Representatives of Countries at PGL Major Copenhagen 2024
On March 17, the first Major in the history of CS2 will begin. The tournament will feature 24 teams, with esports athletes from 29 countries participating. While almost every event in modern Counter-Strike can be considered a world championship, the Major is considered the main tournament where representatives from every corner of the globe are guaranteed a spot. In this piece, we will discuss which country’s flags will be most frequently seen alongside players’ nicknames.
Russia. 23 representatives.
After the failure of some Russian teams in the previous RMR qualifiers, this year Russians have set a record for Major participants from their country. A total of 5 teams (Virtus.pro, Cloud9, Team Spirit, AMKAL, and 9Pandas) are already preparing for the trip to the capital of Denmark. Another player, m0NESY, is playing in the international roster of G2 and is one of the favorites. It is noteworthy that two teams (VP and Team Spirit) are in the Elimination Stage and have already guaranteed a spot in the top 16.
Such numerous representatives from Russia at the Major is far from coincidental. In this region, the game enjoys enormous popularity, top teams actively develop their academies, and most importantly, the game can generate significant income. With salaries ranging from $500 to $1000, a young esports player will dedicate themselves to Counter-Strike without hesitation and devote a large amount of time to it. It is quite difficult to imagine a similar story with similar investments from organizations from other regions, which is why a significant number of countries experience great difficulties with young talents.
The strong development of esports in the region is also evidenced by the age of the youngest player from Russia. Danila “donk” Kryzhkovets recently turned 17, and he is not only the youngest player but also the most successful. The entire community recognizes the incredible talent of the young Team Spirit player and eagerly follows his development.
The popularity of Counter-Strike in Russia is also demonstrated by the oldest Russian at the Major. Alexander “glowiing” Matsievich, at 30 years old, will receive his stickers in the game for the first time, which is a rather unique achievement.
Among the 23 people from Russia, seven have already become Major champions, and there is a solid chance that after the tournament in Copenhagen, this list will be replenished with new champions.
Brazil. 20 representatives.
Representatives of the South American region often consist of Brazilian players. But this time, they will have to fight at the Major almost for the entire American continent. Of the 5 teams from the American RMR, four are Brazilian organizations and consist entirely of Brazilian players.
To be objective, this speaks more about the weakness of the American region as a whole rather than the strength of Brazilian teams. A victory by any of these teams would be a true sensation, and the probability of this event is extremely low.
One of the main reasons for the success of these teams is the presence of experienced players in almost every lineup. FalleN, coldzera, HEN1, felps have been well-known for quite some time and eagerly share their experience with the younger generation. The age difference between the legend of Brazilian CS – Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo (32 years old) and Kaike “noway” Santos (18 years old) is 14 years. Such a significant age difference among players is quite a common situation for most Brazilian teams.
Denmark. 11 representatives.
The hosts of the first CS2 Major must be disappointed with such a few Danish players on home turf. Moreover, not every Dane has a real chance to make it to the stage. The only one who can confidently dream of playing in front of his home fans is Finn “karrigan” Andersen, who at 33 is the oldest representative of his country.
Undoubtedly, the local audience was hoping for a larger number of compatriots at the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024. Teams like Falcons, Preazy, Team Liquid, Astralis, and others with Danish players did not make it to the tournament. The only fully Danish team at the Major is ECSTATIC. Their lineup includes the youngest player – 20-year-old Jason “salazar” Salazar.
All hope of Danish fans rests on FaZe. Whether karrigan can please the home crowd at the Royal Arena, we will find out very soon.
Portugal. 7 representatives.
Unexpectedly, Portugal becomes next in this ranking. The Portuguese lineup SAW recently made a lot of noise by qualifying for the BLAST Spring Finals 2024. The team qualified for the tournament in London through qualifiers, where 16 teams participated and only 2 of them managed to earn the coveted slot. It is possible that this achievement will have a positive impact on the morale of the players, and they will be able to show a worthy result in Copenhagen.
In addition to their gaming results, the Portuguese also surprised with their age. MUTiRiS and roman are 31, while the youngest players from the sunny region, arrozdoce and story, are already 21 years old.
Poland/China/Turkey. 5 representatives.
The last representatives of the countries we’ll consider separately. These are the only remaining teams that have a full roster consisting of players of the same nationality.
The Chinese team Lynn Vision has qualified for the Major for the first time in its history with an extremely young roster. The average age of the Chinese team’s players is 20.5 years. The Asian region is in decline, but the presence of such young teams inspires optimism for a turnaround. Chinese players have traditionally been strong mechanically and have shown a high level of shooting.
Gathering the most experienced Turkish players under its wing, the organization Eternal Fire has qualified for the main Counter-Strike tournament for the second time in its history. The team includes 33-year-old MAJ3R, equally experienced woxic, XANTARES, Calyx, and the young Wicadia, who turned 19 on March 4th. Turkish players always play with great passion, and it is very pleasant to see them on the list of participants in the first CS2 Major. Especially with such legendary personalities, none of whom have missed a tournament of this level.
As for the Polish players, 4 of them are in the ENCE team, and one is the captain of MOUZ. The Polish lineup of ENCE has a small trump card in the form of its captain. Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander is Danish, and this tournament is his home one. The previous home tournament, IEM Katowice, was successful for this team. Perhaps the native walls of the four-time Major winner will help this team again this time.
The small number of representatives from other countries only speaks to the strong decline of these regions in CS. Seeing only two representatives from France and Sweden is a real disaster for the entire community. To succeed on the world stage, it is necessary to increase competition within the region, develop academies, and promote CS even more widely.
The full list of countries whose players will participate in the Major:
Russia 23
Brazil 20
Denmark 11
Portugal 7
Poland 5
China 5
Turkey 5
Mongolia 5
Israel 4
Norway 4
Ukraine 3
USA 3
Finland 2
France 2
Sweden 2
Spain 2
Bosnia and Herzegovina 2
North Macedonia 2
Romania 2
Slovakia 2
Kazakhstan 2
South Africa 1
Estonia 1
Hungary 1
Serbia 1
Great Britain 1
Latvia 1
Lithuania 1