BIG qualify for DreamHack Open Sevilla over GamerLegion

BIG booked their spot at DreamHack Open Sevilla following a 2-1 win over GamerLegion in the Europe closed qualifier grand final.

BIG successfully battled their way through the previous rounds of the eight-team, single-elimination bracket by taking down Nordavind and Illuminar. Meanwhile, GamerLegion picked up victories over Polish duo Aristocracy and Virtus.pro to set up a grand final matchup against Johannes "⁠tabseN⁠" Wodarz’s team for a spot in Sevilla.

The best-of-three series kicked off on Overpass, where a full 30 rounds could not determine a victor. However, as overtime ensued, GamerLegion buckled down to grind out a 22-18 win to draw first blood in the final. BIG struck back swiftly as the series moved to Train, though, with Ismailcan "⁠XANTARES⁠" Dörtkardeş spearheading a 16-12 reply with a 1.46 rating in a game in which he picked up an ace in the second half pistol.

The closely-contested matchup then headed in the direction of Dust2, where the map followed a similar pattern to that of Overpass. GamerLegion found themselves ahead at halftime by just one round, but BIG were relentlessly on their heels. The back-and-forth continued all the way up to the 30th round, in which overtime was forced by GamerLegion. Unlike the opening map, Hampus "⁠hampus⁠" Poser’s men could not get the game over the line as BIG narrowly secured the map 19-17 to book their ticket to the Spanish event.

BIG's qualification means they are the first team confirmed for the $100,000 event in Sevilla, which will run from December 13-15, with six invites yet to be revealed. The final spot for the eight-team tournament will go to the winner of Dreamcup, which will act as the Iberian qualifier for the Spanish event.

The team list currently looks as follows: