🔥 BIGGEST CLIMBERS, 14 DAYS

May 4 → May 18. The VRS pts from the valve snapshot.

❔ Top 8 teams by VRS accumulation over the last month:

🇷🇺 magic +216 pts (#46 → #21)
PGL Astana run from open qualifier all the way to the QF. As a result, they took 4th place in the tournament - this is an good result for them.

🇷🇺 Spirit +182 pts (#5 → #2)
PGL Astana title — 3-0 sweep of Falcons in the GF. Now world #2 by VRS, the closest chase to Vitality at #1.

🇪🇺 GamerLegion +165 pts (#13 → #11)
IEM Atlanta grand finalist. The 0-3 loss to NAVI stings, but the GF broke them into the world top 11.

🇨🇳 Lynn Vision +160 pts (#49 → #25)
Hero Esports Asian Champions League 2026 has yielded results — tier-2 → tier-1 visibility in a single event.

🇧🇷 Legacy +145 pts (#14 → #13)
IEM Atlanta playoff run. latto led the event's player rankings, and dumau posted the most aces on the tournament.

🇺🇾 9z +137 pts (#19 → #15)
PGL Astana 3-0 Swiss qualification, then a 1-2 QF loss to magic in the bracket.

Walczaki +129 pts (#68 → #39)
Polish tier-2 accumulate vrs points - 29-spot jump is the biggest place-movement of the entire top 8.

JiJieHao +120 pts (#64 → #38)
Chinese scene rising!

🕹 Worth knowing:
half of the top 8 climbers (magic, Lynn Vision, Walczaki, JiJieHao) started the window outside the world top 40. That's the cleanest signal yet that 2026's open qualifier ecosystem is producing real ranking points, not just upset highlight reels.

👉 cs2analytics.com

🇪🇺 WORTH THE WAIT

🇺🇦 NAVI lifted their second trophy of 2026 at IEM Atlanta, sweeping 🇪🇺 GamerLegion 3-0 in the grand final. The bigger story: they finally beat 🇪🇺 Vitality.

The 🥇 MVP - Ihor "w0nderful" Zhdanov
First MVP medal of his career.

"I've had many chances to win the MVP title, but each time I played poorly in the finals or we lost. This is my first MVP – I'm incredibly happy."

"I think we're stronger now than we were in 2024 and we have every chance of winning the Major - we'll see what happens at the Major." — w0nderful 🇺🇦


🇺🇦 NAVI Captain - Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen

"I'm glad that people didn't stop supporting us even when we didn't play well at the beginning of the season!
We now believe in our strengths and plan to continue playing the same way at the Major. I think everyone sees the level of play we have now and I think many people respect our style of play. But we also have to always remember – all teams are growing too, so we have to be ready to meet everyone!" — Aleksib 🇺🇦


🇺🇦 NAVI Coach - Andrey "B1ad3" Gorodenskiy

"The second and third cards were very tense, but we continued to fight, showed our will to win and achieved success in the remaining moments. I am proud of the team. Thanks for the support!" — B1ad3 🇺🇦

🏅 2026 TROPHY STANDINGS

🇪🇺 Vitality - Trophies 5 Finals 5
🇺🇦 NAVI - Trophies 2 Finals 4
🇷🇺 Spirit - Trophies 1 Finals 2
🇷🇺 PARIVISION - Trophies 1 Finals 2
🇪🇺 FUT - Trophies 1 Finals 1

NAVI are closing the finals gap on Vitality (4 vs 5)🔥

"How many people wanted to replace 🇩🇰 karrigan with kyxsan🇲🇰 or siuhy🇵🇱 at one point? These two aren't even 50% as good as Finn, but people think that because they get more kills, they're better." - 🇫🇷 Dan apEX Madesclaire

Some comments from 🇲🇰 kyxsan:

"We had about seven months. Someone will say that this is enough, someone will say that this is not enough, but I think that we showed good results, we just always lacked some one detail to win the trophy.

