ESL One Katowice 2015, also known as Katowice 2015, was the fifth Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major Championship, held from March 12 to March 15, 2015, at the Spodek Arena in Katowice, Poland. It was the first CS:GO Major of 2015. It was organized by Electronic Sports League with sponsorship from Valve. The tournament had a total prize pool of US$250,000. The defending champion was Team EnVyUs, whose roster had won the previous Major as Team LDLC.com.

ESL One Katowice 2015
2015
The ESL One Katowice 2015 logo
Tournament information
SportCounter-Strike: Global Offensive
LocationKatowice, Silesian Voivodeship, Poland
DatesMarch 12, 2015–March 15, 2015
AdministratorValve
ESL
Tournament
format(s)
16 team GSL group stage
Eight team single-elimination playoff
VenueSpodek Arena
Teams16 teams
Purse$250,000 USD
Final positions
ChampionsFnatic (2nd title)
1st runners-upNinjas in Pyjamas
2nd runners-upTeam EnVyUs
Virtus.pro
MVPOlof "olofmeister" Kajbjer

Eight teams advanced from the group stage to a playoff bracket, earning "Legends" status and automatic qualification to the following Major. Fnatic, Team EnVyUs, Ninjas in Pyjamas, Virtus.pro, Natus Vincere, PENTA Sports, and Team SoloMid were returning Legends from the previous Major. Keyd Stars was the only new Legends and became the first South American team to play in a Major and qualify to the playoff bracket. HellRaisers lost its Legends status after losing to Counter Logic Gaming and Keyd Stars in the group stage. The grand finals featured two Swedish teams. Fnatic defeated PENTA Sports and Virtus.pro in the bracket while Ninjas in Pyjamas defeated Team SoloMid and Team EnVyUs on their way to the grand finals. Fnatic then beat Ninjas in Pyjamas 2–1 in the finals.[1] Fnatic became the first team to win a second Major, and remained the only team to do so until MIBR (attending Katowice 2015 as Keyd Stars) won MLG Columbus 2016 and ESL One Cologne 2016.

Format

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The top eight teams from DreamHack Winter 2014 ("Legends") received direct invitations to Katowice. In addition, eight other teams (the "Challengers") emerged from offline qualifiers.

Teams were split up into four groups, and all group matches were best-of-ones. The highest seed would play the lowest seed in each group and the second and third seeds would play against each other. The winner of those two matches would play each other to determine which team moved on to the playoff stage, while the losers of the first round of matches also played. The loser of the lower match was then eliminated from the tournament. With one team advanced and one eliminated, the two remaining teams would play an elimination match for the second playoff spot. This format is known as the GSL format, named for the Global StarCraft II League.[2]

The playoffs bracket consisted of eight teams, two from each group. All of these matches were best-of-three, single elimination. Teams advanced in the bracket until a winner was decided.

Map Pool

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The seven-map pool did not change from DreamHack Winter 2014. Before each match in the group stage, both teams banned two maps. The map for the match was then randomly selected from the remaining three maps. In the playoffs, each team first banned one map, then chose one map. The two chosen maps were the first two maps in the best-of-three. If the series were to require a third map, the map was randomly selected from the three remaining maps.

Maps
  • Cache
  • Cobblestone
  • Dust II
  • Inferno
  • Mirage
  • Nuke
  • Overpass

Main qualifier

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The 16 teams at the main qualifier were separated into two groups of 8. The teams played in a double-elimination, best of one bracket. Four teams from each group, two from the winner's bracket and two from the loser's bracket, advanced to the Major.

Invited[a]
Regional Qualifiers
  1. ^ Only seven teams received direct invites because four of the five players from Team iBUYPOWER were banned by Valve for their role in the North American match fixing scandal.[3] The bans were officially made permanent on January 5, 2016.[4]
  2. ^ Team WinneR was found to be guilty of match fixing, so the team was disqualified. 3DMAX took the vacant spot. Players of ESC Gaming were also accused of match fixing, but they were cleared of any wrongdoing.
  3. ^ The Polish roster of ESC Gaming was picked up by Gamers2. ESC Gaming would go on to pick up a Danish roster.[5][6]

Group A

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Upper round 1Upper round 2Qualified
Titan28
PiTER24
Titan14
Counter Logic Gaming16
Counter Logic Gaming16
Gamers214
Counter Logic Gaming
LGB eSports
Team Liquid14
FlipSid3 Tactics16
FlipSid3 Tactics11
LGB eSports16
Copenhagen Wolves8
LGB eSports16
Lower round 1Lower round 2Qualified
FlipSid3 Tactics16
PiTER19PiTER3
Gamers217FlipSid3 Tactics
Titan
Titan16
Team Liquid10Copenhagen Wolves4
CPH Wolves16

