The opening stage of the StarLadder Budapest Major delivered chaos, upsets, and storylines that will echo through the offseason. From roster crises to format debates, here’s everything we learned from StarLadder Budapest Major Stage 1.
FaZe is wasting Twistzz and Frozen on an unsustainable roster
The writing has been on the wall for months, but Budapest made it undeniable. This FaZe roster is broken. Watching it scrape past RED Canids and Lynn Vision felt less like a team finding form and more like watching the clock run out on an expired project.
The core issue isn’t talent—it’s chemistry. David “frozen” Čerňanský and Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken are playing at levels that should carry a top-five team, but instead they’re dragging a dysfunctional unit through 2-2 decide matches against teams they should be dismantling. The 2022 roster was brilliant, but ever since FaZe let Twistzz leave at the end of 2023, the team has struggled to balance roles. And it has only gotten worse in the absence of Robin “ropz” Kool and Håvard “rain” Nygaard.
Related—FaZe in Major trouble: Elimination looms after 1-2 start
Now Twistzz has returned, but to what? A roster where Finn “karrigan” Andersen’s calls feel stale, and roles don’t mesh? And where two elite players are being wasted on a sinking ship. Frozen deserves better. Twistzz deserves better. And unless FaZe makes major changes this offseason, we’ll watch it repeat this cycle in 2026.
The activity on GG.BET reveals a stark divide between reputation and reality. Despite FaZe Clan looking disjointed and “broken” on the server, they remain the undisputed favorites of the community, commanding a massive 71% of user support. Fnatic rides a similar wave of legacy trust at 70%, overshadowing the cautiously backed mid-pack of PARIVISION (60%), B8 (59%), and NiP (58%). But the most telling statistic is the lack of belief in the tournament’s actual performers. Even with M80 and Imperial sitting at 54%, FlyQuest garnered the lowest confidence of all at just 46%. Despite their flawless 3-0 run, the public is betting on history repeating itself — expecting the Australian side to crumble rather than trusting the wins right in front of them.
Insights Courtesy of GG.BET
No best-of-ones will make IEM Cologne 2026 the best Major
If ESL’s pitch to Valve is accepted, the IEM Cologne Major 2026 will be the first to eliminate best-of-one matches entirely in favor of best-of-three throughout all Swiss stages. This would be revolutionary.
Stage 1 in Budapest was a perfect reminder of why best-of-ones are problematic. FaZe and Legacy were the popular picks for 3-0 results, and both found themselves on the brink of elimination. FlyQuest got through while facing just one Stage 2 qualified team (Imperial). And GamerLegion was caught out cold on Day 1, down to just one life before it even got to play a full series.
Are those upsets entertaining? Sure. But they paint a very misleading picture, rewarding teams with shallower map pools and all-or-nothing playstyles. One bad round, one bad CT-side read, one missed shot, and your Major is over. The pinnacle of Counter-Strike should strive for better.
A full best-of-three format may require a few extra days (perhaps by overlapping media and playing days for separate stages), but the tradeoff is worth it. We’d get more Counter-Strike, better Counter-Strike, and results that feel earned rather than lucky. Cologne is already the Cathedral of Counter-Strike. Making it the fairest Major would cement its legendary status.
Technical issues marred day one
StarLadder’s first day was a disaster. Lengthy delays plagued matches from start to finish, with games stretching into the early hours of Nov. 25. Audio issues disrupted streams. The viewing experience—for both live attendees and online viewers—was compromised for several hours.
Compared to Austin’s near flawless execution, and the high quality of broadcast we’re expecting from ESL at its home event in Cologne, StarLadder is missing the mark. Especially on its first big LAN since the Berlin Major 2019 (an event which notoriously also had significant problems in the early rounds).
Related—StarLadder’s observers criticized for missing plays during Berlin CS:GO Major
NRG is still potent without nitr0
When Nicholas “nitr0” Cannella announced he’d miss the Major for personal reasons, most expected NRG to crumble. It was bringing its coach, Damian “daps” Steele—a player who’d been retired for years and whose last competitive map in 2025 ended with a 0.55 rating—into a Stage 1 bracket featuring FaZe, fnatic, and GamerLegion.
Instead, NRG shocked everyone. It defeated Ninjas in Pyjamas in its opener, then stunned FaZe in a best-of-one that really hammered home the international squad’s woes. Daps slotted in perfectly as an in-game leader, and he even found some success individually.
Yes, NRG eventually lost to M80 in dominant fashion and fell to Imperial in the 2-2 match. But the fact it even went 2-2 with a stand-in IGL is remarkable. First, it proved that the system nitr0 has built alongside daps is strong enough to survive his absence. And second, that NRG’s core players—Aran “Sonic” Groesbeek, Alexander “br0” Bro, Zechrie “XotiC” Elshani, Jeorge “Jeorge” Endicott—are genuinely skilled players who can hang at the European level.
NRG didn’t make Stage 2, but it made a statement. North American Counter-Strike is deeper than people think.
FlyQuest is overperforming at a Major again
Here we go again. FlyQuest, the perennial nearly-team, stormed out to a 2-0 start by defeating Legacy and Imperial. Then it demolished Fluxo 13-1, 13-3 in its advancement match to qualify 3-0 for Stage 2.
It’s the exact pattern that we’ve seen with this core again and again. Back at the IEM Rio Major in 2022, Grayhound Gaming (the precursor to this roster) made bold tweets after getting a singular best-of-one win over a relevant team in overtime. At Austin 2025, it started off hot with two wins, before failing to qualify out of Stage 1.
The Australian side has quite the habit of thriving in the chaos of early rounds before wilting under pressure in later stages. Credit where it’s due: role changes under new coach Aaron “AZR” Ward have unlocked Declan “Vexite” Portelli, who’s averaging elite numbers. The team looks more disciplined. It’s playing with confidence. But we’ve seen this movie before, and it always ends the same way—FlyQuest choking when it matters most.
Stage 2 will be the real test, but until it proves otherwise FlyQuest remains the team that disappears when the pressure builds.
PARIVISION’s youngsters need more experience
PARIVISION, featuring several Major debutants, was one of the more interesting squads at this major. Dzhami “Jame” Ali, alongside Dastan “dastan” Aqbaev, is once again trying to bring relatively unknown youngsters to the big stage. And as you would expect from the master of fine margins, the team made it through to Stage 2 by a whisker.
Looking beyond the success though, the riflers’ lack of experience is apparent. Jame can only do so much. The young players around him—Andrey “BELCHONOKK” Yasinskiy, Andrey “AW” Anisimov, Vladislav “xiELO” Lysov, Emil “nota” Moskvitin—have talent, but they’re still learning how to execute under the pressure. There were a bunch of questionable moments, missed shots, bad utility, and more across their matches, especially in the game against Legacy.
“I didn’t believe that we would come back on Dust2, I just lowered my expectations, but the guys managed to come back.”
PARIVISION’s coach Dastan “dastan” Aqbaev
The good news? This is fixable. PARIVISION’s youngsters already got invaluable experience from Stage 1, and the deeper Jame can take them, the stronger they’ll be for the future. With more reps, better coaching, and time to develop, this core could become something special.
Stage 1 of the Budapest Major delivered everything we expected: chaos, upsets, and the emergence of new narratives heading into Stage 2. Can karrigan rally the FaZe troops? Will FlyQuest finally prove the doubters wrong? And most importantly—who will emerge as the dark horse capable of taking the fight to the top dogs of Stage 3.
The answers await in the rounds ahead.