We showed ourselves as one of the best teams in the world, consistently entered the playoffs, were definitely the TOP-3 team in the world and even beat Vitality when no one else could do it. We just needed more time and for them to believe in us"

"When you play a team like the Falcons, you have to be prepared that people will eat you alive for your failures, but they won't say anything good if you achieve some results."

"On the day I arrived at IEM RIO, the manager wrote to me and said that I would quit.
I was shocked, because before that there were no discussions in the team about changes. We understood that we did not show the results we should have, but our project had to be long-term"

🇲🇰 kyxsan hasn't signed any contracts yet, but he's getting ready to come back:

"My best friend invited me to his wedding in a few months... And I was like, "Bro, I don't even have a team right now, but if I find one, the season starts in July, so I have no idea if I'll be able to come." I said i'd answer the day before the event."

Interestingly, the player also said that he doesn't hold a grudge against anyone. And the haters can wait for him to fall, but that won't happen because he plans to play until he's at least 30:

"The haters were writing insults and threats to us every day. Online, everyone hated us (Falcons), but in every arena, wherever we went, the crowd was passionately supporting us."

🇩🇰 DEBUT VERDICT: 8/10

🇩🇰 karrigan reflects on Falcons' PGL Astana run after the 3-0 GF loss to Spirit.

Speaking to 🇩🇰 HLTV after arriving in Shanghai for CS Asia Championships, Falcons' new IGL gave his own grade on the Astana debut:

"I'd give it an 8 or 9 out of 10." - 🇩🇰karrigan to HLTV

📌 What he said:
Pleased with the 🇧🇷 FURIA semi recovery - Falcons came back from a seven match-point hole on Dust 2
Dust 2 in the GF turned on a single 1v3 lost in OT - 🇩🇰karrigan thinks a win there could have changed the series tone
The 10/10 would've been the trophy. He stops short of it
Bootcamp plan before Cologne: five days together, a few days home, then straight into the Major. Data from Astana + CAC will drive what gets fixed

🧐 Worth knowing:
1. It was karrigan's first event with Falcons after signing to replace 🇲🇰 kyxsan, and the team reached the GF on their debut weekend together.

2. VRS impact: Falcons +129 pts for all turnament, but stay inside the world top 5.

👉 cs2analytics.com

#karrigan #Falcons #PGLAstana

🇸🇪 FNATIC ENTERS THE TRANSFER MARKET

Two football clubs reportedly in talks for the legendary CS org. One German. One unnamed.(rumor)

The org with three Counter-Strike Majors - including the very first one in 2013 - the only team to win three Major titles before Vitality caught up and Astralis overtook them, and almoust two decades of black & orange jerseys, is reportedly closer than ever to changing hands.

📌 What's reported (Al Lio Podcast, Spanish primary):

🇸🇪 Fnatic are reportedly in active sale negotiations with two football clubs
One of them is a German club, the other's origin is undisclosed
The deal is for either the whole org or a controlling stake
Fnatic are reportedly not touching the roster during the off-season - the sale is the priority

📌 What was already on the record (Dust2.us primary):

🇸🇪 Fnatic hired an advisory firm to explore offers in the ~$100M range
That December exploration didn't lead to a public deal - and this round, the buyer pool is coming from a different industry

🧐 Why football clubs?
The buyers aren't another esports org or a private equity fund - they're football clubs looking outside the pitch. The cross-industry play makes sense: a football club gets a global esports brand with a built-in young audience; Fnatic gets capital and infrastructure that the esports market alone can't currently provide. If this closes, it would be one of the cleanest examples yet of traditional sports acquiring esports IP directly, not through a sponsorship deal.

🕹 For context on the CS side:
🇸🇪 Fnatic's CS2 team is sitting outside the HLTV world top 40 in May 2026.
The roster spent most of 2026 in tier-2 brackets (ESL Challenger League S51, PGL Bucharest closed qualifier, Tipsport Prague).
Whoever closes this deal is buying the brand, the history, and the youth pipeline - not a tier-1 CS contender.