Group B

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Upper round 1Upper round 2Qualified
Cloud916
INSHOCK2
Cloud916
mousesports14
mousesports16
KaBuM.TD10
Cloud9
Vox Eminor
3DMAX11
Vox Eminor16
Vox Eminor16
Team Dignitas13
ESC Gaming11
Team Dignitas16
Lower round 1Lower round 2Qualified
Team Dignitas3
INSHOCK11KaBuM.TD16
KaBuM.TD16KaBuM.TD
3DMAX
mousesports8
3DMAX163DMAX16
ESC Gaming8

Broadcast Talent

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Hosts

  • Sean Charles
  • Alex "Machine" Richardson

Analysts

  • Casper "cadiaN" Møller
  • Spencer "Hiko" Martin

Commentators

  • Leigh "Deman" Smith
  • Anders Blume
  • Lauren "Pansy" Scott
  • Stuart "TosspoT" Saw

Observers

  • Joshua "steel" Nissan
  • Yanko "YNk" Paunović

Teams

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Legends
Main qualifier teams
  1. ^ The roster of Team Dignitas was acquired by Team SoloMid.[7]
  2. ^ Team EnVyUs acquired the full roster of Team LDLC.com.[8]

Group stage

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Group A

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Pos Team W L RF RA RD Pts
1 Fnatic 2 0 32 10 +22 6
2 Natus Vincere 2 1 39 21 +18 6
3 Vox Eminor 1 2 22 34 −12 3
4 FlipSid3 Tactics 0 2 4 32 −28 0
Group A matches
Team Score Map Score Team
Natus Vincere 16 Mirage 2 FlipSid3 Tactics
Fnatic 16 Inferno 3 Vox Eminor
FlipSid3 Tactics 2 Cache 16 Vox Eminor
Natus Vincere 7 Cobblestone 16 Fnatic
Natus Vincere 16 Inferno 3 Vox Eminor

Group B

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Pos Team W L RF RA RD Pts
1 Team EnVyUs 2 0 32 22 +10 6
2 PENTA Sports 2 1 35 32 +3 6
3 LGB eSports 1 2 36 35 +1 3
4 Titan 0 2 18 32 −14 0
Group B matches
Team Score Map Score Team
Team EnVyUs 16 Cobblestone 14 Titan
PENTA Sports 3 Dust II 16 LGB eSports
Team EnVyUs 16 Cache 8 LGB eSports
PENTA Sports 16 Cache 4 Titan
LGB eSports 12 Dust II 16 PENTA Sports

Group C

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Pos Team W L RF RA RD Pts
1 Ninjas in Pyjamas 2 0 32 16 +16 6
2 Keyd Stars 2 1 41 36 +5 6
3 Counter Logic Gaming 1 2 31 46 −15 3
4 HellRaisers 0 2 26 32 −6 0
Group C matches
Team Score Map Score Team
Ninjas in Pyjamas 16 Inferno 9 Keyd Stars
HellRaisers 14 Nuke 16 Counter Logic Gaming
Ninjas in Pyjamas 16 Mirage 7 Counter Logic Gaming
HellRaisers 12 Inferno 16 Keyd Stars
Counter Logic Gaming 8 Dust II 16 Keyd Stars

Group D

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Pos Team W L RF RA RD Pts
1 Virtus.pro 2 0 32 16 +16 6
2 Team SoloMid 2 1 46 34 +12 6
3 Cloud9 1 2 35 46 −11 3
4 3DMAX 0 2 15 32 −17 0
Group D matches
Team Score Map Score Team
Virtus.pro 16 Overpass 5 3DMAX
Team SoloMid 14 Nuke 16 Cloud9
Virtus.pro 16 Inferno 11 Cloud9
Team SoloMid 16 Nuke 10 3DMAX
Cloud9 8 Overpass 16 Team SoloMid

Playoffs

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The winner of each group played the runner-up of a different group for each quarterfinals match.

Bracket

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Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals
         
A1 Fnatic 2
B2 PENTA Sports 0
A1 Fnatic 2
D1 Virtus.pro 0
D1 Virtus.pro 2
C2 Keyd Stars 1
A1 Fnatic 2
C1 Ninjas in Pyjamas 1
B1 Team EnVyUs 2
A2 Natus Vincere 1
B1 Team EnVyUs 0
C1 Ninjas in Pyjamas 2
C1 Ninjas in Pyjamas 2
D2 Team SoloMid 1

Quarterfinals

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Fnatic vs. PENTA Sports

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Casters: Deman & SPUNJ

Fnatic vs. PENTA Sports Scores
Team Score Map Score Team
Fnatic 16 Inferno 8 PENTA Sports
Fnatic 16 Cache 7 PENTA Sports
Fnatic Overpass PENTA Sports

Virtus.pro vs. Keyd Stars

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Casters: TosspoT & seang@res

