NXT defeated 28AvgAge in convincing fashion at Red Bull’s Gaming Sphere in London, to win the UKIC Season 6 Division 1 title. The victory is the tenth consecutive domestic final won by various iterations of the NXT/Verdant/Alaska/PERPLEXITY core, which has not lost a UK event since UKIC Season 2 in June of 2024.
Their UK CS crown never truly seemed in doubt as they stole away 28AvgAge’s map-pick of Inferno in a 13-5 steamroll. The second map of Ancient proved to be much closer, requiring overtime, but as NXT converted the map 16-12, they recemented themselves at the top of the UK scene.
Despite their imperious hold on UK CS, NXT have struggled to find an organisation to back since Verdant’s withdrawal from Counter-Strike. For now, the roster is playing under the banner of NXT on a short-term deal, which will see them represent the European brand for UKIC and EPIC.LAN 45.
28AvgAge were a surprise inclusion in the Grand Final, after defeating a stacked BOXED team in the quarter-finals that included Owen ‘smooya’ Butterfield, Paris Major quarter-finalist Thomas ‘Thomas’ Utting, and UK CS veterans Marco ‘MMS’ Salomone and James ‘bevve’ Slinn. They went on to defeat group runner-ups Glitchtech in the semis to reach the core’s second consecutive UKIC Division 1 final.
The roster, whose name is a self-deprecating jibe at their advanced years, was bolstered by the unexpected return of Harry ‘Nukeddog’ Jenkins to the top of UK competition – a player who excelled in CS:GO, who showed he still has a competitive edge, but that was not enough to dethrone NXT.
UKIC: Players take to social media to complain about PCs
UKIC Season 6’s Grand Final was the first held at London’s Red Bull Gaming Sphere, and it seems that in typical fashion, change did not come without its technical issues. Previously held at Endpoint’s Bootcamp facility, as well as Birmingham’s LogiPlay event in The Eastside Rooms, UKIC’s finals have benefited from strong hardware.
By contrast, multiple 28AvgAge players took to X to point out the relatively low performance of the PCs provided for the Grand Final in the Red Bull Sphere, with IGL Conor ‘Finui’ Finucane and AWPer Joe ‘dexie’ Demmon questioning the quality of the computers.
UKIC restructuring explained
Following the implementation of Valve Regional Standings (VRS), tournaments which confer Valve Ranking points have had to adhere to Valve’s Tournament Regulations. As UKIC existed in a traditional league format, it was not considered an open system by Valve’s regulations.
Therefore, UKIC Season 6 has seen an interruption from its traditional promotion/relegation format in Season 6, meaning no teams from Division 2 will reach Season 7 Division 1 by promotion. Instead, Season 7 will begin with open qualifiers for all Division 1 spots, allowing UKIC to be regarded as an open system and therefore a Valve-ranked event.
The changes should allow an easier path for UK teams to obtain an initial Valve ranking. As Valve uses HLTV matches for their model, teams currently require five HLTV matches in ranked events to get an initial ranking, allowing for progression and invitation to European events.
Alongside EPIC.LAN, which currently is home to four HLTV matches per event, UKIC’s playoffs should give top teams the ability to capture a ranking and progress. Whether that can lead to increased organisational interest in UK Counter-Strike remains to be seen; however, there will at least exist a potential pathway to pro again from UKIC’s league structure.
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Darragh Harbinson is an esports writer specialising in Counter-Strike. He has written for Esports News UK, Esports Insider, UKCSGO, Dexerto, and Rush B Media.
