CS2 Esports News

The latest update to the game not only introduces the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 Pick’Em Challenge and stickers, but also confirms the return of the fan-favorite map, Cache. Austin Major Pick'Em Challenge Is Here! Wild West-Themed Pick’Em Challenge, Player Autographs, Team Stickers, and More The update introduces the much-awaited BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 Pick’Em Challenge, arriving with a wild-west theme, player autographs, team stickers, and more. Players can now buy the Viewer Pass for around $10 to start playing the challenge. Stay tuned on Strafe for a detailed stage-by-stage Pick’Em guide. Additionally, Legends, Challengers, and Contenders team and player autographmore

The Group Stage of IEM Dallas 2025 concluded with The MongolZ nearly breaking Team Vitality’s streak, but to no avail. Now, we head to the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, where the remaining six teams will battle it out for the IEM title. Teams and Format After an intense group stage, only six teams remain: Group A Team Vitality The MongolZ GamerLegion Group B MOUZ Aurora Gaming Team Falcons These teams will now compete in the IEM Dallas 2025 Playoffs.more

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author's personal views and does not necessarily represent the opinions of Strafe Esports as an entity. The Counter-Strike 2 community is closely watching the worst display of bureaucratic inflexibility as BLAST effectively slams the door on Argentine team BESTIA, even as their long-sought U.S. visas are reportedly on the cusp of approval. What should have been a historic moment for Argentine esports, has instead become a tale of regional inequality and questionable tournament management. The decision to replace BESTIA with Legacy just days before their visas would be ready is not just disappointing... it's entirelymore

The livestream by Corinthians Esports, which intended to address mounting fan concerns, degenerated into a spectacle of unmanaged conflicts, financial revelations, and public confrontations on May 20, 2025. Lasting over two hours, the event exposed systemic organizational failures, contested financial practices, and unresolved labor disputes. Below is a chronological reconstruction of the key moments, debates, and controversies that defined this watershed moment for the organization, enriched with direct quotes and contextual analysis to illuminate the depth of the crisis. Themore

At the opening game of IEM Dallas 2025, the returning s1mple and the rest of FaZe Clan clashed against an on-the-rise Team Liquid. The swift yet close 2-0 saw the North American side reign supreme on their home ground. More than 800k viewers tuned in to watch the GOAT take center stage once again. The viewership numbers on a Monday afternoon clearly underline the impact of s1mple on Counter-Strike esports. A Swift Yet Close 2-0  Starting on Team Liquid’s Ancient,more

American Honda Motor Co., Inc has officially ended its partnership with esports organization Team Liquid following a controversial social media post by one of the team's Rainbow Six Siege players. The huge sponsorship termination comes after Lucas "DiasLucasBr" Dias shared an inappropriate GIF related to atomic bombing on his social media account, causing widespread backlash in the esports community and beyond. The incident after CAG Osaka x Team Liquid On May 13, 2025, following Team Liquid's loss to Japanese teammore

The PGL Astana 2025 Grand Final delivered a Counter-Strike spectacle for the ages, as Team Spirit overcame Astralis 3-1 in an entertaining best-of-five to claim the championship title. In front of an excited crowd, Spirit showcased resilience, firepower, and nerves of steel to lift the trophy and prove they are still a menace to anyone on the opposite side of the server. Map Veto & Picks Spirit removed Inferno Astralis removed Anubis Spirit picked Dust2 Astralis picked Nuke Spirit pickedmore

S1mple is back! But before the GOAT takes on the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 challenge, he and FaZe Clan will take on the IEM Dallas 2025 challenge. The week-long tournament hosted by Texas kicks off May 19th and features 16 top Counter-Strike teams fighting for $300k USD and the IEM title. Being the final stop before the major, a good Dallas performance will not only serve as a confidence booster but will set the tone for the teams on American soil. Format and Teams IEM Dallas 2025 will feature two stages: Group Stage and Playoffs Group Stage Two 8-team Groupsmore

The matchup that will crown the champion of the PGL Astana 2025 is decided as Astralis and Team Spirit prepare to battle tomorrow. Scheduled for May 18 at 2:00 pm CET, the Bo5 series promises to deliver a top-tier Counter-Strike clash with $200,000 and the prestigious trophy on the line. Path to the Finals Team Spirit has been nothing short of dominant throughout the tournament, maintaining an undefeated record while showcasing their exceptional skill. Their journey includes a convincing 2-0 victory over Astralis in the Group Stage, as well as a hard-fought 2-1 win against FURIA in the Semifinals. Spirit's win ratemore