#Fnatic

🏆 CS Asia Championships 2026!

Tournament info:
🗓 May 20–24, 2026
📌 Shanghai, China
👥 16 teams
💰 $1M prize pool
The last Big Event before the Cologne Major!

❔ Group A - Day 1 matches (win probability by VRS):
🇸🇦Falcons 99% - 1% 🇪🇺BCGame
🇪🇺MOUZ 90% - 10% 🇨🇳TYLOO
🇧🇷Legacy 83% - 17% 🇺🇸NRG
🇧🇷paiN 67% - 33% 🌎M80

❔ Group B - Day 1 matches:
🇲🇳The MongolZ 80% - 20% 🇨🇳Lynn Vision
🇷🇺PARIVISION 86% - 14% 🌎Liquid
🇫🇷3DMAX 60% - 40% 🇧🇷MIBR
🇺🇦B8 61% - 39%🇸🇪 NIP

Win probability by VRS on every match!
👉 cs2analytics.com

#CACShanghai

🤩 TIKTOK JOINS THE FEED

ESL 🇬🇧 FACEIT Group is reportedly bringing its tournaments to TikTok in a mobile-first vertical format. Debut: IEM Atlanta.

📌 What's reported:
ESL FACEIT Group has entered a partnership with TikTok to stream its tournaments on the platform.
Broadcasts get a vertical mobile format with adapted graphics, overlays and exclusive backstage content. The collaboration debuted during IEM Atlanta 2026.
TikTok will also help promote ESL content and open access to its ad tools and its network of gaming creators for co-streams.
Reasoning cited: per SQ Magazine, ~56% of esports viewership happens on mobile devices.

🇸🇦 IEM Atlanta 2026 was indeed broadcast on TikTok - alongside Twitch, Kick, YouTube Live, Facebook Gaming and CHZZK.

🕹 Worth knowing:
This fits EFG's wider 2026 push. In April they signed a global partnership with Kick (debuting at IEM Rio), expanding distribution toward younger, mobile-native audiences. A TikTok vertical feed would be the next step in the same multi-platform strategy — meeting fans on the screen they already watch on, rather than pulling them to a desktop stream.

👉 cs2analytics.com

#ESL #TikTok #CS2 #Esports

🇲🇳 mzinho has the best rating of 3.0 on Opening Round at the CS Asia Championships 2026 tournament.

Best players with rating of 3.0 on Opening Round:
1. 🇲🇳mzinho - 2.04 (The Mongolz vs Lynn Vision)
2. 🇺🇦npl - 1.91 (B8 vs Ninjas in Pyjamas)
3. 🇷🇺Jame - 1.83 (PARIVISION vs Liquid)
4. 🇪🇺electroNic - 1.73 (BC.Game vs Falcons)
5. 🇺🇸Grim - 1.71 (NRG vs Legacy)
6. 🇨🇳Moseyuh - 1.65 (TYLOO vs MOUZ)
7. 🌎JBa - 1.60 (M80 vs pain)
8. 🇧🇷kl1m - 1.45 (MIBR vs 3DMAX)

Tomorrow the battle in the lower bracket for the last 2 spots in the playoffs will continue:

Lower Bracket Group A - NRG vs MOUZ and BC.Game vs pain, M80 and TYLOO will waiting someone of them in Lower Semi-final.

Lower Bracket Group B - Lynn Vision vs Ninjas in Pyjamas and 3DMAX vs Liquid. PARIVISION and The Mongolz will waiting someone of them in Lower Semi-final.

👉 cs2analytics.com

🇺🇦 B8 INTO THE CAC PLAYOFFS

🇺🇦npl talks up his young B8 side - and the AWPer everyone's watching, s1zzi.

