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EWC confirms Counter Strike invitees for 2025
- Esports World Cup will have the biggest esports prize pool ever.
- A total of 16 organizations have been invited to the event.
- Mixture of South/North America, Asia, and Europe talent will fight for the $1.25 million prize pool.
The eagerly awaited Esports World Cup 2025 has officially revealed the top Counter Strike teams that will be competing. The event is scheduled for August 20 to 24 in Riyadh. A total of 15 teams received their invitations based on the VRS rankings, ensuring that we will witness the finest teams at this event. Stay up to date on CS2 transfer rumors and tournament results thanks to our expert esports tips!
Stacked lineup: CS2 Teams Set for Esports World Cup 2025
15 of the best CS2 teams are officially headed to the Esports World Cup via VRS Ranking! ✈️
Get ready for some serious action on the servers. 💥 pic.twitter.com/gpKId7FLDk
— EWC Extra (@EWC_Extra) June 3, 2025
HEROIC, MOUZ, Natus Vincere, Team Falcons, Team Liquid, Team Spirit, Team Vitality, 3DMAX, Astralis, Aurora Gaming, FaZe Clan, G2 Esports, GamerLegion, The MongolZ, and lastly Virtus Pro. However there was one spot which did not include a direct invitation, entirely reserved for the Asian region. TYLOO took said coveted spot. The Chinese organization pushed against the best of the best and earned the only Asian spot by beating Lynn Vision in the Grand Final of the Champions League.
Even though they seem like a shadow of their past selves, NAVI is heading back to Riyadh to defend their championship. The Ukrainian team won the trophy in last year’s event, beating G2 Esports in the final match to take home the grand prize. Teams that didn’t make it to the BLAST Austin Major, like GamerLegion and Astralis, will also be at the event.Unlike typical CS2 tournaments that kick off with group stages, the Esports World Cup will jump straight into elimination rounds. All 16 teams are placed directly into a single elimination playoff bracket, where every match is a must win situation.
What are they fighting for?
Rise Above your competition.
Become an EWC Champion like T1 🏆 pic.twitter.com/vPVSs0ol4r— Esports World Cup (@EWC_EN) June 2, 2025
The high stakes setup guarantees an unmatched level of intensity and requires top performance right from the get go. The lack of flexibility speeds up the tournament’s rhythm, as the whole competition will take place over five thrilling days due to a plethora of other competitions happening at the same time.
The CS2 event has a rewarding prize pool structure aimed at recognizing merely attending. The champions will take home a prize of $500,000, while the second place will get $230,000. It slows down as the places drop, however even teams ranked from 9th to 16th won’t leave empty handed, getting $20,000 each. This was one of the main tenants the organizer had in place when creating the tournament. The Esports World Cup will also include its well established Club Championship Program, which will distribute a prize pool of $27 million among the top 16 teams.
Keep an eye out for all of our content as we’ll be covering all the action Counter Strike 2 has to offer. Don’t forget to bet on your favorite teams at BetUS Sportsbook & Casino, as we have a plethora of CS2 odds for you to enjoy!