Virtus.pro vs. Keyd Stars Scores
Team Score Map Score Team
Virtus.pro 16 Mirage 4 Keyd Stars
Virtus.pro 17 Overpass 19 Keyd Stars
Virtus.pro 16 Nuke 1 Keyd Stars

Team EnVyUs vs. Natus Vincere

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Casters: Pansy & natu

Team EnVyUs vs. Natus Vincere Scores
Team Score Map Score Team
Team EnVyUs 16 Cache 12 Natus Vincere
Team EnVyUs 14 Dust II 16 Natus Vincere
Team EnVyUs 16 Mirage 3 Natus Vincere

Ninjas in Pyjamas vs. Team SoloMid

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Casters: Anders Blume & natu

Ninjas in Pyjamas vs. Team SoloMid Scores
Team Score Map Score Team
Ninjas in Pyjamas 16 Dust II 8 Team SoloMid
Ninjas in Pyjamas 4 Inferno 16 Team SoloMid
Ninjas in Pyjamas 16 Nuke 12 Team SoloMid

Semifinals

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Fnatic vs. Virtus.pro

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Casters: Anders Blume & SEMPHIS

Fnatic vs. Virtus.pro Scores
Team Score Map Score Team
Fnatic 19 Cobblestone 17 Virtus.pro
Fnatic 16 Mirage 8 Virtus.pro
Fnatic Overpass Virtus.pro

Team EnVyUs vs. Ninjas in Pyjamas

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Casters: Deman & seang@res

Team EnVyUs vs. Ninjas in Pyjamas Scores
Team Score Map Score Team
Team EnVyUs 9 Cache 16 Ninjas in Pyjamas
Team EnVyUs 10 Dust II 16 Ninjas in Pyjamas
Team EnVyUs Mirage Ninjas in Pyjamas

Finals

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Both teams in the final had at one point been considered the best team in the world, and the head-to-head was split right down the middle, with Fnatic having a 16–15 lead.

Casters: Anders Blume, TossopT, & seang@res

Fnatic vs. Ninjas in Pyjamas Scores
Team Score Map Score Team
Fnatic 16 Dust II 14 Ninjas in Pyjamas
Fnatic 10 Cache 16 Ninjas in Pyjamas
Fnatic 16 Inferno 13 Ninjas in Pyjamas

Final standings

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Place Team Prize Money Seed for ESL One Cologne 2015 Roster Coach
1st Fnatic US$100,000 Legends status JW, flusha, pronax, olofmeister, KRiMZ Devilwalk
2nd Ninjas in Pyjamas US$50,000 f0rest, GeT RiGhT, Xizt, friberg, allu pita
3rd–4th Team EnVyUs US$22,000 kioShiMa, Happy, SmithZz, NBK, shox
Virtus.pro TaZ, NEO, pashaBiceps, byali, Snax kuben
5–8th Keyd Stars US$10,000 FalleN, fer, steel, zqk, boltz
Natus Vincere Edward, Zeus, starix, seized, GuardiaN Ugin
Team SoloMid karrigan, dev1ce, cajunb, dupreeh, Xyp9x 3k2
PENTA Sports nex, Spidii, denis, kRYSTAL, Troubley alexRr
9–12th Vox Eminor US$2,000 SPUNJ, Havoc, jks, AZR, topguN
LGB eSports RUBINO, rain, jkaem, zEVES, Polly
Cloud9 ShahZam, sgares, n0thing, shroud, Semphis
Counter Logic Gaming hazed, reltuC, tarik, ptr, FNS
13–16th Titan US$2,000 kennyS, Rpk, apEX, Maniac, Ex6TenZ
FlipSid3 Tactics B1ad3, bondik, markeloff, WorldEdit, DavCost
HellRaisers ANGE1, kucher, flamie, Dosia, AdreN
3DMAX diSTURBED, natu, KHRN, stonde, xartE

References

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  1. ^ "3 things we learned from ESL Katowice's Counter-Strike event". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 20 December 2015. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  2. ^ Švejda, Milan. "Searching for the perfect format". HLTV.org. Retrieved 11 February 2021.
  3. ^ Lewis, Richard (January 15, 2015). "New evidence points to match-fixing at highest level of American Counter-Strike". Dot eSports. Archived from the original on May 30, 2017. Retrieved February 25, 2017.
  4. ^ Corporation, Valve (January 5, 2016). "A Follow Up to Integrity and Fair Play". Counter-Strike.net.
  5. ^ Mira, Luis (February 11, 2015). "Gamers2 sign ex-ESC". HLTV.org.
  6. ^ Park, Paul (February 11, 2015). "ESC Gaming acquires new CS:GO team". Score eSports.
  7. ^ Walkowiak, Marek (January 25, 2015). "CS:GO squad move on". Team Dignitas.
  8. ^ Rahul (February 2, 2015). "TEAM ENVYUS ACQUIRE LDLC CS:GO ROSTER". GFinity.
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