To say that 2020 has been an eventful year for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive is an understatement. From coaching bug controversies to the seven-man roster, fans have seen everything that never happened before in the CSGO landscape, including strictly online events due to the Global health crisis.
Also Read | CSGO COACHING BUG EXPLAINED
Blast Premier Fall Series is going to mark the comeback of LAN events, adding a final twist to 2020. As if the return of LAN solely was not exciting enough, BLAST will bring North-American teams to Europe for the first time since IEM Katowice that took place in March before COVID-19 took the world by storm.
Here are all the reasons why BLAST will put a heroic end to a rather bleak 2020 in terms of esports stability.
Furia and Evil Geniuses to Europe
Furia and Evil Geniuses will be filling in two slots left vacant by Team Liquid and 100 Thieves. The two North American teams withdrew from the tournament a few weeks before the event was set to kick off.
Also Read | 100 THIEVES LEAVES CSGO
Furia rose to fame during the online era of CSGO and currently sits at number 3 of the HLTV world ranking, making them one of the top teams of North America. A showdown between Astralis and Furia is something that fans may want to watch out for as both the teams are in Group 3, alongside G2 and MIBR.
Group 3 of Blast Premier Fall Series:
- Astralis
- Furia
- G2
- MIBR
The return of clutch minister
Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander expressed his wish to compete against Furia but said that he is scared of playing against arT. However, it was back when the Danish powerhouse lacked their clutch meister. Blast Premier will also mark Andreas “Xyp9x” Højsleth’s comeback into the CSGO landscape after the rifler took a medical leave in May, restoring Astralis’ prowess.
Roster switches in CoL and G2
100 Thieves’ exit from CSGO left five stalwart players in the market as free agents. Complexity was quick to pick Justin “jks” Savage, who was one of the highest-rated players in 100 Thieves. The young gun will be competing alongside Benjamin “blameF” Bremer and the squad for the first time in Blast Premier Fall Series.
Fans might see another roster re-arrangement in G2, with Nikola “NiKo” Kovač as their entry-fragger. Niko’s addition to G2 hasn’t been confirmed yet; sources tell that the deal has almost completed. This will be the first time that NiKo will get a chance to play under an accomplished IGL like Nemanja “nexa” Isaković in a long time.
MIBR’s overhauled roster
MIBR has recently been going through a rough patch. The Brazilian organization lost three of its core players, leaving the team with two players and no coach. With the addition of Raphael “cogu” Camargo as their manager and coach, the team has bounced back with a complete roster consisting of players on loan from Sharks Esports and Detona Gaming. With CSGO maestros like Fallen, Fer, and TACO out of their roster, MIBR seems vulnerable in front of top-tier teams like G2, Furia, and Astralis.
The tournament will kick off on October 26, with top-notch teams competing for a prize of $150,000.
