HLTV | Counter-Strike News

On this day 8 years ago, 🇫🇷 Vitality entered Counter-Strike. Since then they have won: 🔸 The most HLTV Awards by an org (14) 🔸 2 HLTV Team of the Year Awards 🔸 3 Majors 🔸 2 ESL Grand Slams 🔸 30 Notable trophies

✉️ PGL has announced that its 2027 opener, PGL Bucharest, will include all the 14 highest-ranked teams per October's invitational ranking. The event, scheduled for January 17-24, will take place in PGL's studio and feature a $1 million prize pool in addition to $400,000 in VRS bonuses. An eight-team closed qualifier scheduled for October 16-20 will determine the last two teams attending the Romanian LAN. Bucharest's stacked field means the elite teams have prioritized this event over BLAST Bounty, the season's opening tournament. Bounty will take place in Malta over two weeks (January 11-24), with the second week overlapping with PGL Bucharest.

📈🇰🇿 Daniel "⁠syph0⁠" Ageyev jumps from 10th to 2nd place on HLTV Prospects rankings after leading Nemiga to the CIS LAN Season 7 title. Read more about the latest changes here 🖥

Is prime Vitality coming back for Spodek? 👀🐝 Four Vitality players stood out as No. 1, No. 3, No. 5, and No. 6 rated in the ESL Pro League Season 24 group stage, with ropz leading the group on a 1.40 rating after eight maps

🏟📢 The bracket is set for ESL Pro League Season 24 playoffs in Spodek The tournament will resume on Friday at 10:30 CEST

🐲 Spirit beat 🇺🇸 M80 for the final spot in the ESL Pro League playoffs

Nikita "⁠cmtry⁠" Samolotov is set to join 🇩🇰 Astralis on loan as a rifler, according to an initial report by Sebastien "⁠KRL⁠" Perez that HLTV sources can confirm. The news comes soon after an earlier HLTV report that stated Astralis were in the market for immediate replacements for Rasmus "⁠HooXi⁠" Nielsen and Jakob "⁠jabbi⁠" Nygaard, after contract negotiations with the pair hit a wall.

🐲 Spirit secure the lead over 🇺🇸 M80 after converting Dust2

🇧🇷 Legacy have announced that Andrei "⁠arT⁠" Piovezan has been discharged from hospital following his bout of meningitis and will return to the team's lineup for their next event, Thunderpick World Championship. The Brazilian IGL missed Legacy's recent ESL Pro League campaign after his illness was announced mere days before the event, Legacy finding themselves eliminated in the group stage after playing with Pedro "⁠bobz⁠" Rocha as a stand-in.

🇷🇺 PARIVISION eliminate 🇺🇦 NAVI and book their place in the playoffs

⚠️ Valve has updated its tournament operation requirements exceptions list on Github with a ruling that allows BC.Game to qualify for the PGL Singapore Major through the Asia region.

"BC.Game (asap, Magisk, mzinho, s1mple, Senzu) are assigned to the Asia region and are eligible for a Major invitation," the update on Github reads.

🇷🇺 PARIVISION tie things up on 🇺🇦 NAVI's map choice

🇺🇦 NAVI strike first on 🇷🇺 PARIVISION's pick

molodoy puts up a monstrous 1.94 rating across the series 💥

🇧🇷 FURIA get past 🌎 9z and secure their EPL playoff spot

Even though Swisher's 🇺🇸 M80 have practically guaranteed their spot at the next Major, the celebrations are not the same as before due to the recent decline in sticker revenue 📉

I think everyone is hoping that they rethink their stance on the stickers and the system. I think Valve isn't one to go back on things too often, which is a bit of a scare for everybody. But I think the difference between this last Major and this one was really bad. Really bad. I think everybody suffered, especially tier-two, tier-three orgs. I think everyone is just hoping that they actually look into that, take the feedback that they got, and adjust accordingly.

🇧🇿 BC.Game CEO asks for fresh start: "Take all our points away" Following a Valve adjustment to the CS Major Supplemental Rulebook affecting regional assignement after roster changes, BC.Game's CEO, Ali "Ako" Muhanned, has made a statement asking for his team to be given a chance to start in the Asia VRS from scratch.

"We understand why Valve introduced stricter regional rules. The integrity of the system needs to be protected, and we respect that," the missive starts. "But it's difficult for us to accept that our situation is being treated the same as every other case. "Our current team has three Asian players (asap, mzinho and Senzu), three players who have competed at the highest level of Asian Counter-Strike. This is our core. These are the players we believe in."

Muhanned then goes on to ask for the team's VRS points to be set back to zero in order to let the team try and qualify based on their merits with the new roster.

"We're willing to give away everything we have earned," Muhanned ends. "Just give our five players the chance to earn it again. Start us from zero. Let us play. Let the server decide. 0 points. 5 players. 3 weeks."

🇩🇰 Astralis are scouring the market for immediate replacements for Rasmus "⁠HooXi⁠" Nielsen and Jakob "⁠jabbi⁠" Nygaard, multiple sources told HLTV. HLTV knows Astralis are taking steps to avoid losing their core for free, with the contracts of HooXi, jabbi and Victor "⁠Staehr⁠" Staehr all nearing their end. HLTV knows that jabbi's deal expires at the end of November, while HooXi's runs until the end of the year. Staehr signed a contract extension with Astralis "until 2027" back in March 2025. Negotiations between the Danish organization and the players have hit a wall, sources said. One of the players on Astralis' shortlist is Kamil "⁠siuhy⁠" Szkaradek, who recently left Liquid after three months on the bench. The former MOUZ IGL is looking for a new challenge to rekindle his career after an indifferent spell with the Americas side.

📣 TaZ: "[The new rule] is difficult for me to accept" BC.Game's coach, Wiktor "⁠TaZ⁠" Wojtas, has taken to X in reaction to Tuesday's update of the Major Supplemental Rulebook, which prevents teams from changing regions in the lead-up to a Major.

"We followed the rules that existed at the time, built an eligible roster and subsequently appeared in the Asian VRS," he said. "That is why introducing a new three month regional restriction at this point of the Major qualification cycle, and applying it immediately to the upcoming Major, is difficult for me to accept. "I can understand the purpose behind the rule," he went on. "What is difficult is the timing. Teams and players make roster decisions, sign contracts, travel around the world and plan their competitive calendars according to the regulations that exist at that moment. "Changing those rules shortly before qualification creates a dangerous precedent for organisations that make decisions based on the rules in place at the time."

TaZ further implied BC.Game would appeal their case. "We will communicate with Valve, respect whatever final decision is made, and focus on what we can control.

The final EPL Group Stage matchups are set 🔍