First CS2 Major: PGL Copenhagen Major Opening Stage recap
We've been waiting months and months for the first Major of CS2 and it's now underway at the PGL Copenhagen Major.
Denmark's first Valve Major, the Opening Stage was full of twists and turns, disappointing starts, and determined comebacks that saw teams dig deep in order to book their place in the Elimination Stage.
It also featured ECSTATIC, the only Danish team in the competition, advancing to the second stage with a 3-1 record.
Advancing teams
Here is a full list of the teams who will be advancing to the Elimination Stage of the first CS2 Major as well as their record in the Opening Stage.
All these teams will now have to dig even deeper in order to overcome some of the world's best teams in the Elimination Stage of the PGL Copenhagen Major.
| HEROIC | 3-0 |
|---|---|
| Cloud9 | 3-0 |
| ECSTATIC | 3-1 |
| Eternal Fire | 3-1 |
| paiN Gaming | 3-1 |
| TheMongolz | 3-2 |
| Imperial | 3-2 |
| FURIA | 3-2 |
Eliminated teams
Here is a full list of the teams who will be heading home disappointed after suffering elimination from the Opening Stage of the first CS2 Major.
| Legacy | 2-3 |
|---|---|
| GamerLegion | 2-3 |
| SAW | 2-3 |
| ENCE | 1-3 |
| Apeks | 1-3 |
| Lynn Vision | 1-3 |
| AMKAL | 0-3 |
| KOI | 0-3 |
Disappointment for ENCE and Apeks
Apeks thrilled the Counter-Strike world at the final CS:GO Major, the BLAST.tv Paris Major, as they went on a heroic run all the way to the semi-finals where they fell to Vitality.
Their run featured incredible victories over NIP and Liquid, but they couldn't recreate such fine form at the PGL Major Copenhagen.
After their elimination, Norwegian veteran jkaem told HLTV "maybe we were too satisfied with just taking part."
As for ENCE, the Polish squadron ignited great hope for their team at IEM Katowice 2024 with a run to the playoffs, but they struggled in the Opening Stage of the first CS2 Major.
Chief of all their struggles was dycha. He starred for the old ENCE lineup that booked a place at BLAST Premier World Final 2023 after an impressive year but has so far suffered a huge drop in form in 2024. In fact, his drop-off is so severe that he finished the Opening Stage as the lowest-rated player at 0.72.
Brazil dig deep for the Americas
One of the biggest shocks of day one of the PGL Major Copenhagen was seeing FURIA fall to a 0-2 start. They endured disappointing losses against Legacy and Lynn Vision, but came back to enjoy advancement with a 3-2 record thanks to successive 2-0 wins against KOI, ENCE, and SAW.
Imperial have also impressed massively in the Major circle so far. A somewhat unknown prospect due to the signings of noway and decenty, Imperial dominated the Americas RMR and will now feature in the Elimination Stage thanks to their 3-2 record.
The biggest thing about the advancement of these two teams is what it means for their region as a whole. The Americas region previously only had five Major spots, but that will now increase thanks to the success of these two teams.
A bump in the road for SAW
SAW recently qualified for BLAST Premier Spring Final 2024 thanks to a solid run that saw them overcome both Cloud9 and Liquid at BLAST Premier Spring Showdown 2024, but they couldn't extend their form the the Opening Stage of the first CS2 Major.
Despite some strong performances, SAW fell all the way from a 2-0 start to elimination at the hands of FURIA in a 2-2 game.
It's a disappointing result for SAW, but we're sure that they will bounce back in time to be a real threat by the time BLAST swings around to London.
