Preview of Esports World Cup 2024. Predictions for the first tournament of the second season of 2024 in Counter-Strike 2
The players’ month-long vacation has finally come to an end and the first tournament of the second half of 2024 awaits us. There is absolutely no time to pump up and get into game shape; the season will begin immediately with a tournament with one of the largest prize pools, which is not far behind the majors – Esports World Cup 2024 in Riyadh. The $1 million prize pool will be awarded over a fast-paced four days, leaving little time to play out the championship. Teams need to immediately show what they are capable of and what they have prepared for the new season. The format is quite unusual: to qualify for the playoffs you need to win only one starting match. The losers of the opening pairs will go to the last chance bracket, where the hardest path awaits them in the BO1 format, while the playoffs themselves will take place entirely in the BO3 format.
Team Spirit, Natus Vincere, FaZe Clan, Complexity Gaming, FURIA Esports, G2 Esports, Team Vitality, MOUZ, Virtus.pro, Sashi, M80, MIBR, FlyQuest, The MongolZ and JiJieHao will play at the Esports World Cup 2024. In this material we will discuss the first tournament of the new competitive season of Counter-Strike 2 and give a forecast for the outcome of the championship.
The main favorites of Esports World Cup 2024
The undisputed main favorite of the Esports World Cup 2024 is Team Spirit – the best team in the world according to all ratings except ESL. The Dragons should approach the season charged after winning the BLAST Premier Spring Final 2024 and with new strength accumulated during the holidays. The long break should not affect the individual form of the two main Spirit players – Danil donk Kryshkovets and Dmitry sh1ro Sokolov. Team Spirit has one of the youngest rosters, which always wants to win and has no difficulty returning to the game after a long break. To cement their era of dominance, Team Spirit definitely needs to win the 2024 Esports World Cup, and the tournament’s fast-paced format will benefit them before their opponents adapt to their playstyle. Spirit’s first opponent will be MIBR, which is unlikely to be able to do anything against the best team in the world. With almost 100% probability, Spirit will make it to the playoffs after the first game, which will greatly simplify the path to the championship.
The second contender for victory will be FaZe Clan, which just needed a vacation to perform confidently. For a long time, the team was devastated from the intense tournament schedule, and the players managed to burn out from the game. However, now they will approach the Esports World Cup 2024 with maximum energy and fresh ideas. Of course, there is a possibility that rest will not be able to return FaZe to its previous state and the team will never be able to dominate the professional scene again. The first opponent in the person of FlyQuest for Finn karrigan Andersen’s roster looks quite simple on paper, but the Australians have already surprised us more than once with sensational victories in the first stages of the championships, so although there is a small chance that FaZe Clan will be sent to the last chance bracket, there is still a possibility.
Team Vitality also wants to win the Esports World Cup 2024, which was left without trophies in the first half of 2024. However, the team did not change its composition, despite the failures, and continues to believe in its five. The decision to leave William mezii Merriman in the team is quite controversial, but in recent tournaments he has performed much better, perhaps now he will be able to fill the missing gaps in Team Vitality’s game. Also, do not forget that the closer the end of the year is, the more Mathieu ZywOo Herbaut traditionally begins to play better. If all players can find their best form after vacation, the team has a good chance of winning the championship at the Esports World Cup 2024. The first opponent for Team Vitality will be M80, one of the main outsiders of the championship, which has lost its best player. Team Vitality is guaranteed to qualify for the playoffs of the tournament.
Let’s not forget about MOUZ, who went into the shadows after a quick exit from IEM Dallas 2024. This team is still capable of surprising and being at the top of the professional scene. Last season was one of the most successful for the organization and the squad is able to build on its success in the second half of the year. The team must cope with the first opponent in the person of Sashi without any problems, but its performance in the playoffs is a big question mark. MOUZ rarely manages to play well in front of the public and this again can play a cruel joke on the team. They won’t have time to warm up, which means that the team could sensationally fail in the playoffs of the Esports World Cup 2024.
Dark horses of Esports World Cup 2024
Esports World Cup 2024 could surprise many teams. Significant changes have occurred in some teams, and the first tournaments themselves after the players’ global vacation are quite unpredictable.
Most questions arise about the new G2 Esports roster. The team got rid of two ballasts in the person of Rasmus HooXi Nielsen and Nemanja nexa Isakovic, and also acquired a strong shooter in the person of Mario malbsMd Samayoa. The choice of Janusz Snax Pogorzelski as captain is of course questionable, but this lineup already looks much better than the previous one. It’s still difficult to say whether G2 Esports is in for a new era or another failure, but it will definitely be interesting to follow the team. At the Esports World Cup 2024, she will begin her journey with a match against The MongolZ and this meeting is the most unpredictable in the first gaming day. The teams’ chances are almost equal, which means that we will see one of the strong teams in the last chance bracket.
Also, after the vacation, Virtus.Pro can find their game, who finally got time to rebuild their game under Denis electroNic Sharipov and work with the new coach Andrey Xoma Mironenko. If Virtus.Pro can figure out the problems with roles and map pool, they can become one of the strongest teams in the world. But the upcoming tournaments will already show this, the first of which will be the Esports World Cup 2024. The first opponent for VP will be Complexity, which has been extremely unstable in recent months and dropped out of the tier-1 scene, but the vacation could make its own adjustments and the team will again be able to compete with the favorites. However, it is more likely that Virtus.Pro will win the debut match and advance to the playoffs.
The MongolZ, which quite unexpectedly burst onto the tier-1 scene, can also surprise. This is the first team from Asia in a long time that was able to show such success. The Mongols can never be written off and are one of the most formidable opponents even for the main favorites. The team is quite capable of beating the new G2 Esports roster in the first match and sending it to the last chance bracket. However, The MongolZ has a chance to get out of even BO1 roulette and end up in the playoffs. This team can definitely go far at the Esports World Cup 2024, but it’s hard to talk about the championship.
Natus Vincere, the champion of PGL Major Copenhagen 2024, also has a chance of a successful return in the second half of 2024. After winning the major, the team was practically invisible and failed to achieve success at the largest tournaments, but everything changed at BLAST Premier Spring Final 2024, where the team managed to reach the grand final and take one map from Team Spirit. Natus Vincere is unlikely to establish its era before drastic changes in the roster, but the team is capable of winning a couple of tournaments, but it is unlikely to be the Esports World Cup 2024. In the first match, NAVI will face the updated FURIA roster, where the major champions have a good chance of winning and passing in the playoffs, but the Brazilians can also surprise after strengthening the roster.
FURIA received one of the best representatives of Brazil in the transfer window. After failure in Team Liquid, Felipe skullz Medeiros returned to his native region and will definitely become a strengthening for the strongest team in the country, which has been experiencing difficulties lately. Nevertheless, the team’s path to the Esports World Cup 2024 will be difficult, even if the Brazilians can cope with Natus Vincere, more serious opponents will definitely await them in the playoffs, for which they are not yet ready.
The Esports World Cup 2024 is about to open the competitive season and he is perfect for this role. When tournaments start with an event with a prize pool of a million dollars, you can understand that the teams have no time to relax. Despite the fact that this is the first championship of the season, it has quite a big weight in the teams’ schedule and no one wants to end it with a defeat. After the holidays, almost any team can win it, but we are more inclined towards Team Spirit’s natural championship and an even more confident position in the world table. Almost any opponent can be with them in the grand finals, both the favorite in the face of FaZe Clan or Team Vitality, and the dark horse in the face of Virtus.Pro or G2 Esports.