Few rifles shape Counter‑Strike the way the AK‑47 does. Terrorists buy it for a simple reason: one bullet to a helmet ends a fight, even at range. The rifle’s power, price, and long history in the series make it a must‑know weapon for anyone who plays the game. This guide explains how the Counter-Strike AK‑47 works, why it is so effective, and how to get the most from it in competitive play. Counter-Strike AK‑47 Weapon Overview Real‑World Roots The real AK‑47 is a 7.62 mm assault rifle first issued by the Soviet Union in 1949. Its reliability turned it into themore

The Counter-Strike 2 updates continue to rain down from Valve. Starting with the Mission Possible update that marked the re-introduction of missions to the game at the start of May, we’ve had 4 updates in just 8 days. While most of these are bug fixes, Valve has also been shipping smaller, quality-of-life (QoL) improvements with each patch. Earlier today, a similar update hit the game. With patch notes barely crossing 100 words, this might be one of those small package,more

In a shocking (not so shocking) turn of events, seven members of ATOX Esports have received severe penalties following an extensive match-fixing investigation by the Esports Integrity Commission (ESIC). The Mongolian organization has been at the center of one of the most significant integrity violation scandals in recent Counter-Strike history, with punishments ranging from temporary suspensions to lifetime bans. The Investigation The investigation began after suspicious betting patterns were detected during ATOX's match against Team Falcons in the ESL Promore

“Hosting another Major is an incredible honor, and we’re determined to make it unforgettable.”  StarLadder has announced it will be hosting the second Counter-Strike 2 Major of 2025, set to take place across November and December. By the hand of StarLadder, Budapest will play hosts to the final Major clash of the year as the best teams in CS head to Hungary for what promises to be an event to remember. StarLadder Budapest Major 2025: The Details The second Majormore

According to a report from Sheep Esports, prodigious Russian talent Maksim "kyousuke" Lukin is all set to join Team Falcons following the Austin Major 2025, replacing Magisk on the roster. Who is Kyousuke? The 17 year old Counter-Strike phenomenon has been part of Team Spirit Academy since June 2024. Despite his limited experience, many, including donk, Zywoo and magixx, believe him to be a generational talent who can take over Tier-1 Counter-Strike. In an interview with HLTV, magixx went asmore

The Esports World Cup Foundation announced today the launch of Road to EWC, a global campaign centered on the player and Club journeys. “The global initiative will spotlight the diverse paths players take to qualify for the EWC, celebrating the passion, rivalries, and competitive spirit that connect global audiences to the world’s largest esports event.” Building Up to the Esports World Cup Set to run from May until August, Road to EWC will be more, well, a road through. With the Esports World Cup 2025 kicking off on July 7th and running until August 28th, the campaign will document themore

The first and the biggest Valve-sponsored Counter-Strike 2 event of the year is upon us. The BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 will feature 32 teams competing across four stages for the ultimate glory in CS esports. The event will span a total of four weeks, and not only promises intense action, but sticker capsules, souvenir packages and the official pick’ems. Let’s see what the tournament side has in store for us. Teams and Format As mentioned before, a total of 32 teams will play four separate stages. Stage 1 16 team Swiss bracket Features teams qualified via MRQ First two stagesmore

Valve’s latest update for Counter-Strike 2, which went live today, has already stirred controversy in the community after players discovered two game-breaking bugs. Molotov Bug Lets Players See Through Smokes The first and more critical of the two concerns the interaction between Molotovs and smoke grenades - an issue that poses a serious threat to the game’s competitive integrity. Multiple videos posted online show players using Molotovs or Incendiary Grenades to gain an unfair advantage by allowing them to seemore

Valve dropped a significant update for Counter-Strike 2 on May 7, 2025, titled Mission Possible. The update brings a host of new community maps, introduces a weekly mission system, and makes several quality-of-life improvements to the game. Players can now look forward to exploring five new community-designed maps, including the long-awaited return of fan-favorite Agency, which has received a visual overhaul for CS2. The update also introduces a meaningful progression system through Weekly Missions that reward players with XP formore

Last night, well-known content creator and credible Valve data miner Gabe Follower made a cryptic tweet that has sent shockwaves across the community. The tweet featured six emojis, and nothing else. Usually, his tweets are longer and more contextual, but this one wasn’t. Being the crazy community Counter-Strike is, they quickly got to work trying to decrypt what the message meant. Six new maps!? The hopeful meaning behind the tweet? Six new maps coming to the game with the upcomingmore

The Counter-Strike skins market has officially surpassed $5 billion in total market capitalization, marking an unprecedented milestone in gaming economies. This staggering figure, confirmed by PriceEmpire data on May 6, 2025, represents not just the largest in-game cosmetics market in the world, but a digital economy larger than the GDP of some small nations. The Explosive Growth The pace of growth has been nothing short of extraordinary. It took a full year for the market to expand from $3 billionmore