In Counter-Strike, few achievements carry the identical weight as successful a Main Championship. These Valve-sponsored tournaments symbolize absolutely the peak of play, able to defining a participant’s profession and cementing a company’s place within the esports historical past books.
For the reason that inaugural CS:GO Main at DreamHack Winter 2013, the sequence has produced dominant dynasties, unbelievable underdog runs, and mind-blowing grand finals. Legendary groups like Fnatic and Astralis have lifted a number of trophies, whereas surprising champions have confirmed that reputations depend for little as soon as the motion begins.
With the aggressive scene transitioning to Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) in 2023, a brand new technology of gamers and groups has began constructing its personal legacy. Let’s have a good time 1000’s of heads getting clicked within the title of glory and esports immortality by revisiting all of the CS2 and CS:GO Main winners.
All CS2 Main Championship winners
On Sept. 27, 2023, Valve launched CS2, and the esports scene formally transitioned to the brand new title. Roughly half a 12 months later, followers had been handled to the primary CS2 Main Championship, the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024.
Over time, the Main format has modified considerably. The sphere expanded from 24 to 32 groups for the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, with three Swiss phases adopted by an eight-team playoff bracket. Starting with the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, the grand remaining additionally modified from a best-of-three to a best-of-five.
Importantly, not everybody makes the minimize, as groups are sometimes invited primarily based on their positions within the Valve Regional Standings (VRS), guaranteeing that solely the very best of the very best have a shot at glory.
You’ll discover all of the CS2 Main winners, runners-up, grand remaining scores, and extra outlined within the informative desk under.
| Match | Winner | Runner-up | Rating | Prize Pool | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGL Main Copenhagen 2024 | NAVI | FaZe Clan | 2–1 | $1,250,000 | Mar. 17 – 31, 2024 |
| Excellent World Shanghai Main 2024 | Group Spirit | FaZe Clan | 2–1 | $1,250,000 | Nov. 30 – Dec. 15, 2024 |
| BLAST.television Austin Main 2025 | Group Vitality | The MongolZ | 2–1 | $1,250,000 | Jun. 3 – 22, 2025 |
| StarLadder Budapest Main 2025 | Group Vitality | FaZe Clan | 3–1 | $1,250,000 | Nov. 24 – Dec. 14, 2025 |
| IEM Cologne Main 2026 | Group Falcons | FURIA | 3–0 | $1,250,000 | Jun. 2 – 21, 2026 |
| PGL Main Singapore 2026 | TBD | TBD | TBD | $1,250,000 | Nov. 25 – Dec. 13, 2026 |
| FiRe Main Buenos Aires 2027 | TBD | TBD | TBD | $1,250,000 | Could 31 – Jun. 20, 2027 |
Be aware: We’ll replace this checklist after each CS2 Main Championship.
NAVI wins PGL Copenhagen Main 2024
Natus Vincere (NAVI) claimed the first-ever CS2 Main Championship trophy on Mar. 31, 2024. Powered by the sport sense of IGL Aleksi ‘Aleksib‘ Virolainen and the firepower of Lithuanian rifler Justinas ‘jL‘ Lekavicius, they rose above the noise to silence any doubters.
Within the quarterfinals of the playoffs, NAVI defeated Everlasting Fireplace 2–0 and despatched G2 Esports packing with a 2–1 win within the semifinals. After that, a 2–1 win over FaZe Clan within the grand remaining resulted in NAVI lifting the PGL Copenhagen Main 2024 trophy.
- Justinas ‘jL’ Lekavičius (MVP)
- Ihor ‘w0nderful’ Zhdanov
- Valerii ‘b1t’ Vakhovskyi
- Mihai ‘iM’ Ivan
- Aleksi ‘Aleksib’ Virolainen (IGL)
- Andrii ‘B1ad3’ Horodenskyi (Coach)
Group Spirit wins Excellent World Shanghai Main 2024
On the Shanghai Oriental Sports activities Middle, Group Spirit beat Group Liquid with a 2–0 rating within the quarterfinals, and reverse-swept MOUZ in a dramatic 2–1 semifinal conflict.
The unstoppable entry fragger, Danil ‘donk‘ Kryshkovets, was Group Spirit’s spearhead of assault. He was later named HLTV’s 2024 Player of the Year and set a Main efficiency file with a 1.45 HLTV score.
- Danil ‘donk’ Kryshkovets (MVP)
- Dmitriy ‘sh1ro’ Sokolov
- Boris ‘magixx’ Vorobiev
- Myroslav ‘zont1x’ Plakhotia
- Leonid ‘chopper’ Vishnyakov (IGL)
- Sergey ‘hally’ Shavayev (Coach)
Group Vitality wins BLAST.television Austin Main 2025
Following the addition of Estonian rifler Robin ‘ropz‘ Kool, the Group Vitality period was nicely and really underway, with Dan ‘apEX’ Madesclaire’s males lifting the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 trophy.
In entrance of a passionate crowd on the Moody Middle in Austin, Texas, Group Vitality showcased resilience below strain and unbelievable teamwork. They first despatched NAVI packing with a comparatively clear 2–0 quarterfinal win, and eradicated MOUZ after a 2–1 slugfest within the semifinals.
Within the grand remaining, The MongolZ drew first blood—however Group Vitality bounced again with vigor within the subsequent two maps, securing a 2–1 victory.
- Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut (MVP)
- Robin ‘ropz’ Kool
- Shahar ‘flameZ’ Shushan
- William ‘mezii’ Merriman
- Dan ‘apEX’ Madesclaire (IGL)
- Rémy ‘XTQZZZ’ Quoniam (Coach)
Group Vitality wins StarLadder Budapest Main 2025
When the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 kicked off, Group Vitality had been the clear favorites. On the tip of their mighty spear was, as soon as once more, the legendary French AWPer, Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut.
