Katowice 2014 Stickers Ten Years Later: Bitcoin in the World of CS?!
The First Team Stickers in Counter-Strike.
Ten whole years have passed since the most popular Major in CS:GO. Many believe this tournament gained popularity as it was the first Major in CS:GO history, but that’s not entirely true. However, in some ways, this tournament was indeed groundbreaking. In honor of the event in Katowice 2014, VALVE released the first collection of team stickers, which would go on to impact the lives of many.
The stickers came in two capsules: “Legends” and “Challengers.” Each capsule cost just $1, and after the tournament, they were sold at a 75% discount, making it only $0.25. Each capsule contained 8 stickers featuring the logos of participating teams. Stickers came in two types: regular and holographic. Players opened these capsules, received a random sticker in their inventory, applied them to their favorite weapons, and flaunted them in the game. This system is still relevant in Major tournaments to this day.
So, what made this tournament the most popular, and what do stickers have to do with it? Let’s dive in.
Why are Katowice 2014 stickers the most expensive and well-known?
To cut to the chase, let’s start with a simple fact: the capsules that were selling for $0.25 are now worth around $12,000.
The most common explanation for this phenomenon is that these are the first stickers in the game, and to some extent, that is a fundamental reason. But let’s delve deeper into the situation and highlight a few unique cases that contributed to their popularity.
First and foremost, players had never encountered anything like this before and didn’t understand why developers added stickers to the game. The Steam market was just starting to develop, and no one had any inkling that in-game items could be sold for real money. Because of this, players saw no point in keeping the stickers in their inventory and applied them to their weapons. Moreover, prices at the time were not very high. Regular stickers ranged from $0.5 to $3, and holographic ones from $2 to $30. Back then, obtaining a $30 sticker was extremely rare, so users didn’t want to spend their money chasing a ‘jackpot.’ Considering the slim chances of getting an expensive sticker, breaking even was a stroke of luck.
But how would they have reacted if they knew the current value of these stickers? Let’s take a look at them now:
- iBuyPower: Regular – $2921, Holographic – $70207
- Titan: Regular – $2554, Holographic – $62407
- Reason: Regular – $2842, Holographic – $40500
- Team Dignitas: Regular – $1056, Holographic – $24820
- Team LDLC: Regular – $1318, Holographic – $22977
- Vox Eminor: Regular – $1513, Holographic – $24111
- Natus Vincere: Regular – $906.58, Holographic – $10779
- HellRaisers: Regular – $484.03, Holographic – $8510
- LGB eSports: Regular – $1115, Holographic – $6878
- Clan-Mystik: Regular – $621.5, Holographic – $5942
- Virtus.pro: Regular – $751.22, Holographic – $4528
- mousesports: Regular – $625.27, Holographic – $3545
- 3d max: Regular – $631.78, Holographic – $3262
- Ninjas in Pyjamas: Regular – $702.57, Holographic – $2836
- Complexity: Regular – $519, Holographic – $1526
- Fnatic: Regular – $616.1, Holographic – $1446
As you may have noticed, the scarcity of such items has significantly impacted the prices. But why is there such a substantial difference in the boost between these stickers? Let’s delve deeper.
The prices on the trading market are shaped by the community itself, relying on the following factors in their pricing:
- Rarity of the sticker (for example, if the team no longer exists or has changed its logo, subsequent versions will be different);
- Appearance (color scheme, intriguing shifts in the holographic version);
- Popularity of the team (holds high rankings, features well-known players).
The more these characteristics apply to a specific sticker, the higher its value within the community, and consequently, the higher its cost. An excellent example in this case is the Team Dignitas sticker: a popular tag that has since disappeared; a splendid holographic effect that catches the eye; there are very few of them left in circulation (many used them to adorn their weapons in the game). For similar reasons, stickers from Team LDLC, Reason, and Vox Eminor are now trading at significantly higher values than the others.
But let’s now focus on the truly astonishing monsters in the form of iBuyPower and Titan stickers.
iBuyPower
At that time, this team was the strongest representative of the North American region and competed in all big tournaments. However, there were also several smaller tournaments in which the team participated. One such tournament was the CEVO Professional Season 5 in 2014, after Katowice. In the finals against NetcodeGuides, iBuyPower unexpectedly lost, displaying highly questionable and suspicious gameplay. At that moment, everyone attributed the failure to a busy tournament schedule and fatigue from many games. But in January 2015, details emerged that the team had placed bets against themselves using dummy accounts and earned around $10,000. After this revelation, VALVE issued a lifetime ban to all participants in the match-fixing scandal, leading to the dissolution of the iBuyPower team. This tag became associated with the first major scandal, and since then, the prices of their stickers skyrocketed, reaching up to $70,000 now! An interesting fact is that these are not the only stickers of the team. However, the prices soared specifically for the Katowice 2014 ones due to their stunning appearance, absence of background, and rarity.
Titan
Throughout its history in CS:GO, the Titan team was a successful and popular tag. The most influential and well-known figures in the world of CS played for this team: kennyS, ScreaM, shox, NBK-, apEX, and many others. Each player excelled in their respective roles, making the team highly recognized and respected in the community. In 2016, it came as a huge surprise to everyone when the organization’s CEO announced the closure of the project, leading to the Titan tag simply ceasing to exist. Titan stickers have become a symbol of a “stellar” team, and every collector eagerly seeks to add them to their collection. Due to the team’s popularity, many players applied the sticker to their weapons and did not keep it in their inventory. As a result, the Katowice 2014 sticker has become extremely rare and a unique collectible. According to some reports, the last recorded transaction for the purchase of a Titan sticker was around $80,000. And who knows, is this the limit?
What awaits Katowice 2014 stickers in the future, and why is the 10-year anniversary so crucial?
We have already established that the main reasons for the incredible surge in sticker prices include:
- Striking appearance without a background;
- Historical context as the first stickers;
- Lack of hype around the trading platform and the inability to monetize investments, which emerged only after several years;
- Disappearance of many tags and scandals surrounding them;
- The game was not as popular, with fewer people following the industry, and stickers were only opened by a few;
- Some users have left the game and are unaware of the treasures in their inventories;
- Many stickers were applied to weapons due to their low cost.
But what if a large number of stickers are simply “stuck” in banned accounts awaiting the lifting of trade restrictions?
One such account plainly states in its profile: “I will use ALL soon”. And it attaches a screenshot with an impressive collection of Katowice 2014 stickers.
Delving into the history of this fortunate individual, it turns out that this user received a 10-year trade ban on their account, set to expire in March 2024! In just a month, this “giant” will re-enter the skin market and bring a significant amount of “goods.” Undoubtedly, one player cannot drastically crash prices, but he is certainly capable of lowering them by a few dozen percent.
What if there are not just one but several such accounts? A 10-year trade ban is a relatively common punishment from VALVE for violating the terms of use of the trading platform. Soon, all these “beasts” will be released from the “cage,” and it will be very interesting to see.