In an exciting trilogy of cards, Natus Vincere beat FaZe, winning the title of champions of the first CS2 Major at PGL Major Copenhagen. More than 1.8 million concurrent viewers watched the episode, the third-highest total in Counter-Strike history. After NAVI won on the map chosen by FaZe, they unexpectedly lost on their choice. However, the team was able to pull together and demonstrate an outstanding performance at Inferno, where Valery "b1t" Vakhovsky and Eustace "jL" The Lekavicius combined for 43 kills to finish the map 13-3. The Lithuanian player finished the tournament with a 1.23 rating in the finals, earning his first MVP medal.
Dramatic turn and triumphant finish
The victory was a long-awaited trophy for several NAVI players, especially for Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen, who finally won the Major title after several difficult years after leaving ENCE. "It seems unreal," - Aleksib said after the match. "Nothing would have been possible without my teammates. So selfless, everyone does a great job. We've had our ups and downs over the last six months. Everyone worked like crazy. B1ad3 also deserves respect. He made me the best player and the best coach in the world.
NAVI become a legend
With this victory, NAVI become only the third organization to win more than one Major, joining fnatic and Astralis in this exclusive club. And b1t adds a second Major trophy to his resume, joining Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen, Dan "apEX" Madesclair and Emil "Magisk" Rafe as players who won Majors, speaking two different languages.
Key moments of the battle
FaZe surprised by choosing the Ancient map, which they only played twice in this Major with mixed results. Starting on the attack, FaZe grabbed an early lead, but Natus Vincere quickly took control of the game thanks to a stunning hat-trick from jL, including a solo kill. Natus Vincere demonstrated an exemplary defensive game, not allowing Finn's team to "karrigan" Andersen made significant strides in much of the first half. However, FaZe managed to find openings and finished the first half only two rounds behind. Natus Vincere extended their lead by winning the pistol round after the break and maintained that momentum by taking the score to 10-5. With weapons in hand, FaZe found their game and reduced the gap to one round. It looked like a classic FaZe comeback was in store, but Natus Vincere kept their cool. jL broke the streak with a 1v1 win, and then when FaZe were on the verge of winning the round with only one SMG, he pulled off a sensational 1v3 clutch to seal the game for his team.
Prize Rewards
For their performances, NaVi players earned 500 thousand dollars (the prize is divided among everyone). FaZe Clan received a check of $170,000, and Team Vitality and G2 Esports, who took 3rd and 4th places, – $80,000.
