30.10.2022

GamerLegion at Rio: First time CS:GO Major

Finally the time had come: GL went Major. Arrived as one of the more surprising teams, we demonstrated right away in the first matchup against 9z, that we didn’t come to take a back seat!

Starting fast and furious with a 1v2 pistol round clutch-back from Isak, followed by a demolishing 8:0 run and 12:1 first half. iM then fittingly closed it out at a 16:6 score line. What a performance from this young roster to step into their first real Major! Especially in this new environment, against the crowd, they really made it look easy.

The second game held a real heavyweight in store. Team Vitality. World’s Number One Team. But as Siuhy stated: We love playing as underdogs! Although with Vertigo, the map pick was kind of what the team expected, the start was a bit bumpy. But after a rather unfortunate 0:6 run, they cranked it up. On the brink of death, Keoz set the final point of the first half with a gorgeous nade to make it 9:6 for GL. From that point on we continued on gaining momentum. At 10:14  iM won the 1vs3 pre-plant and set GL with the help of the round timer in the final duel on match point. The last round was then closed by Isak lining up perfectly, striking down two and forcing Vitality to claw back a 2v4. Of course, nothing came of that. GL defeated Vitality! What a game!

We knew it would be hard in the Elimination Round, so we  tried to carry the high spirits from the win against Vitality with us. Unfortunately, known for their aggressive and unconventional playstyle, BNE really caught us on the wrong foot. Being one map down after losing the first match on Ancient 9:16 meant extra pressure for the second one. Alas, we faced defeat here as well and were beaten 0:2 by BNE. 

The next chance for entering the Legends Stage then came with FURIA, the local heroes. 5 GL warriors against 5.000 roaring Brazilian fans, meant just war. From the beginning we tried to suck up the energy on the stage, to show no fear and to be a group more than ever! But Furia had other plans. We had to face a rough first half on Vertigo (4:11) and couldn’t turn the tides in the second one (9:16). In the second match (Inferno), things didn’t go any better. Despite starting a comeback in the second half, the boys unfortunately couldn’t win the match (11:16). Nothing to be sad about, FURIA just played really well. 

Now with our backs against the wall, Cloud9 was waiting for us in the crucial last elimination game, which turned out to be a tough fight! We once again threw in everything we had left in the tank, with ‘Keoz’ delivering one of the most impressive aces of the Major so far on Overpass, shattering Cloud with just one single magazine (6:2). Unfortunately, they had the right answers up their sleeves, so we had to accept defeat in both games with fairly close scores (13:16; 13:16). 

Although our Brazilian journey ended here, one may definitely say: “that Major run in the Challengers Stage was an awesome one!”. Characterized by a high competitive spirit and the blazing passion to win and succeed, this major will certainly not have been the last one for GL.