The tenth iteration of this amazing CS:GO tournament will be of monumental importance for teams.
The Intel Extreme Masters Katowice is not just another CS:GO event. It is one of the most prestigious competitions which involves the best teams around the world. It has $1 million USD as its prize pool and intangible fame and glory, which comes from taking part in the tournament. We will go through some of the important teams who are a critical part of the competition.
Natus Vincere
- Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev
- Denis “electroNic” Sharipov
- Kirill Sergeevich “Boombl4” Mikhailov
- Ilya “Perfecto” Zalutskiy
- Valerii “b1t” Vakhovskyi
If we were given one name to choose as winners of the IEM Katowice, we would have chosen Natus Vincere. The team who achieved it all in the 2021 season. They are currently the best team in CS:GO. Their run in the recent BLAST Premier tournament has also been great. Although we didn’t see the same sharpness from NAVI as in the previous season, it was close to perfect.
Gambit Esports
- Vladislav “nafany” Gorshkov
- Dmitriy “sh1ro” Sokolov
- Timofey “interz” Yakushin
- Sergey “Ax1Le” Rykhtorov
- Abai “HObbit” Hasenov
Gambit have also been one of the top teams in the mix. Their previous season wasn’t as good as NAVIs, but they achieved quite a few titles. The Russian team was second in the BLAST Premier World Final behind Natus Vincere. They surely have what it takes to beat the best and get their name on the IEM Katowice title.
Team Vitality
- Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut
- Kevin “Misutaaa” Rabier
- Dan “apEX” Madesclaire
- Peter “dupreeh” Rothmann Rasmussen
- Emil “magisk” Hoffmann Reif
Team Vitality are one tough nut to crack for any team. They don’t give up easily. Although they were second to NAVI in most competitions in the previous season, the team is definitely top tier. They played well in the recent BLAST Premier Spring Groups and qualified for Spring Finals. Vitality were also third in the World Final behind Gambit towards the end of last season. With their new squad, Vitality will look to take the throne.
G2 Esports
- Audric “JACKZ” Jug
- Nemanja “huNter-“ Kovač
- Nikola “NiKo” Kovač
- Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov
- Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen
G2 Esports were one of the qualifying teams to make it to the BLAST Spring Finals this year. The Spanish team has been around the top teams for some time now. Although G2 couldn’t win any silverware in the last season, they have been pretty close to winning. Their form in the last competition was exceptional and they could just go all the way to the end of IEM Katowice.
FaZe Clan
- Håvard “rain” Nygaard
- Helvijs “broky” Saukants
- Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken
- Finn “karrigan” Andersen
- Justin “jks” Savage(Stand in) for Robin “ropz” Kool
FaZe didn’t have a very convincing season in 2021. However, they were brilliant in the BLAST Spring Groups. However, there is one minor problem. FaZe will not have ropz with them in the IEM Katowice tournament. Jks will play instead of the Estonian professional. It is tough to predict how the team will perform in his absence, but FaZe certainly have their spirits high after qualifying for the Spring Finals.
Feature Image: ESL
