Through the European qualifiers starting on Sunday, the road to the May major tournament will be opened to 16 teams. Some of the Russian teams play in the qualifiers under a neutral name.
A superstar of Finnish e-sports Aleksi “Alexib” Estonian represented by G2 is aiming for a seat in the Belgian major tournament next week. Majors are the biggest and most important competitions in the CS: GO video game, held 1-2 times a year. The prize money in the tournament will be $ 1 million.
The European qualifiers for the tournament in Antwerp in May will be kicked off on Easter Sunday, when RMR qualifier group A kicks off with 16 teams. There are 8 seats from each block to the main event itself. In addition to European teams, there will also be teams from the so-called CIS countries in Eastern Europe, such as the reigning major winner NAVI.
The European qualifiers have been split in two, so the Estonian and his team will go on a place-hunt in the B-qualifier starting next Thursday. The CS: GO team of the Finnish organization ENCE, which is coached by the Finnish organization, will also participate in the second qualifying block. Eetu “sAw” Saw.
G2, which won silver in Stockholm, will enter its qualifying round as one of the pre-favorites. The composition of the team was renewed in January, when Virolainen joined the team together with a Russian super promise Ilja “m0NESY” Osipovin with and Serbian Nemanja “nexa” Isakovic headed to the ranks of the OG.
Last autumn, the Estonian was barely out of the Stockholm majors with his OG team. The Finnish star, who has twice reached the playoffs of the major tournament and grabbed silver from Katowice in 2019 with ENCE, is aiming for a place in the third major tournament of his career.
Two Russian teams play under a neutral name
Sanctions imposed on Russia over the country’s war against Ukraine are also making their mark on CS: GO fields.
Romanian company PGL, which is hosting the major tournament, has banned organizations and individuals closely linked to the Russian administration from participating in the tournament, so Russian-owned Virtus.Pro and Gambit have been excluded from the tournament.
Virtus.Pro’s owner company, the internet company VK, is based on the insurance company Sogaz, which is connected to the Russian management and has been placed on the EU sanctions list. The main owner of MTS, the telecom operator that owns Gambit, is an oligarch Vladimir Yevtushenkov in turn belongs Vladimir Putin but has not yet been sanctioned.
However, players from teams excluded from the tournament will be allowed to enter the tournament under a neutral name. Gambit, which consists mainly of Russian players, has played in previous tournaments under the name Players, and Virtus.Pro’s Kazakh-Russian quintet called Outsiders.
The war will also have a significant impact on the actions of the ruling major winner, Natus Vincere of Ukraine, or NAVI. CEO of the organization Yevhen Zolotarov said in late March To the Washington Post (you switch to another service)that some of the company’s employees have moved to Cyprus to run the organization’s operations and some are supporting Ukraine’s defense in their home country, including by raising money or assisting with medical care. The organization also has no plans to pay salaries to employees or players who pay their taxes to Russia in the future.
The qualifying tournament in Bucharest will feature at least one Russian team allowed to play under the name of their organization. Russian Team Spirit announced in March transfer their activities (you move to another service) and his employees temporarily to Belgrade, Serbia for ethical and practical reasons due to the “situation in Russia and Ukraine”.