PGL Major Stockholm 2021 is a unique event. A lot of things have changed since StarLadder Berlin Major 2019. A number of lineups have fallen apart, others have had reshuffles. As a result, the tournament in Sweden will feature a lot of newcomers — it is going to be their first-ever Major. In this post, the CS.MONEY Blog will talk about the teams and players who are in for their Major “trial by fire” in Stockholm.
Evil Geniuses
Newcomers to an extent.
This is really the first Major for the organization. It wasn’t until September 2019 that the famous North American tag popped up in CS:GO. However, Evil Geniuses have several NRG Esports members in their lineup who finished 4th at StarLadder Berlin Major 2019.
2021 has been a terrible year for the club. One single semifinal in a not-so-big tournament is clearly not the kind of performance the organization wants. Nevertheless, thanks to a trick of fate and their success in the decider that led them to PGL Major Stockholm 2021, they are going to Sweden straight to the New Legends Stage.
Entropiq
The Entropiq tag was formed in 2018, but it wasn’t until early 2021 that their first HLTV-level lineup emerged. In May, the organization won a jackpot. The ex-Winstrike lineup had long been looking for reliable ownership, and they eventually found Entropiq, who are backed up by major sponsors like McDonald’s and PUMA.
But it’s not the first-ever Major for everyone on the team. Two players — Vladislav “Krad” Kravchenko and Igor “Forester” Bezotetsky — participated in Starladder Berlin Major 2019 with Dreameaters. Their play at the tournament wasn’t as triumphant as QBFire’s performance at ELEAGUE Major: Boston 2018. Still, a tier-2 team entering into the Legends Stage from a Play-in tournament made CIS fans delighted at the time. This kind of experience will clearly benefit the promising Entropiq squad to repeat the achievement of two years ago.
Movistar Riders
Historically, Spain has been an underachiever in CS:GO. Yet 2017 saw the emergence of the Movistar Riders team with Spanish management in Europe, with Movistar, a large telecommunications brand, as their sponsor.
Apart from victories in local tournaments, Movistar didn’t accomplish anything big before PGL Major Stockholm. Still, we can’t but mention how the Riders’ current roster is good at preparing for encounters with formidable opponents. At IEM Fall 2021 Europe, Movistar Riders defeated G2 and finished fifth. And that was how their successful performance at just one qualifying tournament allowed them to advance to PGL Major Stockholm 2021.
Gambit
Another team who are only newcomers to an extent.
The Gambit tag won PGL Krakow Major 2017, and one of their members of that time, Abay “Hobbit” Khassenov, is on board right now. But the four “youngsters” in the lineup — Vladislav “nafany” Gorshkov, Dmitry “sh1ro” Sokolov, Timofey “interz” Yakushin, and Sergey “Ax1Le” Rykhtorov — will be attending the Major for the first time.
In terms of the “attending Major” criteria, they are newcomers. Remember, however, that the current Gambit lineup has already enjoyed a period sometimes referred to as their “era.” That’s why the guys are coming to the Major as a definite top-3 contender, and they’ll definitely put up a good fight.
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ENCE are in the same shoes. The organization whose Finnish roster took TOP 2 at IEM Katowice 2019 has a completely renewed roster presently. For the four players on the team (all except Snappi), PGL Major Stockholm 2021 will be the first. Heroic are in a similar position: the Danish squad also includes four players who have never been to Majors before.
paiN
Another newcomer at the Major is paiN. The organization has remained obscure until recently: their CS:GO lineups haven’t reached great heights, making their entry into PGL Major Stockholm seem like something of a fluke.
Perhaps only few expect serious achievements from the little-known Brazilians. But paiN have had no reshuffles for more than a year now, so they’ve developed a really good understanding of each other. The experienced Vinícios “PKL” Coelho is a masterful IGL supervising a team of good shooters — a fact that secured the team’s fourth place at IEM Fall 2021 North America and entering PGL Major Stockholm.
Copenhagen Flames
The Copenhagen Flames tag emerged in 2016. Over the past couple of years, their CS:GO squad has brought tons of profit to the organization’s treasury via the sale of key players to big teams. These transfers included Asger “Farlig” Jensen’s going to FunPlus Phoenix and René “TeSeS” Madsen’s joining Heroic.
The arrival of the experienced and skilled shooter Fredrik “roeJ” Jørgensen boosted the team’s performance. The Copenhagen Flames attended the last RMR tournament with all guns blazing. They managed to defeat all their opponents in the group stage and smoothly advanced to PGL Major Stockholm. The excellent individual play of team leaders roeJ and Nico “nicoodoz” Tamjid is enhanced by the leadership of captain Rasmus “HooXi” Nielsen and legendary coach Faruk “pita” Pita, who used to mentor NIP. Among the Major newcomers, the Danish team is one of the most promising clubs. While we were typing this text, Copenhagen Flames defeated Heroic in their 3rd match at PGL Major and proceeded to the New Legends Stage!
Sharks Esports
After crossing several oceans, Brazil’s Sharks Esports have arrived in Stockholm. The organization which emerged in 2018 has only boasted victories at local tournaments in South America so far.
Against the backdrop of their local-level wins, Sharks fans expect decent play from their favorite team at the Major as well. Then again, there are no big and experienced names in the squad. The only well-known player is Filipe “pancc” Martins. His controversial fame has to do with a scandal that resulted in him getting benched. Moreover, even in the RMR tournament, the Sharks were only able to take second place, losing to Bravos. Apparently, the Sharks are one of the main contenders for failure.
Though we’re mainly talking about new teams at PGL Major Stockholm 2021, one more fact worth mentioning is that famous tags like Renegades, GODSENT, and even NiP, regular Major attendees, have three Major newcomers each.
Now that you’ve reached the end of this article let’s head to CS.MONEY Major Hub, turn on the stream, and watch some top-shelf CS:GO! Stay with CS.MONEY and follow Major’s newcomers and veterans at the biggest event of the year together with us!
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