CS:GO Majors | Where to Place Bets
CS:GO Majors – the very definition of top-tier CS:GO events! These events are
as exclusive as they are prestigious, and that’s a perfect combination for the
growing esports industry. That’s why, in this article, we won’t just be telling
you all about this tournament – we’ll also fill you in with the latest news on
where to bet on CS:GO Majors. Not a surprise, right? After all, this is a
betting-oriented website! So, let’s skip the shenanigans and introduce you to
our favorite esports bookies:
| Rank | Gambling Site | Deposit Bonus | Get Started | |
| #1 |
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If you’d like to skip to your desired section quickly, don’t hesitate to use
the link box below:
Where to Bet on CS:GO Majors
For those of you who’ve missed it – there’s a short list of our favorite
bookies right above this section and the link box. It consists of the finest
choices for esports betting at the moment. Finest how? Well, by picking any of
those bookies you can rest assured you will be getting the optimal esports
betting service. Whether you’re experienced or just starting out, whether you’re
from the EU or from the States, whether you like to bet big or small, the result
will be the same – you’re going to love our choices! If you would like more information about the specifics of CS:GO betting sites please visit our article dedicated to CS:GO betting sites.
Key Facts
- The first two years of CS:GO Majors (2013 through 2015), all tournaments
had $250,000 in total prize pool money. With big changes to the CS:GO Major
Championship format made by Valve in late 2015, the prize pools were lifted
to a sensational $1,000,000 starting from the MLG Columbus 2016. - At the time of writing this article, Fnatic is the record holder for the
most CS:GO Majors titles. They won DreamHack Winter 2013, ESL One: Katowice
2015, and ESL One: Cologne 2015. The latter two were won by their superstar
roster which is referred to as the greatest team of all time by CS:GO fans
and experts alike. - Ninjas in Pyjamas (NiP) are the biggest “losers” in terms of CS:GO
Majors. They are holding the record for the most Grand Finals matches lost.
They’ve competed in 5 Grand Finals matches but ended up winning just one
(ESL One Cologne 2014).
A Brief History of CS:GO Majors
The story of CS:GO Majors (as we know them today) dates all the way back to
2013 with the first real CS:GO Major tournament – DreamHack Winter
2013. The event was held in Jonkoping, and featured Fnatic winning on their home
soil carried by JW, flusha, and pronax.
It’s only logical to see several changes being made over the course of CS:GO
Majors’ existence. The latest ones significantly altered the tournament format,
increasing the number of competing teams but also increasing the prize pool
money as well. $250,000 was the prize pool of all CS:GO Majors up until 2016.
More precisely, up until MLG Major Columbus 2016, which was the first Major to
feature the new ruleset with $1,000,000 in prize pool money. More about
tournament format changes further down below.
At the moment, CS:GO Majors are biannual tournaments, meaning they are held
twice per year. In 2018, FACEIT Major: London and ELEAGUE Major: Boston were, by
far, the most popular CS:GO tournaments.
Previous Winners
Continuing with our brief history lesson on CS:GO Majors, here’s a table of
all previous winners:
As you can see, Fnatic is the most successful team as far as CS:GO Majors are
concerned. Still, considering what a dominant team Astralis currently is,
perhaps this will change as they need one more title to tie Fnatic’s record of
three wins.
Tournament Format
As we already mentioned above, CS:GO Majors underwent quite a few changes to
become the tournament series we all know and love today. The most recent changes
did not only increase the total prize pool money and competing teams, but also
significantly altered the tournament format. Here’s what it looks like as of
ELEAGUE Major: Boston 2018.
The New Challengers Stage
This tournament stage was formerly known as Major Offline Qualifiers. It’s
the starting stage for teams dubbed The New Challengers (more on that down
below) in which they’ll fight their way to advance to The New Legends Stage.
The New Legends Stage
This stage (formerly known as the Group Stage) puts the eight teams that have
qualified through The New Challengers Stage against the current Legends teams.
In this stage of the tournament, these teams are not just battling for The New
Champions Stage, but to become The New Legends as well. Once again, more about
team-specific changes down below.
