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BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023: G2 vs FURIA

With elimination at the back of their minds, G2 faced FURIA Esports at BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023.

BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023: Legends Stage

The Legends Stage of BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 is well underway as we are now done with the round 3 matches. Both G2 and FURIA were placed at the bottom two positions of the standings before the series. Only 8 of the 16 teams of Legends Stage will qualify for the Champions Stage so it was surely a must win for both of the organizations if they want to stay in the competition.

FURIA Esports vs. G2

Rosters

FURIA Esports
  • Yuri ‘yuurih’ Boian
  • Andrei ‘arT’ Piovezan
  • Kaike ‘KSCERATO’ Cerato
  • André ‘drop’ Abreu
  • Rafael ‘saffee’ Costa
G2
  • Nemanja ‘huNter-‘ Kovač
  • Nikola ‘NiKo’ Kovač
  • Ilya ‘m0NESY’ Osipov
  • Justin ‘jks’ Savage
  • Rasmus ‘HooXi’ Nielsen

The Series

Map Picks & Bans
  • G2 removed Overpass
  • FURIA removed Nuke
  • G2 picked Inferno
  • FURIA picked Mirage
  • FURIA removed Anubis
  • G2 removed Vertigo
  • Ancient was left over
Map 1 (Inferno)

The first map, Inferno started off with FURIA on defense. FURIA did start off the map with a win on the first round but failed to keep up. G2 took a round to put their game faces on and then went on to win 9 rounds in a row. FURIA could respond only for a while as they then picked up 3 rounds. The first half ended with G2 picking up the last 2 rounds with the score reading 11-4 in favor of G2.

FURIA started the second half well winning the first four rounds on attack. But G2 quickly recollected themselves and picked up the remaining 5 rounds to seal the map in their favor. G2’s NiKo and huNter stepped up big time to bring G2 the win on Inferno.

Map 2 (Mirage)

Mirage started off with FURIA again picking up the first round of the map. FURIA seemed to be the better team at the start with them picking up 4 of the first 5 rounds. But the rest of the first half was straight up slaughter from the roster of G2. G2 repeated the first half of Inferno staying ahead on Mirage with the same scoreline of 11-4 at the end of the first half.

G2 continued their momentum winning the first 3 rounds of the second half. After that, FURIA did show some resistance by picking the next 3 rounds. But it was too little, too late for the Brazilian roster. G2 picked up their remaining 2 rounds and called it a day picking up their second map. With the win on this series, G2 has revived their hopes of staying in the competition.

G2 is facing Fnatic tonight as they’ll be hoping to pick up a win and boost their chances of clinching a spot for the Champions Stage. But the same goes for Fnatic as they have not confirmed their spot either.

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G2 Vs Heroic At IEM Katowice 2023 Grand Final

As we draw the curtains on IEM Katowice 2023, we have finally crowned a new CS:GO Major champion. It was G2 vs Heroic at the Spodek Arena in the grand finals. Who are returning home with another championship under their belt? Find out!

G2 vs Heroic

G2 beat another title contender, Team Liquid to make it to the finals of Katowice 2023. On the other hand, Heroic annihilated NaVi to reach the finals this year. Last year, they missed out losing to FaZe Clan in the semifinals. The stage was now set for G2 vs Heroic!

Rosters

G2 Esports

  • Rasmus “HooXi” Nielsen (IGL)
  • Justin “jks” Savage
  • Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov
  • Nikola “NiKo” Kovač
  • Nemanja “huNter” Kovač

Heroic

  • Casper “cadiaN” Møller (IGL)
  • Martin “stavn” Lund
  • René “TeSeS” Madsen
  • Rasmus “sjuush” Beck
  • Jakob “Jabbi” Nygaard

Map Picks & Bans

  1. G2 removed Overpass
  2. Heroic removed Anubis
  3. G2 picked Nuke
  4. Heroic picked Mirage
  5. G2 picked Inferno
  6. Heroic picked Ancient
  7. Vertigo was left

The Series

Map 1 (Nuke)

Nuke was the first map in the grand finals of G2 vs Heroic. The map started off well for G2. They picked up the first three rounds with relative ease. However, Heroic was quick to remind everyone why they’re in the finals. The first half ended 10-5 in favor of Heroic. G2 started off the second half quite well, again picking up the pistol. HuNter really turned heads in the second half with a 2.01 rating. Thanks to him and support from the rest of the G2 roster, Heroic could barely pick up a map or two on the T-side. G2 picked up the first map 16-12.

