Was FaZe's Katowice victory the best fairy-tale run in CS:GO?

In honour of FaZe's thrilling victory in Katowice, we explore how it compares to some of the other fairy-tale runs in CS:GO history.

FaZe's run at IEM Katowice was quite simply one of the best we have ever seen in CS:GO. It had a little bit of everything, from drama striking the squad both before and during the event, to the plethora of tough opponents that FaZe had to overcome, to the simple fact that nigh-everyone had written them off as serious contenders (just see the HLTV Katowice playoff power ranking). They were even pushed in dramatic fashion in the grand final, as even though we didn't get the full five games, every single map played went the distance, either to the full 30 or into overtime.

There were even compelling stories separate from the nature of the run itself. One was the tale of a promise made by Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen upon returning to FaZe that he managed to fulfil a year later, having reunited with a star ex-teammate to get it done. Another was that of the first big event ever won by an Australian, Justin "⁠jks⁠" Savage bringing a winner's medal back home down under — as a stand-in, no less.

It seems fair then to characterise FaZe at IEM Katowice 2022 as a fairy-tale run, the likes of which make Counter-Strike simply the best esport to follow. This does beg the question however; is it the best fairy-tale run we have ever seen in our great game?

The Brazilians burst onto the scene

One of the earliest prime examples of a fairy-tale run in CS:GO was that of Luminosity at the FACEIT League Stage 3 Finals 2015. The Brazilians had already built something of a name for themselves off the back of performances such as their showing at the previous Major, making the playoffs of Cluj-Napoca, but they had struggled to push beyond merely promising tournament outings. By the time the finals of the FACEIT League Finals came around, the team had ditched Lucas "⁠steel⁠" Lopes and Ricardo "⁠boltz⁠" Prass in favour of Lincoln "⁠fnx⁠" Lau and Epitacio "⁠TACO⁠" de Melo, and thus what would become a legendary lineup was born.

However, they were by no means a legendary team at the time of this tournament. They were seen as promising upstarts from an underdeveloped and underrepresented region at the top level, blazing a path by uprooting their lives and moving to North America in pursuit of Counter-Strike glory. The tale of the team itself was so very compelling, and one of the reasons that their shock run to the final of this event sticks in the memory. It was the breakout event for a team that epitomised hard work and sacrifice, a team that acted as a shining example for young teams everywhere, no matter what region they may hail from. In this sense, Luminosity's 2015 run has an edge over FaZe, as the tale behind the team itself could be lifted straight out of a Hollywood movie script.

Not only was the tale behind the team arguably more captivating, but there were also a couple of aspects to the run itself that may very well trump FaZe. First, Luminosity were far lower ranked and less fancied than FaZe in Katowice, and at a time where the scene was overall more top-heavy. The Brazilians also had to overcome the mental setback of a 0-16 drubbing in their first game, a defeat the likes of which karrigan and co. never had to endure in Poland. There are also facets of the run that match that of FaZe, such as the fact the Brazilians also had to face quality opposition throughout.

Ultimately, Luminosity probably have to concede the title of 'best fairy-tale run' due to the fact that they didn't actually manage to win the event; even if there are some aspects that seem to trump FaZe, failing to come home with a trophy undoubtedly takes a large degree of the lustre of the run away. They also did it with their main five-man roster, and had to battle through a far less robust format; let us not forget the sheer amount of games FaZe had to win to claim the Katowice title, from the play-in all the way to the grand final. So, whilst it is definitely a strong claim, it is close but no cigar for the Brazilians.

The battle of the stand-ins

A brief mention must be made of a remarkably similar campaign, one that was also accomplished by a roster operating under the FaZe banner and led by karrigan (a master of managing stand-ins, perhaps?).

ESL One Belo Horizonte 2018, much like Katowice, featured a team in turmoil with Olof "⁠olofmeister⁠" Kajbjer having just extended his break from the competitive scene, thus requiring FaZe to play with a stand-in. The stand-in, Jorgen "⁠cromen⁠" Robertsen, came from obscurity and has faded back into it since, suggesting that it is even more impressive that FaZe managed to get anything done at the event with him in the lineup. The team also had to endure an even more gruelling and challenging grand final, going all five maps with a Chris "⁠chrisJ⁠" de Jong led MOUZ, one that featured a stand-in of their own in the form of Jordan "⁠n0thing⁠" Gilbert.

Ultimately this run falls short for several obvious reasons, the first being that the team FaZe beat in the grand-final was also not at full strength. Other factors working against the Belo Horizonte performance are the weaker field (FaZe beat two teams outside the top 20 to make it to the playoffs), the less robust format, and the simple fact that this tournament did not have the prestige of a Major or an IEM Katowice. Still well worth a mention, though.

North America finally wins the biggest prize

FaZe fans might want to skip this section. Sorry, but it has to be mentioned!

