We’ve only entered the new year, but CS:GO fans are already asking one question. Which team will reign supreme in 2019? Astralis were clearly the best team in the world in 2018, but CS:GO is a fickle game. The Danes are likely to drop off simply because no one stays at the top for too long in this Esport.
One of the first Premier events of the year has already been announced, and the week-long StarSeries competition would be a fine victory for any team. The competition has a $500,000 prize pool, and 16 of the best teams in the world will be vying for a share of it.
Esports Betting at BookMaker.eu
CS:GO StarSeries i-League Season 7 Betting Odds
Team Liquid: +400
Natus Vincere: +550
MiBR: +550
FaZe Clan: +650
Mousesports: +700
BIG: +1000
North: +1000
Fnatic: +1200
NRG: +1400
Ninjas in Pyjamas: +1400
ENCE: +1600
Rogue: +3300
TYLOO: +3300
CyberZen: +5000
Team Spirit: +5000
Ex-Wild: +10000
If not for Astralis, Team Liquid very well could have been the best team in the world in 2018. Liquid finished runner-up to the Danes at four Premier events, and they finished runner-up to Mousesports in another. They only managed to win two Majors last year, and that’s why they made some moves to shake things up in December.
Liquid decided to trade TACO & zews to MiBR for Stewie2K just before Christmas, and we’ll see how that move pans out. Stewie2K has been trumpeted as the best gun in the west, and he led Cloud9 to a Premier title last year. The move will also ensure that Liquid’s team only has North American players, and that will help in both marketing and communication. Liquid wants to present itself as the CS:GO team in North America, and anyone will tell you that having players whose primary language differs can be difficult.
Natus Vincere and MiBR are seen as the second favorites on the list. Let’s discuss the latter team first since I brought them up in the last paragraph. MiBR is a newcomer organization, but there’s nothing new about this team. They brought over SK Gaming’s former team (which used to be Luminosity Gaming’s former team) in its entirety, and these guys were the best team in the world in 2016 and the early part of 2017.
Bringing over TACO and zews makes this team virtually all Brazilian too. As with Liquid, that helps for both marketing and communication, but we’ll see how things work out with Tarik. Tarik has had to learn Portuguese in order to better communicate with his team, yet they looked strong at the end of the year.
Natus Vincere are another regionally based team. The team is made up of Russian and Ukrainian players, and they have been together for quite some time. Na’Vi won two Premier events and two Major events over the latter half of 2018, and they finished tied for third last year in GoSu Gamers’ rankings of the top teams in the world.
Unlike the other two teams, they have continuity too. Na’Vi have plenty of experience playing together, and that helps in tournaments that take place earlier in the year.
FaZe is already dangerous with the amount of talent on this team, and there are other dark horses to watch as well. North improved greatly as the season wore on, and they are my favorite bet at this price. They have one of the top players the game has ever seen in Kjaerbye, and they are still coming together after cadiaN and gade only joined the team in September. Rogue are a longer shot, and the organization still needs to add one more player, but they can make a deep run. Former members of North are on this team, and they have played well in the past.
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