Preview of PGL Major Copenhagen 2024: Elimination Stage. Who will make it to the playoffs of the first CS2 major?
The first stage of the first Counter-Strike 2 major has ended. It has already given us a lot of sensations, for example, the unexpected success of the Brazilian teams and the emergence of paiN and Imperial into legends, as well as the departure of the world giants ENCE, Apeks and GamerLegion. But the Elimination Stage awaits us and the fun is just beginning. The main group stage will feature FaZe Clan, Team Spirit, Team Vitality, MOUZ, Virtus.pro, Natus Vincere, G2 Esports, Complexity, HEROIC, Cloud9, Eternal Fire, paiN, ECSTATIC, TheMongolz, Imperial and FURIA. In this article we will discuss the upcoming Elimination Stage and decide which teams will advance to the playoffs of PGL Major Copenhagen 2024.
Teams to go 3-0/3-1
The first and obvious choice for 3-0 is Team Vitality. At the European RMR, the team proved that they are ready to cope with any difficulties. Of course, the main success of the team will depend on the individual form of Mathieu ZywOo Herbaut, but at the majors the main star of Vitality plays flawlessly. This is an example of an esports player who fully understands the importance of Valve tournaments and gives his best to them. He often sets personal records in terms of statistics, and PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 may be no exception. In addition to him, the lineup contains strong shooters, with the only exception being William mezii Merriman, who often fails in individual performance. Team Vitality’s first opponent will be Eternal Fire. They placed big bets on the Turkish team, but at the end of the Opening Stage they lost a lot and had a chance of not making it further. Such an opponent will not be a problem for the roster of Mathieu ZywOo Herbaut.
The further choice of teams for 3-0 is quite extensive. Almost every favorite can finish the Elimination Stage without defeat, but we will focus on MOUZ. After the acquisition of Ludvig Brollan Brolin, the team found its game and continues to progress with each tournament. PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 for MOUZ will begin with a match against ECSTATIC, who looked rather lackluster on the Opening Stage, beating only TheMongolz, Lynn Vision and Imperial. The Danish team is unlikely to win at least one match in the main group stage, and MOUZ’s path to the major will begin with 1-0. The second opponent for the roster will most likely be Complexity. It is more likely that MOUZ will only have one BO3 left to win.
Despite all the hype around Team Spirit, the team is unlikely to get away with it. There is no doubt that it will make it to the playoffs, but certainly not with a 3-0 record. All the world’s greats will be ready for the Spirit’s playing style and, in particular, for Danil donk Kryshkovets. In the first matches, the team is unlikely to experience problems; they will appear in BO3, when opponents can pick Vertigo, which is one of the weakest cards of the team. In the debut match, Team Spirit must cope with Cloud9. In this meeting, a big role will be played by the absence of a stable sniper in the roster of Kirill Boombl4 Mikhailov and the desire of Dmitry sh1ro Sokolov to beat his former team.
FaZe Clan should also reach the playoffs with a 3-1 record. The loss of Russell Twistzz Van Dulken was not a big blow to the star-studded team. Rookie David frozen Chernyansky was able to completely replace the Canadian and even has more room for growth, since he is still young and has room to grow. In the first match, FaZe has a great chance of defeating HEROIC and the team’s future path will become much easier. However, there are doubts that FaZe will go 3-0; it is unlikely to cope with Team Vitality, Team Spirit or MOUZ.
Of all the remaining teams, I would like to choose Virtus.pro at 3-1. Of course, the success of the team will depend entirely on tactical preparation, but Virtus.pro have proven more than once that they have no problems in the Swiss system. From most tournaments in this format, VP goes 3-1 or even 3-0. Their first opponent will be Imperial. The Brazilian scene surprised everyone at the Opening Stage, but in the legends stage it will no longer be so easy, the level of opponents in the Elimination Stage is much higher.