Map 2 (Mirage)

The G2 vs Heroic series continued with Heroic’s pick of Mirage. This time, Heroic started off the map well picking up the first three rounds. The first half ended in favor of Heroic yet again, with the score line being 9-6. G2 bounced back at the beginning of the second half. G2’s m0NESY showed up big time as they leveled the score 10-10. G2 turned the game around with some big plays from round 21. Heroic showed some resistance but it was too little, too late. G2 picked up the second map as well against Heroic 16-13.

Map 3 (Inferno)

G2 had to seal the third map to pick up the series. They picked up the first round but Heroic was quick to respond. They won the next 6 rounds straight without sweating much. G2 did a good job of trying to make a comeback as the first half finished 8-7, slightly in favor of G2. The momentum continued as G2 won the first two rounds of the second half as well. But Heroic’s entire roster showed terrific co-ordination and team effort in the second half. Heroic picked up their first map win quite comfortably, 16-11 being the score line.

Map 4 (Ancient)

Ancient started the right way for G2. They started CT-side and won the first three rounds. Heroic started to resist from the next round but G2 fought back again. The first half ended 9-6 in favor of G2. With a 3-round advantage, they were now hoping to win the series and the grand final. G2 kept their eyes on the prize as they were dominant in the second half- only conceding a single round. Picking up their easiest map of the night, G2 beat Heroic and have now been crowned the champions of IEM Katowice 2023.

G2 fans across the globe must surely be ecstatic after their team’s win.

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IEM Katowice 2023 Group A Day 1 Action

IEM Katowice 2023 is running hot as we just got started with group A action today. With the matches already going on as we write this, let’s find out who were the victors on day one. Do check out our previous Katowice 2023 article to learn about this year’s event.

IEM Katowice 2023 Group A

Regarded by many as the group of death, group A is surely delivering us the action CS:GO fans are craving for. With the likes of G2, FaZe Clan, Team Liquid and NaVi in group A, the hype is justified. Group A consists of the following teams:

  • Team Liquid
  • IHC Esports
  • Cloud9
  • Natus Vincere
  • G2 Esports
  • BIG
  • Team Spirit
  • FaZe Clan

Now, let’s check out all the matches of group A of day 1.

Group A Day 1 Matches

G2 Esports vs BIG

Being directly qualified into the group stage, G2’s first opponent was BIG. The Blast Premier World Final 2022 was up against the Roobet Cup 2022 winners. Despite BIG getting the first map pick, it didn’t end well for them. G2 picked up both Anubis and Inferno with a 2-0 clean sweep.

Cloud9 vs Natus Vincere

Meanwhile, G2’s arch rival, NaVi was busy dealing with Cloud9. NaVi showed up on matchday with a clear game plan in mind. That was well reflected in the series between the two teams. On a day where s1mple had barely stepped up, it was the likes of electroNic and b1t that took matters into their own hands. In the end, NaVi walked away with a clean 2-0 win over Cloud9.

Team Spirit vs FaZe Clan

Team Spirit faced the mighty FaZe Clan in the upper bracket quarter finals. Captain Karrigan had an amazing field day leading his team to victory from the front. The team didn’t have to go to a third map and won their series 2-0. They won 16-5 on Ancient and 16-12 on Nuke. Team Spirit will face BIG at the lower bracket quarter finals.

Team Liquid vs IHC Esports

On the last series of day 1 of Katowice 2023 group A, Team Liquid was paired against IHC Esports. IHC showed up but their efforts fell short as Liquid picked up both maps 16-13 and 16-6. The two maps were Iferno and Overpass. IHC will be facing Cloud9 in the lower bracket quarter finals.

Who’s meeting at the upper bracket semifinals?

It’s getting hotter and hotter here at IEM Katowice 2023 group A. Team Liquid is set to face Natus Vincere and G2 will be facing FaZe today. Both matchups are well-balanced and there will be no love lost when the teams will be facing each other. All four of the teams have a terrific shot at winning this major but unfortunately, two will have to take the harder route at the end of the day.