In entrance of an enormous crowd on the packed MVM Dome in Budapest, apEX’s males decimated The MongolZ within the quarterfinals with a really clear 2–0 rating. They went on to defeat Group Spirit 2–0 within the semifinals.
With the win, Group Vitality grew to become certainly one of solely three organizations in historical past to win back-to-back Majors.
- Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut (MVP)
- Robin ‘ropz’ Kool
- Shahar ‘flameZ’ Shushan
- William ‘mezii’ Merriman
- Dan ‘apEX’ Madesclaire (IGL)
- Rémy ‘XTQZZZ’ Quoniam (Coach)
Group Falcons wins IEM Cologne Main 2026
On the Cathedral of Counter-Strike, Group Falcons soared above the remaining, eliminating defending Main champions Group Vitality 2–1 within the quarterfinals.
Within the semifinals, Group Falcons secured a hard-earned 2–1 win over Group Spirit. Dealing with FURIA within the grand remaining, karrigan’s males proved unstoppable, successful 3–0 with all three maps ending in 13–8 scorelines.
Whereas Ilya ‘m0NESY‘ Osipov was named the MVP, consideration additionally fell on Nikola ‘NiKo‘ Kovač, who had lengthy been thought-about the very best rifler by no means to have gained a Main.
- Ilya ‘m0NESY’ Osipov (MVP)
- Nikola ‘NiKo’ Kovač
- René ‘TeSeS’ Madsen
- Maksim ‘kyousuke’ Lukin
- Finn ‘karrigan’ Andersen (IGL)
- Danny ‘zonic’ Sørensen (Coach)
All CS:GO Main Championship winners
Valve first launched the CS:GO Main Championship tournaments at DreamHack Winter 2013, held Nov. 28–30, 2013, in Jönköping, Sweden. These Valve-sponsored occasions, in collaboration with prime match organizers, began with $250,000 prize swimming pools, later growing to $1 million, peaking at $2 million, and ultimately deciding on $1.25 million.
To totally perceive the scope of CS:GO Majors, let’s take a fast historical past lesson by studying in regards to the winners, runners-up, grand remaining scores, and prize swimming pools of every occasion.
| Match | Winner | Runner-up | Rating | Prize Pool |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DreamHack Winter 2013 | Fnatic | NIP | 2–1 | $250,000 |
| ESL Main Sequence One Katowice 2014 | Virtus.professional | NIP | 2–0 | $250,000 |
| ESL One: Cologne 2014 | NIP | Fnatic | 2–1 | $250,000 |
| DreamHack Winter 2014 | LDLC | NIP | 2–1 | $250,000 |
| ESL One: Katowice 2015 | Fnatic | NIP | 2–1 | $250,000 |
| ESL One: Cologne 2015 | Fnatic | Group EnVyUs | 2–0 | $250,000 |
| DreamHack Cluj-Napoca 2015 | Group EnVyUs | NAVI | 2–0 | $250,000 |
| MLG Main Championship: Columbus 2016 | Luminosity Gaming | NAVI | 2–0 | $1,000,000 |
| ESL One: Cologne 2016 | SK Gaming | Group Liquid | 2–0 | $1,000,000 |
| ELEAGUE Main Atlanta 2017 | Astralis | Virtus.professional | 2–1 | $1,000,000 |
| PGL Main Kraków 2017 | Gambit Esports | Immortals | 2–1 | $1,000,000 |
| ELEAGUE Main Boston 2018 | Cloud9 | FaZe Clan | 2–1 | $1,000,000 |
| FACEIT Main: London 2018 | Astralis | NAVI | 2–0 | $1,000,000 |
| IEM XIII Katowice Main 2019 | Astralis | ENCE | 2–0 | $1,000,000 |
| StarLadder Berlin Main 2019 | Astralis | AVANGAR | 2–0 | $1,000,000 |
| PGL Main Stockholm 2021 | NAVI | G2 Esports | 2–0 | $2,000,000 |
| PGL Main Antwerp 2022 | FaZe Clan | NAVI | 2–0 | $1,000,000 |
| IEM Rio Main 2022 | Outsiders | HEROIC | 2–0 | $1,250,000 |
| BLAST.television Paris Main 2023 | Group Vitality | GamerLegion | 2–0 | $1,250,000 |
Counter-Strike Main Championship factoids
Need to present your pal you’ve acquired your finger on the heart beat of Counter-Strike esports? We’ve acquired some quickfire info to share that may make anybody sound like an knowledgeable!
- PGL Main Stockholm 2021 had the largest prize pool at $2 million.
- The coach with probably the most Main victories (6) is Danny ‘zonic’ Sørensen.
- Danny ‘zonic’ Sørensen holds the file for probably the most Majors appearances as a coach (16).
- Danil ‘donk’ Kryshkovets set the file for probably the most aces (4) at Excellent World Shanghai Main 2024.
- Danil ‘donk’ Kryshkovets holds the file for the best HLTV score (1.45) in a Main, set on the Excellent World Shanghai Main 2024.
- Just one participant has gained 5 (5) Majors: Danish legend Peter ‘dupreeh’ Rasmussen, who earned 4 with Astralis and one with Group Vitality.
- Astralis is the one group in historical past to have gained 4 (4) Majors.
- French famous person AWPer Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut holds the file for probably the most Main MVP awards (3).
Conclusion
From Fnatic successful the inaugural CS:GO Main to Group Falcons lifting the trophy in Cologne, Main Championships have produced among the most memorable moments in Counter-Strike historical past.
CS2 has already begun creating new champions, data, and rivalries of its personal. Because the aggressive scene continues to evolve, each upcoming Main will present one other alternative for gamers and organizations to attain esports immortality.
