CS: GO fans around the world couldn’t have expected a better playoff league final for the ESL Pro League Season 12-EU. Danish Esports team, Astralis, and Ukrainian-Russian team Natus Vincere are the two grand finalists from the European region. Both the teams are fan favorites and picking either of them over the other is a slippery slope.
The players will face-off on October 4 at 17:30 CEST in what has been touted as an exciting battle. For Astralis, this is a very special moment as the team is part of a grand final after a long time.
It's been TOO LONG since we've been in a Grand Final. 🤩
GOOD TO BE BACK! Let's bring it home. 🏆#ToTheStars I #ESLProLeague I https://t.co/FSIaIChrYa
— Astralis Counter-Strike (@AstralisCS) October 3, 2020
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Fans can watch the league live on the ESL Counter-Strike channel:
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Both Na’Vi and Astralis beat Heroic to reach CS: GO pro league finals
The league started on September 1, with 16 pro teams competing for a prize pool of $450,000. Two groups of eight teams followed a Round Robin algorithm in the initial phase of the event. The top 4 teams from each group reached the playoffs in an eight-team double-elimination bracket. The matches followed a best of three format. However, the grand final will be a best of five rounds with a one map advantage.
In the playoffs, Heroic beat Astralis in the upper bracket but Na’Vi eventually beat Heroic. Due to this, Na’Vi directly reached the grand finals and both, Astralis and Heroic, competed again in the lower bracket. Astralis managed the perfect comeback by beating Heroic 2-0 in the rematch.
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Did bugs cost players matches in the pro league?
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Games and bugs go hand in hand and CS: GO is no exception. Most bugs are minor and easily escapable, but some can cause serious trouble for players and coaches, even at competitive level. In the Pro League, professional player Finn ‘Karrigon’ Anderson said that his game froze during some matches and he had to restart it. Facing such an issue at the highest level is certainly disappointing.
Despite all such issues, fans love the season 12 of ESL CS: GO pro league. With a health pandemic spread around the globe, season 11 was eventually canceled. However, the current season is a big success and everyone is looking forward to an intense grand final between Na’Vi and Astralis.