BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 Europe RMR BEurope RMR B in bullet points: Three things to know about each team
The final RMR tournament brings 16 more teams in a stacked field playing for eight BLAST.tv Paris Major spots. Here are three things about each one.
The second European RMR tournament is set to start, taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark, from April 11-14. Eight more Major spots are about to be handed to the best of what looks like a very stacked and difficult-to-predict field.
As of the latest ranking update, nine top 20 teams and two more just on the cusp of that mark will play in the second and by many viewed as the obviously more stacked European RMR. The rest comes from a combination of recent risers and a couple of surprise additions from the open qualifiers.
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G2 (Power ranking: #1)
Nikola "NiKo" Kovač
Ilya "m0NESY" Osipov
Justin "jks" Savage
Rasmus "HooXi" Nielsen
Jan "Swani" Müller (coach)
1. Though in recent times their terrifying form has dwindled, G2 are still the world's best team after winning two of the last three Big Events.
2. The same lineup struggled at the RMR last time around and missed the IEM Rio Major despite being heavy favorites to make it. Pressure will mount if they find themselves in a dangerous position again.
3. G2 have only lost to two teams this year, Cloud9 and ENCE at ESL Pro League Season 17. Both are part of this stacked RMR group.
Heroic (#2)
Richard "Xizt" Landström (coach)
1. Heroic are one of the most stable rosters in Counter-Strike. Four of their members have been together for over two years, and the core trio for over three years.
2. jabbi has gone from being the team's lowest-rated player upon joining (0.98 in the first three months) to the highest-rated player recently (1.16 in 2023).
3. Heroic are eyeing their fourth consecutive Major playoffs appearance after placing 3rd-4th at PGL Major Stockholm, 5th-8th at PGL Major Antwerp, and 2nd at IEM Rio Major.
Cloud9 (#3)
Abay "HObbit" Khassenov
1. Since losing to IHC at IEM Katowice Cloud9 have an 18-2 win-loss record in matches. In the past month alone they have racked up a 9-0 win streak on Mirage and an 8-1 record on Vertigo.
2. sh1ro and Ax1Le are the fourth and third highest-rated players on LAN in 2023 (1.24 and 1.25).
3. Cloud9 have the highest utility ADR in matches among top 30 teams in 2023 (28.9) and the second highest opening kill percentage (53.8%). All five players contribute well to the former, while the star trio of sh1ro, Ax1Le, and HObbit is responsible for the latter.
ENCE (#4)
Guy "NertZ" Iluz
Alvaro "SunPayus" Garcia
Paweł "dycha" Dycha
Pavle "Maden" Bošković
1. After losing Lotan "Spinx" Giladi to Vitality last summer, ENCE did not make it to a Big Event playoffs for half a year, but they immediately broke the streak upon the signing of NertZ at ESL Pro League Season 17 (3rd-4th).
2. Snappi commented on the importance of the new player and said that "NertZ could rival what Spinx did for us." The new addition went on to prove his worth immediately with a 1.12 rating at EPL.
3. ENCE played eight of the other 15 teams who are part of this RMR group this year, albeit in large part before NertZ joined the roster with either Valdemar "valde" Bjørn Vangså or Henri "HENU" Ylilehto:
With NertZ
1-2 vs.
2-1 vs.Vitality at EPL S17
2-0 vs.
0-2 vs.
Prior
0-2 vs.Eternal Fire at CCT Finals
0-2 vs.
2-1 vs.
0-2 vs.
2-1 vs.Monte at IEM Rio EU closed qualifier
1-2 vs.
Vitality (#5)
Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut
1. ZywOo's stats so far in 2023 are staggering: 1.39 rating (#1), 87.8 ADR (#1), 0.86 kills per round (#1), 78.3% KAST (#1), 0.16 opening kills per round (#2), 1.48 impact rating (#1)
2. dupreeh recently sat out the majority of ESL Pro League Season 17 due to parental leave.
3. Vitality have some of the most Major-decorated players and coach in their ranks: Two four-timers (dupreeh and zonic), a three-timer (Magisk), and a one-timer (apEX).
FORZE (#6)
1. After a period of struggles FORZE have recently impressed with a run to quarter-finals at ESL Pro League Season 17 and to second place at BetBoom Playlist Urbanistic. FORZE have gone from #46 in the world at the end of 2022 to #16.
2. This success came following a revamp of the lineup and the additions of Major-experienced Krad and young up-and-comer r3salt.
3. zorte has some of the best flashbang stats — fourth-most flash assists (0.10), third-most flashes thrown (1.06 per round), and fifth-highest average opponent flashed time (2.48s).
Spirit (#7)
1. Spirit seem to thrive at Majors: They placed in the top four at PGL Major Antwerp and in the top eight at IEM Rio Major, but never made it to a Big Event playoffs otherwise.
2. 2023 has not been kind to them so far — they have a 15-22 map record and 6-10 match record from IEM Katowice, CCT Central Europe Finals, ESL Pro League Season 17, and IEM Dallas Europe closed qualifier.
3. Patsi is one of the most aggressive players in the world. He is involved in opening duels in 30.9% of rounds, which is second only to Andrei "arT" Piovezan in matches among top 30 teams in 2023.
