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The 2020 European part of the ESL Pro League was just completed with Fnatic’s CSGO team from Sweden sweeping the competition and ending up as winners.
The competition was held online in many locations across Europe, with millions of fans watching live games online from the comfort of their homes.
The Counter Strike video game professional esport event was founded in 2015 by the Electronic Sports League (ESL). Since then, it has expanded, becoming a global phenomenon. Its prize pool is higher than $1,000,000, with 16 teams from Europe and North America competing in the finals.
This article will give you a closer look at a couple of the most prominent teams that have been leaving a significant mark in the ESL Pro League history.
European Teams
European teams have been part of the league since its conception and Europe currently has 12 qualified teams fit to compete. Unfortunately, the UK coach Jamie ‘keita’ Hall didn’t lead his team past the group stage, so Complexity Gaming had an unsatisfactory 11th season. However, let’s see which European teams consistently set the standard.
Fnatic
Fnatic’s Counter-Strike team is Swedish and consists of an all-Swedish squad of players. Fnatic is considered the best team in the world with many awards under their belt.
Most recently they have won the final game played in Europe with a 3-2 result against mousesports. That win helped them avenge their loss against the same opponent from last year’s finals.
Fnatic is the team with the most Global Offensive Majors titles — three, which helped them reach the first place on the standings board.
mousesports
The current Counter-Strike: Global Offensive mousesports team consists of five European players from the Netherlands, Estonia, Denmark, Turkey and Slovakia. The team’s currently in the third position in the 11th season.
Mouz, as they are often referred to, are based in Germany and they have been a part of the ESL Pro League since 2015. Their best result was in 2019 when they won the tournament, beating Fnatic in the finals (3-0).
Astralis
Astralis is a Danish esports organisation with an entirely Danish team focused on Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. The team previously showed amazing results, winning four Majors, including the ELEAGUE Major in 2017.
Currently, Astralis holds the number two position on this season’s standings. Unfortunately, their Pro League 2020 journey ended in the semi-finals after a defeat by mousesports (1-2).
North American Teams
Across the pond, there are North American teams that joined the ESL Pro League shortly after it was founded. There are fewer North American teams than European but they still have high overall results. Let’s see who they are.
Team Liquid
Team Liquid are an esports organisation with a base in the Netherlands but operating with a North American and Canadian team. The team had won one ESL Pro League title from 2018 when they triumphed against G2 Esports (3-1).
Team Liquid’s Counter-Strike Global Offensive team received the Intel Grand Slam prize in 2019, an achievement realised in only five tournaments. Team Liquid are currently holding the first position on the North American standing, but they still have a long way to go.
The North American part of the 2020 ESL Pro League is yet to take place.
Evil Geniuses
Evil Geniuses are an esports organisation based in Seattle, Washington, with a diverse team of American, Canadian, and Bulgarian players with a Brazilian coach. They are a relatively young team formed in September 2019.
Evil Geniuses are still adjusting as a newly formed team and their results show that. They have yet to achieve worldwide recognition – their highest placement was the 3rd and 4th place at the EPICENTER 2019 tournament in 2019.
Currently, they are holding the number two spot on the standings and are waiting for the second leg of the ESL Pro League to continue.
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