike Fans have seen Counter-Strike Global Offensive players use everything from bananas to DDR mats to play CSGO. But despite the obvious comparison, this might be the first gun used as a CSGO controller. To start off, the post showed the construction of a well-made replica of a handgun made from wood. Created entirely from scratch, the trigger was turned into a mechanism to register a mouse click before the controller …
Gen.G in talks to acquire Liazz, Gratisfaction and AZR still await new offers Fariha Bhatti Counter-Strike Gen.G has zeroed in on 100 Thieves’ Jay “Liazz” Tregillgas and is reportedly negotiating to acquire the player to its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster. The team currently has two vacant slots, one of which Liazz will be filling, if the move materializes.  Gen.G has already initiated discussions with the player, according to the report by DBLTAP. 100 Thieves’ young rifler’s move to Gen.G should be quick in order to complete …

Counter-Strike has long been among the biggest titles in esports and competitive gaming, even going back to esports’ deepest roots from decades past. What’s more, the game continues going strong today, with developer and publisher Valve releasing the latest iteration of the franchise in 2023. The newest version, Counter-Strike 2, has not been without its issues. But its popularity continues the enduring prominence of the Counter-Strike series, signaling that the venerated franchise is likely here to stay for many years yet to come.

But how did the franchise come be to so prominent in the esports space, and role does CS2 have to play in the industry moving forward?

Counter-Strike has roots in the beginnings of esports

Counter-Strike was unquestionably one of the biggest drivers of what we would today consider to be early professional esports movement. It was far from alone, and it wasn’t the most advanced. That likely was StarCraft: Brood War, a real-time strategy game from famed developer Blizzard that caught on in South Korea and led to a professional scene in the country well ahead of any examples of esports industry elsewhere in the world.

But outside of Korea, Counter-Strike quickly became the driving force behind competitive gaming and esports. First released in 1999 as a modification for popular first-person shooter Half-Life, the game was easy to pick up and play for many gamers. Half-Life was borderline ubiquitous software for gamers with a PC, and adding a mod to it was as simple as downloading and applying said mod. So it was that Counter-Strike began to catch fire and spread across the world.

As it spread, so too did its competitive play. Early competitions often centered around online play, most prominently including the Cyberathlete Amateur League (CAL) in North America and the Clanbase Eurocup in Europe. But live, in-person tournaments, similar to those enjoyed by StarCraft players and fans in Korea, were also rising in prominence.

Within just a few years, there were a number of major annual tournaments being held for the original version of Counter-Strike. Notable international tournament organizers included the Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) in the United States, the Electronic Sports World Cup (ESWC) in France, and the World Cyber Games (WCG) in Korea. This was in addition to many other regional tournaments through which teams could test their mettle and battle over smaller prizes.

But even at bigger tournaments, prizes weren’t what they are today, and in general there was far less money available to professional Counter-Strike players than there is in today’s thriving esports industry which sees many players and teams playing at the full-time pro level. That’s a far cry from a time when perhaps a small handful of players were able to make a true living through playing CS alone, and even them, it was often a modest one.

Counter-Strike 2 at the fore of a bigger esports scene than ever before

Counter-Strike 2 was released to a far different esports space than that which the original Counter-Strike occupied. But what exactly is it that has changed the scene so much, besides the accrual of years?

Esports betting is at the top of the list. The sports betting industry is growing and expanding around the world each and every year, and esports has absolutely been a part of that. As esports betting continues to grow and thrive, it brings its benefits to the games that are being bet on. And Counter-Strike 2 is at the top of that list.

These benefits have arrived through a myriad of means. Fan interest in tournaments has gone up and become more consistent with betting markets available for each and every game played, which further incentivizes tournament organizers and their sponsoring partners. But those partners are also now more likely to work with the pro teams and players themselves. Betting operators are among the most common and most generous sponsors in the pro CS2 space, showing how esports betting’s rise has contributed to Counter-Strike’s continued prominence in esports and competitive gaming as a whole.