Astralis (#8)
1. Astralis' rely heavily on device and blameF, but fortunately for them the duo has been very reliable: The AWPer is rated 1.24 and the rifler 1.23 in 2023.
2. Boasting the 11th seed and a first match against Vitality, Astralis might have a harder run than most at the RMR.
3. Astralis are looking to get back on the Major stage after missing the IEM Rio Major amidst the previous lineup's struggles. Despite being the most successful organization at Majors, they are also looking to return to playoffs for the first time since they won their fourth title in Berlin.
BIG (#9)
1. BIG added hyped from the academy team in February to replace Florian "syrsoN" Rische. Albeit inconsistent, the new AWPer has shown flashes of brilliance with his rather aggressive approach to the sniper rifle.
2. Krimbo has quickly grown into the team's star. His ESL Pro League Season 17 performance turned heads, as he averaged a 1.19 rating over 17 maps in Malta despite the team's group stage exit.
3. BIG are utility gods and tabseN is chief among them. They have the fifth-most utility ADR (27.5) and third-most flash assists (0.29) with the in-game leader dealing over a third of the damage (9.6) and getting nearly a fourth of the flash assists (0.07).
Ninjas in Pyjamas (#10)
Aleksi "Aleksib" Virolainen
1. Ninjas in Pyjamas head into the RMR with their lowest-ever ranking, currently sitting in 22nd place after a tough year 2023 so far.
2. Hampus "hampus" Poser was placed on medical leave in late January and the team brought in k0nfig as his permanent replacement.
3. Currently at six in a row, Ninjas in Pyjamas are looking to extend their streak of attending Majors dating back to FACEIT Major London in 2018. The organization also attended the first nine.
9INE (#11)
1. 9INE have been among the most improved teams on the tier-two scene and currently hold an 80-36 map record (69% win rate) in 2023.
2. This success came after hades joined the lineup at the beginning of the year. The former ENCE AWPer is their highest-rated player (1.17).
3. 9INE look to put Poland back on the Major map. The last time there was a Polish-majority roster in attendance was at the FACEIT Major in 2018.
Eternal Fire (#12)
1. Eternal Fire recently won the CCT Malta Finals and put up a solid showing at ESL Pro League Season 17, where they beat Evil Geniuses and MIBR and brought fnatic to their limit in two series.
2. XANTARES is the highest-rated player aged above 27 with a 1.19 rating in matches among top 30 teams in 2023.
3. The same core of players — MAJ3R, XANTARES, and Calyx — played together under the Space Soldiers tag for nearly two years from 2017-2018 and played in the ELEAGUE Major 2018 Legends Stage and FACEIT Major 2018 Challengers Stage.
Monte (#13)
Mohammad "BOROS" Malhas
1. Monte have terrorized tier two in 2023, winning four online tournaments this year: ESL Challenger League, European Pro League, CCT West Europe Series 2 and CCT Central Europe Series 5.
2. They have played 139 maps recorded on HLTV this year, the second most of any team behind Nexus (145).
3. Monte have a winning record on all six maps they play, but they are true Anubis specialists with a 22-4 record on the map in 2023.
Aurora (#14)
1. Aurora began the year with a 13-match win streak and then went on an eight-match win streak in February to March on the tier-two scene.
2. Teams are certain to be wary of their Nuke: Aurora have a 17-2 record on it this year, and one of the losses was a tight 15-19 loss to Astralis.
3. Some fun facts about the players: Lack1 averages the most opening attempts on the T side out of anyone (35.5%, top 30 in 2023). 17-year-old lattykk is the youngest player at the RMR.
500 (#15)
Aleks "Rainwaker" Petrov
1. 500 come into the qualifier in poor form when it comes to playing teams ranked around them, boasting only a 35% win rate against top 50 teams in 2023.
2. The Bulgarians hope to put their country on the Major stage. Only one of their countrymen has ever attended Majors — Tsvetelin "CeRq" Dimitrov.
3. At 32 years old, niki1 has been around the block. Along with SHiPZ he is the most experienced player on the team — the duo have played together on and off since 2016 under seven different names.
iNation (#16)
Vladan "VLDN" Radevic
Filip "DEPRESHN" Jarkić
1. iNation is the lowest-ranked team in attendance at the European RMR at #56 and comes as a surprise addition from the open qualifiers.
2. DEPRESHN is the first Croatian player to play at a Regional Major Ranking tournament or the like.
3. The iNation tag has been represented in the past by the likes of Aleksandar "kassad" Trifunović, Janko "YNk" Paunović, NiKo, huNter-, Nemanja "nexa" Isaković, Nemanja "k1Ng0r" Bošković, Luka "emi" Vuković, and Nestor "LETN1" Tanić.
Ismailcan 'XANTARES' Dörtkardeş
Valdemar 'valde' Bjørn Vangså
Dion 'FASHR' Derksen
William 'mezii' Merriman
Tsvetelin 'CeRq' Dimitrov
Aleksandar 'kassad' Trifunović
Jadan 'HexT' Postma
Nemanja 'k1Ng0r' Bošković
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