Teams that will finish 3-2/2-3
Despite drastic changes in the roster, Natus Vincere remains one of the most stable teams in the majors. The club played in all CS:GO championships, and the first CS2 was no exception. Almost always, the team manages to reach the playoffs, and given its current form, it will be possible to do this at PGL Major Copenhagen 2024. However, NAVI’s first opponent is not at all as easy as it seems. TheMongolz knows how to surprise and has a chance to turn the tide of the match and emerge victorious from the debut meeting in the Elimination Stage. However, Natus Vincere approach the Mongolian team without underestimating the strength of the opponents, Justinas jL Lekavicius noted – he put TheMongolz in Pick’Em at 3-0.
Cloud9 experienced serious fundamental problems at the Opening Stage, but nevertheless came out 3-0. The team’s problems with AWP and other in-game and external factors have not gone away. The team’s level of play is clearly not enough to become champions of PGL Major Copenhagen 2024, but they are still able to get out of the Elimination Stage. This path will clearly not be easy, and the fate of the team will be decided on the last day with a 2-2 record. It is unlikely that Cloud9 will be able to beat Team Spirit in the first match, which means that they will start their performance at the major with a score of 0-1.
Despite all the shortcomings of the G2 Esports roster, I want to believe in the success of Ilya m0NESY Osipov and Nikola NiKo Kovacs at the first CS2 major. The Russian sniper is at the peak of his form and with the support of the Bosnian, he can take even such a problematic roster to the playoffs. Of course, it will be difficult to count on anything more than G2 Esports, but there are minimal chances of it. The first opponent of the lineup will be FURIA, which performed quite controversially at the Opening Stage. Gabriel’s FalleN Toledo team started the match with a 0-2 record, losing to Legacy and Lynn Vision. After that, the Brazilians managed to cope with KOI, ENCE and SAW, but all these opponents were not in the best condition at the major. FURIA’s problems have not gone away and, with proper preparation, G2 Esports should be stronger.
The teams Eternal Fire, HEROIC and Complexity will also be closest to the playoffs. But they are unlikely to have the strength to cope with the giants, who are also vying for the playoffs. Eternal Fire had the opportunity to clear the Opening Stage, but instead ran into big problems. HEROIC, on the other hand, assembled a good roster from the players they could get, but it still doesn’t reach the highest level. So far he managed to surprise at the RMR and Opening Stage, but in the legends stage the competition and level of opponents will be much higher. Complexity has good players on its roster, but they are hardly able to compete with Team Vitality, Team Spirit, FaZe Clan and other giants.
Teams that will finish 1-3/0-3
The path of Brazilian teams to the Elimination Stage, despite their successful performance in the Opening Stage, should end very quickly. There will no longer be opponents who are not ready for their style of play, and no one will make critical mistakes. For example, no one will allow FURIA to come back from 0-2 statistics.
Despite paiN’s passage from the Opening Stage with a score of 3-1, she is still the weakest representative in the region. Most likely, the team’s luck will run out and it will not be able to win a single game. The situation is similar with ECSTATIC; the Danish team was lucky with their opponents, but a similar situation will definitely not be repeated at the Elimination Stage.
In pot 1-3, Imperial and FURIA will most likely be joined by TheMongolz. The Asian team surprised with its passage to the next stage, but the level of the local scene does not yet reach the playoffs of the major, where the strongest teams from all over the world will gather.
If the Opening Stage is anything to go by, we’re in for one of the most unpredictable majors in Counter-Strike history. Perhaps we will see the most unexpected playoff bracket, which will not include the usual tags. This trend makes watching PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 even more interesting, because everyone is bored with predictable matches and the same teams on the first lines of the tournament. But nevertheless, there are a number of teams whose success cannot be doubted.
Final forecast for PGL Major Copenhagen 2024: Elimination Stage:
- 3-0 – Team Vitality and MOUZ;
- 3-1 – Team Spirit, FaZe Clan and Virtus.pro;
- 3-2 – Natus Vincere, Cloud9 and G2 Esports;
- 2-3 – Eternal Fire, HEROIC and Complexity;
- 1-3 – Imperial, TheMongolz and FURIA;
- 0-3 – paiN and ECSTATIC.