While players, staff, and fans of Team Spirit are celebrating the team’s victory at the Shanghai Major, everyone else is creating summaries and drawing conclusions. CS.MONEY Blog is no exception, but we’re doing it from our favourite perspective: listing the skins most frequently seen during the tournament broadcast.
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The Most Popular Skins of the Shanghai Major in CS2
Not long ago, we shared our observations about the most popular skins at the RMR event. That gave us fascinating statistics as we monitored 56 teams at once, and the data was abundant.
At the Major, 24 teams competed, and these were largely the same players as at the RMR, so it’s no surprise that many skins retained their positions in the top rankings. However, there were some changes that can be easily explained. At the Major itself, collectors are more likely to lend their premium skins, so the overall value of inventories significantly increases.
Looking at the top 5 skins, the top three remain unchanged. Pro players still prefer the USP-S Kill Confirmed, M4A1-S Printstream and USP-S Printstream. However, entirely different AK-47 and Glock-18 skins have appeared in the rankings. This is likely due to the preference for more expensive skins: after all, both Glock-18 Fade and AK-47 Wild Lotus are the most expensive skins for their respective weapon models.
The Most Popular AK-47 Skins at the Shanghai Major
When examining the most popular weapons individually, we can see interesting changes. The distribution of skins for the AK-47 has become more balanced, but there are still clear favorites. AK-47 Wild Lotus emerged as the leader, a skin now immortalized by donk’s phenomenal 1-v-5 ace.
The top three are rounded out by the AK-47 Fire Serpent and AK-47 Bloodsport, both of which were also popular at the RMR. An honourable mention goes to AK-47 Redline, which narrowly missed the top three. This skin is known for its many incredible crafts featuring Kato 14 stickers.
The Most Popular M4A1-S Skins at the Shanghai Major
For the main CT rifle, the situation has remained almost identical to the RMR. M4A1-S Printstream continues to dominate, followed again by three skins without any major graphics. The only difference this time is that the M4A1-S Fade was replaced by the M4A1-S Blue Phosphor.
Overall, the situation remains largely unchanged. Interestingly, the top three skins are exactly the same as in Copenhagen. You can revisit those statistics by reading our article here.
The Most Popular AWP Skins at the Shanghai Major
Unlike the M4A1-S, the AWP skin rankings saw significant changes between the RMR and the Major itself. The AWP Gungnir and AWP Dragon Lore hold the top two spots by a wide margin. The other skins, however, are spread thinly across the popularity spectrum, like butter on toast. Notably, we frequently saw the AWP Sun in Leo and AWP Chrome Cannon, the latter being used by ropz for his spectacular no-scope in the final.
The Most Popular Glock-18 Skins at the Shanghai Major
Here, the top three skins are identical to those seen at the RMR but in a different order. The Glock-18 Fade stormed into first place, while the Glock-18 Dragon Tattoo moved into second. The RMR leader, Glock-18 Water Elemental, dropped to third place — an unfortunate fate for the cheaper skin at the Shanghai Major.
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The Most Popular USP-S Skins at the Shanghai Major
We’ll wrap up our review with the default CT-side pistol. Here, the USP-S Kill Confirmed and USP-S Printstream. continue to dominate. This trend was also seen in Copenhagen and the RMR. However, while the USP-S Jawbreaker claimed third place in Denmark and the USP-S Neo-Noir rounded out the top three at the RMR, the Shanghai Major saw a sharp rise in popularity for the USP-S Whiteout. This could be due to the unique craft showcased by Rain.
Remember, you don’t need the most expensive skins to be a star on the server! It’s far more important to build an inventory that suits your style. Visit CS.MONEY, and our convenient filters will help you achieve just that!
