Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
The Negev has been unbanned in CSGO pro play since 2018
M Alzamora
While Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s most famous machine gun doesn’t see much use, that’s not because pros are unable to use it. In April 2017 Valve released an update to CSGO that buffed the Negev, one of CSGO’s least popular primary weapons. The buff was huge, lowering the weapons price by a whopping $1,700 and turning it into a laser beam of death. Soon after, word got around that professional teams …
Counter-Strike
ESL and DreamHack officially merge into ESL Gaming
M Alzamora
ESL and DreamHack have announced that the two companies will merge on September 30. Founded in 1994, DreamHack has evolved over the years into a place for fans to gather together. Its events are defined by offering fans the opportunity to participate in something akin to an esports ComicCon, where gamers can gather together. The operator’s bring-you-own-computer LAN events often include cosplay competitions and exhibition booths for fans to take …
Counter-Strike
Cloud9 and Gen.G withdraw from IEM New York Online
M Alzamora
Cloud9 and Gen.G have withdrawn from IEM New York Online. The tournament was billed as the final chance for North American teams to gain points towards qualifying for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive’s next Major, but both teams revealed that they wouldn’t participate in the tournament in an announcement from ESL. At first glance, fans might think that the departure of Gen.G’s in-game leader Damian “daps” Steele and C9’s unfinished roster are …
Counter-Strike
Cloud9 reportedly set to keep floppy for new Colossus roster
Fariha Bhatti
Cloud9 may not be ready to completely part ways with its current American-South African Counter-Strike roster. Ricky “floppy” Kemery has reportedly decided to remain with Cloud9’s active roster and will be joining the new will be joining the new “colossus” roster led by Alex “ALEX” McMeekin. The rifler had previously declined Cloud9’s offer to stay with the organization. Cloud9 has been undergoing a major revamp of its Counter-Strike team. General …
Heretics terminates coach B1GGY for using exploit
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
Heretics has announced the termination of coach Morgan “B1GGY” Madour following Esports Integrity Commission’s recent verdict regarding a spectator bug. The ESIC confirmed that B1GGY is guilty of abusing the bug and will no longer be a part of its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive division. Many coaches came forward with their confessions as soon as ESIC began the investigation. However, the list of confirmed cheaters also revealed several unexpected names. B1GGY …
CSGO coaches deny using coaching bug after cheating punishments
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
The Esports Integrity Commission’s sanctioning of 34 coaches has caused total mayhem in the world of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. While there are coaches like Nicholas “guerri” Nogueira who have respected the decision and accepted their punishment, some coaches are arguing the ruling. FaZe Clan’s Robert “RobbaN” Dahlström, BOOM Esports’ Alessandro “Apoka” Marcucci, and forZe’s Sergey “lmbt” Bezhanovhave are among those impacted and the three coaches have come forward and pushed …
ESIC sanctions 34 coaches in 1st CSGO coaching exploit report
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
The Esports Integrity Coalition released the first of two reports on its investigation into the use of an exploit that allowed Counter-Strike: Global Offensive coaches to gain a competitive advantage in professional matches. Almost a month after referees Steve Dudenhoeffer and Michal Slowinski released news of the exploit to the public, the ESIC has released its initial results from its investigation. The first part of the Coalition’s report named 37 …
ESIC discusses accusations of stream sniping in pro CSGO
Steven Rondina
Counter-Strike
The ongoing scandal surrounding the coaching bug isn’t the only competitive integrity issue facing Counter-Strike: Global Offensive at the moment. According to the Esports Integrity Commission’s Ian Smith, the ESIC believes there is a pervasive stream sniping issue within the CSGO pro scene that has been exacerbated by the increasing reliance on online leagues. Smith discussed the matter with HLTV. “We’ve got factually substantiated reports of stream sniping. I won’t …
100 Thieves coach ImAPet retires from CSGO, talks return
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
100 Thieves head coach Chet “ImAPet” Singh has announced that he has retired from the role and will pursue other opportunities. ImAPet made the announcement on Twitter, thanking 100 Thieves and its Counter-Strike: Global Offensive players for the opportunity to work with them. He gave special attention to the fact that the organization allowed him to terminate his contract at will. That emphasis reveals that not only was ImAPet’s decision …
OG coach ruggah suspended for coaching bug, but not fired
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
37 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive coaches have already been banned from competition after the Esports Integrity Commission found them guilty of using a spectator bug in previous tournaments. One of those coaches is 32-year-old Casper “ruggah” Due, OG Esports’ head coach. ruggah used the spectating bug for a single round during the 2016 ESL Pro League Season 4 Europe tournament, according to the ESIC. While coaching for Dignitas, ruggah used it …
Dignitas restructures CSGO division, with new IGL, head coach
Fariha Bhatti
Counter-Strike
Dignitas has announced some shuffles in its’ Counter Strike: Global Offensive roster with Halvor “vENdetta” Gulestøl assuming the role of the head coach and Adam “Friberg” Friberg taking over the position of in-game leader. Dignitas has undergone a series of changes yet again following the news of Christopher “GeT_RiGhT” Alesund and Richard “Xizt” Landström’s benching. The two CSGO veterans were benched following a series of poor performances in online tournaments. …
New CSGO version of Tuscan appears one year after rumors
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
Its been almost an entire year since WIN.gg’s last report on rumors of a de_tuscan remake, but it seems as though the map’s original designer have completed an early draft of a Counter-Strike classic. Created in 2007 by Colin “Brute” Volrath, de_tuscan is one of the Counter-Strike series’ most famous maps, especially to older players that remember its time in the spotlight. Tuscan has always been characterized by close corners …
Complexity adds Nordavind’s NaToSaphiX on loan after oBo leaving
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
After the unexpected departure of Owen “oBo” Schlatter, Complexity has added Nordavind rifler Niels-Christian “NaToSaphiX” Sillassen on a short-term loan. Nordavind announced the news on the organization’s official Twitter account, saying that it had completed a deal with the North American organization for NaToSaphiX effective immediately. The move comes just days after oBo suddenly left both Europe and his place on Complexity with little notice, leaving the organization to field …
FunPlus Phoenix hires peca to be CSGO and Valorant GM
Olivia Richman
Counter-Strike
FunPlus Phoenix has announced that Petar “peca” Markovic will be the organization’s new general manager for two key first-person shooters. The position will require peca to build FPX’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team, as well as manage the current Valorant roster. This is a move that FunPlus Phoenix hopes will “open a successful chapter” in both esports titles. Please give a warm welcome to Petar Markovic @pecagg , who has joined …
Report: Vitality considering adding 6th player to CSGO team
M Alzamora
Counter-Strike
French Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team Vitality is exploring adding a sixth member to its roster. According to an anonymously sourced report from French news website 1pv.fr, Vitality is the latest organization to consider adding a sixth player to its five-man roster. The move would make Vitality the third major team to build an expanded roster, with the report going on to list four potential additions to its roster. There are …
Head coach Guerri plans on expanding Furia’s CSGO roster
Fariha Bhatti
News
Furia’s head coach Nicholas “guerri” Nogueira has revealed his plan to expand Furia’s Counter-Strike: Global Offensive roster after a thorough evaluation of the six-man team format. Team Furia was a dark horse that has shone during the online era of CSGO, making its way into the world’s top 10 ranked teams. The Brazilian organization reached this milestone with a sturdy squad of five. However, the team’s head coach plans to …
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.
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
Counter-Strike
