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Sixteen of the top Counter-Strike 2 teams in the world converged on Dallas, Texas at the end of May for a major event. The IEM Dallas had a massive prize pool available, and the top teams were also looking to clinch a spot at IEM Cologne.
Since this was a major tournament, everyone was pushing hard with their best players for a chance to come away with a win. There were some minor surprises throughout the event, and that trend continued all the way until the final matchup.
G2 Esports came away with a thrilling, and stunning, win at IEM Dallas as that organization proved that it’s a force to be reckoned with in this sport.
Defying the Odds
When the betting odds came out for the IEM Dallas, you were not going to see G2 Esports at the top of the list, but that was ultimately the pick to make. G2 had never won a Counter-Strike 2 title of any kind, but they were able to put everything together to get a win this weekend.
Stewie2k might not have won the MVP Award in this event, but most would credit his play as the reason that G2 was able to come away with the win. He is a player that has had some success in other esports, and he made it clear that he is ready to become a top player in this sport as well.
What made this story even better was the fact that Stewie2k wasn’t even added to the roster until right before the event, and he put together a great run. G2 Esports needed a hero after captain HooXi withdrew from the event, and he gave this team energy right away.
While Stewie2k was the surprising star of this event, MVP honors went to m0NESY after he played a near perfect tournament throughout the weekend. G2 Esports just kept upsetting teams along the way, and that was the case in the final matchup against Team Vitality as well.
Team Vitality was a clear betting favorites to win the IEM Dallas, and they looked like they were on a path to getting that done. Vitality just wasn’t able to get any momentum in the title match as G2 Esports took complete control to come away with a 2-1 win.
G2 Esports had to get through the lower bracket after some disappointing play in the group stage, and they upset FaZe Clan along the way. Stewie2k has made it clear that he wants to continue on with G2 Esports, and that will make them a team to watch heading into IEM Cologne.
YaLLa Compass Up Next
There is no time to rest when it comes to the world of Counter-Strike 2 as there is another big event on the schedule this week. It’s time for an S-Tier event in the United Arab Emirates as the YaLLa Compass 2024 is set to take place.
This event is going to kickoff on June 5th, and there will be 12 teams set to compete for a massive prize pool of $400,000. While those teams want some of that money, this is also a way to qualify for other CS2 majors later on in the year.
Two days of group stage action is going to kickoff this event, and then the top teams are going to move into the playoffs. Team Astralis is the betting favorite to win this tournament, but they haven’t had a ton of success in live events.
One thing that will make this tournament unique is the fact that this is a single-elimination tournament, and no team can afford to suffer a loss right away.