After a short hiatus caused by a Major, the Counter-Strike 2 competitive circuit will resume for the second half of the year 2025. All thirteen major events, operated by various tournament organisers from around the world, will make their return and showcase the best active talent in the scene. The strongest esports organisations in the world will do battle for big tournament prize pools and Valve Regional Standings points.
Throughout the year, the Tier 1 tournaments have filled the arenas across the world. With every tournament, the spotlight is often on the same big names but also up-and-coming players as well.
Team Spirit Sets the Early Pace at BLAST Bounty Season 1
After winning the Perfect World Shanghai Major, Team Spirit entered 2025 with momentum. After eliminating Fnatic and FlyQuest in qualifiers, the team moved through the LAN Stage convincingly, beating HEROIC and NAVI. In the Grand Final, when Eternal Fire won the first map, Team Spirit took the next three and claimed the title with significant cash prize. Danil ‘Donk’ Kryshkovets played a major role in this campaign, pushing Spirit to the front of CS2 wheel.
Vitality’s Dominance Begins at IEM Katowice
Team Vitality are the champions of the 2023 Major, and they have opened 2025 with a bang. Vitality sailed through the semi-final against The MongolZ after defeating both FaZe Clan and Virtus.pro in the group stage, setting up a Grand Final against Team Spirit. The French side won the series 3-0 and not only picked up their first piece of silverware for the year, but also an important step toward the ESL Grand Slam Season 5 moolah.
MOUZ Rises to the Challenge at PGL Cluj-Napoca
MOUZ was ranked six at the start of the year and entered this event as underdogs. The German side won against PaiN Gaming and Astralis to set up a Grand Final against Team Falcons. The Falcons were preparing for the upcoming roster changes, but that didn’t stop MOUZ from winning their first major LAN title of the season with a 3-1 victory.
Vitality Has a Busy Schedule
Vitality’s momentum only built from their Katowice triumph. During the ESL Pro League Season 21, the French team did not lose a single map until the semi-finals, after which they beat MOUZ in the Grand Final. A few days laters they went back to the BLAST Open Lisbon and after a close one against MOUZ, they were victorious again, this time in a five map banger, winning more trophies and some Frequent Flyer Points on BLAST’s revenue-sharing system.
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Team Falcons Takes Charge at PGL Bucharest
Team Falcons had a strong showing in Bucharest after struggling with heavy defeats before the playoff stages. After beating GamerLegion and FaZe Clan, Falcons took on G2 Esports in the Final. Falcons stamped their authority with a comfortable 3-0 victory as they celebrated winning the title with Emil ‘Magisk’ Reif’s final match in the starting line-up.
Vitality Wins IEM Melbourne Down Under!
Team Vitality was again in the form when IEM Melbourne brought Counter-Strike to Australia. In the Grand Final, the squad faced off against Team Falcons. The squad withstood a five-map challenge to complete their ESL Grand Slam Season 5 run and add an extra million dollars to their prize money.
Spring-time Triumphs
Vitality continued to shine by finishing atop their group at BLAST Rivals Spring after defeating Wildcard and MOUZ. After defeating Team Spirit in the semi-finals, Vitality went head-to-head against Team Falcons in another Grand Final. Taking the series after five maps, Vitality lifted the trophy. Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut received his fifth MVP of the season for the outstanding performance.
Team Spirit Returns to Form at PGL Astana
Team Spirit achieves title success at PGL Astana, breezes through agents after defeating NiP & FURIA over the course of their Clash. In the Grand Final, the tournament winners defeated Astralis 3-1, with Donk’s astounding rifling leading him to his second MVP.
Vitality’s Unstoppable Growth
IEM Dallas saw Team Vitality seize the opportunity after Team Spirit withdrew. Hence, they would go on to achieve a perfect group stage and a 3-0 victory against MOUZ to win the event. The BLAST.tv Austin Major followed, where Vitality shrugged off a shock defeat to Legacy and powered through to the final. There they beat The MongolZ to earn their seventh tournament win of 2025. ZywOo also took home another Major MVP.
New challengers as Team Spirit showed off at IEM Cologne
Post-Major roster changes set the stage for IEM Cologne. Vitality were dominant in the group stages but halted by MOUZ in the semi-finals. MOUZ and Team Spirit played in the Grand Final. Spirit made a clean sweep. Ivan ‘zweih’ Gogin got his first Tier 1 title after joining.
BLAST Bounty Season 2: Team Spirit Stay in Form
Team Spirit took their winning streak to BLAST Bounty Season 2. Although roster change talks were on the cards, the team saw off Virtus.pro and MOUZ en route to the Grand Final. After defeating The MongolZ, Team Spirit claimed another trophy, raising questions whether Vitality’s era would come to an end.
A Year of High Stakes and Rising Legends
In 2025, there will be several tournaments across the world to test the mettle of all the teams. However, the reliable performance of Team Vitality and the resurgence of Team Spirit have shaped the overall landscape of CS: GO. Additionally, MOUZ and Team Falcons have left their mark as well in 2025. At every competition, these squads have brought home silverware and reshaped the top tier of CS2 competition.