The New Champions Stage
The last stage of all CS:GO Majors – formerly referred to as Playoffs. This
stage features only the top eight remaining teams who will battle it out against
each other for the biggest share of the total prize pool money.
CS:GO Majors | Teams
Now let’s see what each of those weird team names represent:
The New Challengers
This group consists of sixteen teams in total. Eight of them are returning
challengers from the previous CS:GO Majors with the remaining eight coming in as
the winners (and runners-up) of the Minors. These teams start the tournament at
the New Challengers Stage for a chance to progress to The New Legends Stage. If
they do so, not only will they continue playing in the tournament, but will also
cement their spot at the next CS:GO Major’s New Challengers Stage.
The Legends
Teams can obtain The Legends status by going through to the New Champions
Stage, regardless of what place they end up at the end of the tournament. This
way, the top teams are under constant pressure of losing their Legends status,
so they have to perform at their very best all the time!
In-Game Specials
During CS:GO Majors, Valve often gives out special awards to their beloved
viewers. We are talking about various in-game items as well as special features
based on that particular tournament. There are some prerequisites to take care
of if you want to be eligible to win some of these special goodies. Here’s
what’s up:
In order to get these goodies, you will have to make sure you’re watching the
Major via a livestream service that allows you to connect your Steam ID. In
other words, you will have to connect your Steam ID to either Twitch.tv, GOTV,
or Steam.tv; all of which are great options to watch CS:GO Majors on.
Stickers and souvenir cases are the things you will be hoping to get by
watching CS:GO Majors. Both are inspired by teams (and their respective
players), allowing you to “wear” the colors of your favorite team while you’re
playing the game yourself!
CS:GO Majors | FAQ
Where to Bet on CS:GO Majors?
If you’d like more info on where to bet on CS:GO Majors, please scroll back up and you’ll see a section dedicated to exactly that.
How Many Teams Are Competing on CS:GO Majors?
It used to be just sixteen teams competing at the main event. However, with the most recent changes made by Valve, this number has grown to twenty-four. The tournament format has been changed too, making room for extra teams by further expanding the number of stages (and matches played). In our opinion, twenty-four teams is the perfect number! As they say – the more, the merrier!
Are CS:GO Majors the Most Important CS:GO Tournaments?
This is highly arguable, but we’d say that they are. As far as popularity goes, they are at the top of the food chain for sure. Still, there are tournaments such as ECS and ESL Pro League which bring a different perspective to the scene, often delivering great matchups to huge crowds across the globe.
Where to Watch CS:GO Majors?
Believe it or not, there are plenty of ways you can watch not only CS:GO Majors, but most CS:GO tournaments in general. Twitch.tv, YouTube, and HLTV are the most obvious choices these days. They offer the best livestream quality and highly professional hosts and commentators. Keep in mind though, there are some things you need to pay attention to if you want to win special items during CS:GO Majors.
What Kind of Special Items Can I Get by Watching CS:GO Majors?
You can get all sorts of goodies by watching CS:GO Majors. Stickers and souvenir cases, to be more precise. Pick’Em Challenges should be noted too. It allows you to buy team-based stickers and use them to pick the teams you think will win certain matches. For more info, please refer to the In-Game Specials section.
Conclusion
With those last couple of questions (and their respective answers), we are
afraid our CS:GO Majors article is almost done. All
that’s left to be said are a few conclusive words to sum everything up.
So, for starters, let’s all agree that CS:GO Majors are the most prestigious
events on the CS:GO competitive calendar. Sure, other similar competitions such
as ECS and ESL Pro League have that prestigious charm as well, but they still
aren’t at the level of the Majors. The betting aspect confirms that too, as
CS:GO bettors (beginners and seasoned veterans) love these tournaments because
there are lots of opportunities for good bets. Plus, with each passing year,
bookies are increasing their coverage, meaning we’re always getting more bet
types to explore and choose from.
As the CS:GO scene develops, so does its betting counterpart. Luckily for us,
CS:GO as an esports title isn’t going away anytime soon. It sits at the throne
of FPS esports and doesn’t look to be heading in a downward spiral. On the
contrary, its popularity is still growing, meaning that CS:GO betting could be
the pinnacle of esports betting as we know it!
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