🇺🇦B8 beat 🇲🇳The MongolZ to reach the playoffs at CS Asia Championships 2026 in Shanghai.
Their all 🇺🇦Ukrainian roster - alex666, npl, kensizor, esenthial, s1zzi!

🎙 What npl said about the run:
He hoped B8 would reach the playoffs and play good team CS — and believes they can genuinely win the event if they keep this level up.

🎙 On 🇺🇦 s1zzi's growth:
npl says the young AWPer has made significant progress and is taking big steps forward — though not yet a tier-1 sniper.
At earlier events s1zzi was playing at maybe half his ceiling; with the coach and team structure around him, npl sees him far more confident and unafraid now.

🇺🇦npl flagged s1zzi's upside earlier this year too. After B8's PGL Cluj-Napoca exit in February, he told HLTV (primary):

"He has the X-factor." - npl on s1zzi, to HLTV

👉 cs2analytics.com

#B8 #s1zzi #npl

🇺🇦 WHO WANTS TO BUY?

Everything must go. Passion UA open the doors to offers for their players.

🇩🇰 Per HLTV, Passion UA are ready to hear offers from orgs looking to sign their players.
The roster:

🇺🇦 sdy
🇿🇦 JT
🇦🇷 try
🇺🇦 Kvem
🇺🇸 nicx

🕹 Worth knowing:
It's a quiet end to a loud year. The Ukrainian side were a top-15 feel-good story in February - RMR upsets over 🐻Virtuspro, 🐲Spirit and 🇩🇰Astralis. Then an expensive try + Senzu rebuild misfired, they missed the Cologne Major, slid to #48 on the VRS, and ended their season early.

👉 cs2analytics.com

#PassionUA

🇧🇷 insani has the best rating 3.0 (by 🕹 HLTV) on Upper Semi-final!

Best players with rating of 3.0 on Upper Semi-final at the CS Asia Championships 2026 tournament:
1. 🇧🇷 insani - 1.80
2. 🇺🇦 npl - 1.50
3. 🇸🇦 m0NESY - 1.48
4. 🇧🇷 latto - 1.29

Friday's(22 may) the battle in Upper Final will begin!
- 🇸🇦 Falcons vs 🇧🇷 Legacy: 64% | 36% - probability to win by VRS.

- 🇧🇷 MIBR vs 🇺🇦 B8: 43% | 57% - probability to win by VRS.

More info!
👉 cs2analytics.com

URSULA'S 2000 IQ MOVE

🇪🇺 NAVI's team psychologist found a salt-water trick to fix players losing focus mid-match.

Per 🇺🇦 NAVI team psychologist Ursula Klimchak, 🇺🇦 w0nderful drinks deliberately salty water during matches - even though it tastes bad.

The reasoning she gave: players sometimes complained that matches felt "foggy" and they couldn't lock onto the screen properly. Her fix - sip something very salty or sour mid-game.
The idea: salt supports brain function, and the unpleasant sharp taste nudges the body to release dopamine, snapping focus back.

A small, weird, very on-brand performance hack from the IEM Atlanta MVP's support staff.😁

👉 cs2analytics.com

#NAVI #w0nderful

🇸🇦 EWC HEADS TO PARIS

The Esports World Cup Foundation has confirmed its $75M festival is moving from Riyadh to Paris.

🕹 Per HLTV, the EWC Foundation has confirmed the move of the $75M festival from Riyadh to💋 Paris, as first reported by GamesBeat. The CS2 portion was set for the final two weeks (Aug 12–23) with a $2M prize pool and 32 teams — double the 2025 edition. HLTV confirms the event was granted a Valve exception to relocate.

📌 One analyst's take (Lerich - secondary, opinion): the relocation could leave some teams struggling to secure French visas on a tight timeline, with players from sanctioned countries, the MENA region and parts of Asia potentially facing the toughest path. He also flagged a scheduling squeeze - some qualifiers finish close to the July 7 EWC start, leaving little room for visa processing.

👉 cs2analytics.com

#EWC #Paris #CS2