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T1 Ranked As The Most Watched Esports Team Of 2022

2022 was a year filled with esports tournaments and events. With the top esports teams clashing against each other week in week out, it’s no secret they’ve racked in millions of hours of watch time. With that in mind, a question naturally arises- who was the most watched esports team of 2022? It was none other than the Korean powerhouse, T1! Today we’ll be finding out more about how they achieved that.

About T1

T1 (formerly known as SK Telecom T1 or SKT T1) is a South Korean professional esports organization that was founded in 2004. T1 is known for its successful teams and players in a variety of esports titles, including League of Legends, Overwatch, and Fortnite. The Korean team has won numerous championship titles in major esports tournaments, such as the League of Legends World Championship and the Overwatch League. The organization has also produced some of the most well-known and respected players in the worldwide esports scene. Of course, the first name to come to mind is Faker, who is considered one of the best League of Legends players of all time. T1 has a strong presence in the competitive gaming community and fans consider them as one of the top esports organizations in the world.

T1 finally announce their League of Legends roster for the 2022 season

The Year In Review for T1

Esports Charts recently published a rank of the most watched esports teams of 2022. T1 tops the list with a total watch time of 112.93 million hours. While that surely is a huge number, it shouldn’t come as a surprise for their fans. T1 has had a phenomenal year in 2022 as they continue to dominate the scene of League of Legends. With Faker still leading from the front, there were few that could give T1 a run for their money.

An undefeated run at the LCK Spring 2022 set the standard for the South Koreans for the rest of the year. Their 10th domestic title provided them unparalleled confidence. At the MSI 2022, T1 continued their hot winning streak. Their streak did come to an end soon though after conceding a defeat to European giants, G2 Esports. T1 did become the runners-up of the tournament though, losing the finals to Asian rivals, Royal Never Give Up. It was now time for LCK Summer 2022 and fans had hoped their team replicated their previous levels of performance. Unfortunately, that really didn’t happen. T1 faced defeats quite a few times throughout the entire tournament. Despite their rather scrappy performance, T1 still managed to appear at the grand finals. Their opponent was Gen. G who put up an impressive show throughout the Summer split. T1 succumbed to defeat failing to respond to Gen. G’s intense tactics. It was another second place finish, one that fans couldn’t complain much about.

T1 keep perfect season intact, advance to MSI 2022 rumble stage - Dot Esports

Three-time Worlds champions now showed up to the Championship to make it four. They dominated the group stage only conceding a single defeat. T1 faced back to back Asian rivals, RNG and JDG in the quarter and semifinals. Both fell prey to T1’s dominance as Faker and co. proceeded to the finals. The stage was now set for T1 vs. DRX. Fans were treated to one of the best finals in the history of League of Legends. It took all five rounds to crown a winner and it was DRX that lifted their first Worlds Championship.

Becoming The Most Watched Team of 2022

There’s quite a few reasons how T1 turned out to be the most watched esports team of 2022. Here’s a few:

  1. League of Legends had the highest peak viewership this year with 615m hours watched in total. With T1 playing all the matches of the top League of Legends tournaments this year, it’s no surprise they racked in so many hours of viewership.
  2. Who wouldn’t want to watch Faker play? Even in 2022, Faker is playing the game like he owns it. He was joined by one of the finest young talents of the year that is Zeus. Fans poured in to watch the two play and create magic together.
  3. The growing popularity of LCK also had quite the role to play. With an airtime of over 300 hours, viewers watched 74m hours of the LCK this year alone.

How about the other teams?

With T1 taking the top spot, it was Mobile Legends: Bang Bang team, RRQ Hoshi that took the second spot. In 2022, matches with its participation generated 88.2m hours watched which is 30% more than last year. Third on the list was none other than Natus Vincere which is the first CS:GO team to be featured on the list.

The next four spots on the list were taken by new entrants DRX, FaZe Clan, ONIC and Gen. G. EVOS is another MLBB team to be featured on the list with G2 and DWG featuring next. DWG dropped 9 spots in the list than before.

Well, there you have the most watched esports team of 2022. It’s yet another W for T1 and their fans are surely ending the year on a high!

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