Shocking Results of the Opening Stage PGL Major Copenhagen
The first stage of the Major in Copenhagen has concluded. As a result, we bid farewell to 8 teams, while another eight advanced to the next stage. For spectators, the results of the Opening Stage were quite unexpected and left many questions about the teams’ form at this event. Let’s see who managed to handle the pressure and show a worthy performance, and who fell short, failing to meet the expectations of fans.
Heroic / Cloud9
Both teams have yet to lose a single map in the tournament and have advanced to the Elimination Stage with a score of 3-0. It cannot be said that they did it easily and were significantly better than their opponents.
Cloud9 faced challenges in their second match against Legacy, where they had to come back from a 3:10 score. However, after switching to the defensive side, they won 10 rounds in a row and secured their spot in the match for the next stage. In the deciding match, they faced SAW, whom they recently lost to at the BLAST Spring Showdown. The game was quite close, but the experience of playing at LAN events proved to be crucial, and the Russian team managed to secure the victory. In this game, they ended the winning streak of the Portuguese, which consisted of 11 consecutive victories. Kirill “BoombI4” Mikhailov couldn’t contain his emotions and exclaimed towards their recent rivals, “This is not online.” At this stage, the class of the team truly played a huge role, but whether it will help them in matches against more renowned players remains to be seen in the next stage.
Heroic is one of the few Danish organizations competing on their home turf. Getting this team to the Royal Arena won’t be easy, but let’s see how much the “magic” of the home event will help them. Heroic has already shown character and come back on several maps, which might give them even more confidence in their abilities.
Eternal Fire / ECSTATIC
The Turkish team is truly igniting in Copenhagen and showing very bright Counter-Strike. We’ve noted before that this lineup plays with great passion, and their explosive character can work in their favor. If Eternal Fire maintains this energy, they could cause trouble for any team in the next stage. The BO1 format is an excellent opportunity to do so, so we eagerly await games featuring XANTARES and company.
The success of the ECSTATIC team can be described in one simple word – luck. They had an incredibly easy bracket, facing two Asian teams and fairly passable Imperial in a 2-1 match. It’s fortunate that the drawing system is extremely transparent and raises no questions whatsoever. Well, it’s a Danish organization, a tournament in Copenhagen, you understand. Of course, we congratulate the guys on such a serious achievement, but these are confident 0-3 in the next Pick’em.
Sensation of Brazilian Teams
There’s much to be said about Brazilian teams. After navigating through the North American qualifiers, nobody could have anticipated that all 4 teams would be on the verge of advancing to the next stage. Analyzing the results of the RMR tournament in Mexico, it was evident that each team possessed strong and highly experienced players. This blend of experience and youth fully manifested itself from the very first games at the Major. No one expected that each team would secure two victories and prove to the world that we pay too little attention to the Brazilian scene.
paiN initially seemed to be the weakest among all South American teams, but they confidently advanced to the next stage. Besides excellent shooting, biguzera’s squad demonstrated superb preparation against their opponents. They read their opponents brilliantly at every stage of the map and disrupted their opponents’ game plan. The Elimination Stage will be a real test for this roster. Confidence in their potential has strengthened, but it’s still quite challenging to list them as contenders for the playoffs.
Legacy was one of the most popular picks in Pick’em for a 0-3 outcome. However, everything fell apart after their debut match against Furia. In this encounter, coldzera disappointed his former captain FalleN, with whom they had twice become Major champions. In their next game against Cloud9 on Overpass, they led 10:3, making many CIS fans nervous. However, with each subsequent match, their momentum waned, and in the decisive game against TheMongolz, a completely different team appeared on the server. Nonetheless, the result for this team is more than worthy.
Imperial’s journey in the Major’s first stage could have ended on the second day. However, the team showed good manners and arrived in Copenhagen with gifts: two tickets to the Elimination Stage for two Danish organizations. In the end, they predictably defeated GamerLegion, who found themselves where they shouldn’t have been. More concrete conclusions about the strength of this team will be drawn after the Elimination Stage.
The most significant team from this region severely tested the nerves of their fans. Furia began this tournament with two defeats and struggled to advance for three consecutive days. While the loss to Legacy can be attributed to the unpredictability of the derby, the defeat to Lynn Vision seemed like a low blow. Then came two easy victories against KOI and ENCE, sending them packing. In the final match of the Major’s first stage, Furia breezed past SAW and became the last participant in the Elimination Stage.
In summary, 3 teams from Brazil managed to advance, which means a lot for the entire American region. With this result, South American teams earned 2 additional slots for the next event. Now, at the Major in China, there will be 7 teams from America, and it remains only to guess how many of them will be Brazilian rosters.
Failure of the European scene and a small victory for the Asian region.
The final round of the Opening Stage determined not only the fate of the last 6 teams but also the distribution of slots among regions for the next Major. As a result of the first five rounds, the European region lost one slot and missed out on the Last Chance stage.
AMKAL, KOI, Apeks, ENCE – each of these teams flashed in Pick’em for a 3-2/3-1 passage, but in the end, they managed to secure only two victories among them. This failure cannot be called unlucky. In almost every lost match, these teams were favorites but lost entirely deservedly.
The defeat of GamerLegion deprived the European region of another slot, but no one will blame this team. They ended up in this Major by chance, so reaching the top 16 would have been too much.
As for SAW, the team clearly couldn’t recover from the interrupted winning streak, and in the following matches, they were not themselves. What happened to the Portuguese team after their defeat to Cloud9 is unknown even to them.
TheMongolz had a tough bracket, but they caused a sensation by making it to the top 16 of the Major. They lost to two teams that ultimately advanced (Eternal Fire and ECSTATIC) but defeated AMKAL, Lynn Vision, and Legacy. Thanks to these victories, they probably earned an additional slot for the Major in China, which contributed to the majority of Pick’em being ruined.
In conclusion, out of the 8 teams advancing to the next stage of the tournament, there were 4 European, 3 American, and 1 Asian organization. Apparently, this will greatly affect the final slots at the Major in China, where Europe will lose three teams at the second CS2 Major. Two slots will go to America, and one to Asia.
The results of the first gaming days of PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 brought a huge number of surprises and already stirred up enough noise. Teams from the Elimination Stage were clearly not prepared for such a lineup of opponents, and there is very little time left for preparation. The top 16 teams will enter the fray tomorrow, and over the next 4 days, half of them will be heading home.