As the ESL One Cologne 2020 Online kicks off we take a closer look at the teams competing in the highly contested EU region.
16 teams are fighting for a prize pool of $325,000. Who will take the championship in the (online) Cathedral of Counter-Strike?
16: Team Heretics - The French squad with kioShiMa is still relatively new and needs more time to gel. While Heretics does have potential in the future, their group consisting of Vitality, FaZe, Fnatic and Heroic is just too strong to overcome. ▲
15: MIBR – Cologne has historically been a great place for the Brazilians but the glory days of 2016 or 2017 are long gone for mibr. 2020 has not been a kind year to FalleN & Co. and a groupstage exit is to be expected ▲
14: Sprout – With BIG garnering all the attention of the german scene Sprout has managed to qualify for ESL One Cologne. But international success should be too far out of reach for them. ▲
13: MAD Lions – MAD Lions are currently among the contenders for the best Danish team. While Bubzkji's departure weakened the Lions, their addition of innocent has proven to be a good fit. But to make it to the playoffs would be taking it a bit too far. ▲
12: OG – OG has not been part of the CS:GO scene for long. But the squad has already upset other teams in the past and constantly bounces between tier 1 and 2. Playoffs are unlikely but not impossible. ▲
11: Heroic – Cologne offers the tantalizing opportunity for Heroic to cement themselves as best Danish team. To do so they would have to make at least the top 8 in Cologne. While they lost the DreamHack Open Sumemr to BIG, they might come back stronger. ▲
10: mousesports – karrigan's squad has shown that they can easily make it all the way to the top in 2019. Since then mousesports has unfortunately struggled quite a bit. If they want to reestablish themselves among the best a good run at Cologne is necessary. ▲
9: Astralis – Ranked just outside the top 8 is Astralis. Once the terror at every tournament they attend, the Danes have had very little success since restructuring their roster to battle burnout. es3tag and Bubzkji have lots to prove to the team and the world to show that they are worthy of the Astralis name. ▲
8: Ninjas in Pyjamas – Back in 2014 the Ninjas won the very first ESL One Cologne. But not a single player remains from the roster back then. The new lineup has plenty of young talents, but so far they have not been able to reach the very top. ▲
7: Complexity Gaming – Many fans were belittling Complexity when they started out, but ever since their surprise victory at BLAST Premier Spring they have proven to be true contenders. If they can keep up their current form another deep run is quite likely. ▲
6: Fnatic – Sweden's finest has been a bit inconsistent this year. While they won ESL Pro League Season 11 in April, their form fluctuates quite a bit. If they want to breach the top 4 everyone has to be on point. ▲
5: FaZe Clan – FaZe Clan's international starteam has often struggled to make it to the very top. In the end semifinal appearances are not enough for a team of their calibre. Will they finally make it in Cologne? Unlikely considering the teams above them in the ranking. ▲
4: G2 Esports – 2020 has been a year of close calls for G2 as they collected 3 silver medals so far. To finally take home a trophy players like JaCkz and AmaNEk need to perform better and more consistent. ▲
3: Natus Vincere – Na`Vi opened up the year with a spectacular championship at IEM Katowice. The transition to online play has hurt their performances as Na`Vi has been weaker than expected in those. Regardless of their current form the CIS squad can still hang with the best and if they reclaim their form from Katowice, they can easily win it all. ▲
2: Vitality – In a similar vein to the other French team G2, Vitality also took home two silver medals in 2020. Can ZywOo, shox & co. go further and claim a title? Certainly, but every member on the team has to be on top of their game to make it across the finish line. ▲
1: BIG – Current world rank #1 BIG has shown no sign of letting up after the player break. Although the first couple of matches during DreamHack Open Summer were a bit shaky, the Germans won the title and have gathered more than enough momentum to fend off the challengers during Cologne. ▲
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Image Credit: ESL
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