Fans of North-American Counter-Strike have had to endure years of hardship and ridicule. A region that at times has featured some of the best players in the world has drastically underperformed throughout CS:GO history. Of course there have been flashes of brilliance, such as Cloud9's brief stint as a true contender in summer 2015, Liquid's two Oleksandr "⁠s1mple⁠" Kostyliev-powered shock Major runs in 2016, and going even further back one could mention Complexity in 2014. It seemed for a long time, however, despite these aberrations, that North America was never going to have a team that could truly represent the region in the way that it maybe deserved, and more importantly that the biggest prize in CS:GO would never be brought home to NA.

Cloud9 came into the ELEAGUE Major 2018 in Boston in a decent spot, but they were miles away from anyone's thoughts when discussing potential winners of the tournament. They had some modest event wins in the recent memory, including DreamHack Open Denver and iBUYPOWER Masters, but ended the previous year in underwhelming fashion having exited ECS Season 4 Finals prior to the playoffs; so unfancied were the American squad that there wasn't a single mention of them in HLTV's preview highlighting the important storylines coming into the event. It wasn't, however, too much of a surprise to see the team storm through the Challengers Stage of the ELEAGUE Major with a 3-0 record considering they came into that stage as the second highest ranked team, and NA fans could hope that it was a positive sign of things to come.

The miracle that followed was a sight to behold, particularly considering just how it went down. You would be forgiven for forgetting that Cloud9 actually started the Legends Stage 0-2, having fallen to G2 and Space Soldiers in their opening games. They not only recovered, showing immense mental strength, but did so in emphatic fashion, winning their next three games with a combined 48-17 score to secure their playoff berth. When playoffs arrived, Cloud9 managed to beat three of the top five ranked teams in the world at the time, including #1 SK and #2 FaZe. I'm sure few have forgotten the epic manner in which they snatched the title away from FaZe in the grand final, coming back from an 11-15 deficit on CT-side Inferno to take the trophy in overtime.

To many, this will be the greatest fairy-tale run of all time, and it's not hard to see why; years of heartbreak for an entire region finally ended, in monumentally impressive fashion, in front of a home crowd and against all the odds. There were several little cherries on the cake too, such as the unlikely over-performance of waning AWPer and fan-favourite Tyler "⁠Skadoodle⁠" Latham, who stood out in the final in particular. Of course the fact that it was a Major also gives it a boon over the FaZe performance in Poland, perhaps the most compelling reason of all to put this performance ahead of the exploits of karrigan and company. In fact, this run might very well be the strongest challenger to FaZe in Katowice for the best fairy-tale run of all-time.

The understated Finns make a big statement

The Finns of ENCE found themselves tugging on the heartstrings in much the same way that the Brazilians of Luminosity did in 2015; they hailed from a country that had not experienced much in the way of success in CS:GO, and had ground their way to relevance in the good old-fashioned way; with hard work. Coming together in 2018 the team quietly worked their way up the ladder with consistently improving tournament performances, and by the time IEM Katowice 2019 came around they had some modest event wins under their belt, like the DreamHack Open Winter 2018 title, and had risen to #9 in the HLTV world rankings.

Despite building a solid resume and becoming a respected tier-one team, no-one could have predicted the magical run that ENCE would go on at IEM Katowice 2019 in their first Major as a lineup, and the first Major at all for many of the players. Making it all the way to the grand-final of a Major at a time where the scene was so competitive was no mean feat, and the manner in which they did it deserves immense credit. It is even more impressive considering the fact they began the Swiss stage 0-2, needing to display a mental fortitude to comeback that is becoming something of a theme in the fairy-tale runs explored in this article; they also had to face the three top ranked teams in the world during their run, beating two of them in the form of Liquid and Natus Vincere.

There was also something special about the team itself, a group of young and hungry up-comers rallying around veteran AWPer Aleksi "⁠allu⁠" Jalli who had experienced success in the game already, seeking to put their country on the map without even having the help of their homeland's best player at the time, Miikka "⁠suNny⁠" Kemppi.

As with some of the other runs on this list, the fact that Astralis proved a step too far in the final for the Finns means they can't quite claim the title of best fairy-tale run, as there aren't any other extraneous factors that might swing this debate in their favour. FaZe trump them as they won Katowice and faced more adversity along the way, Luminosity sport a stronger underdog story, and Cloud9's fabled Major run was more romantic. ENCE's 2019 Katowice run still deserves credit not only for the achievement itself, but for the way that it captured the imaginations of the Counter-Strike world, something that every single team and tournament performance on this list have managed to do.

In conclusion

There are a plethora of other standout tournament performances that could fall into the category of fairy-tale runs, however the amount of words needed to discuss them all would far exceed the attention span of pretty much everyone; see the end of this article for a list of honourable mentions that were considered but did not make the cut in the end. Even that list is far from exhaustive, so let us know any you think we have missed in the comments below.

Ultimately, the tournament run that any one person might consider the best fairy-tale run of all time comes down to preference. Some will value the adversity that FaZe had to face above all else, with not one but two players being struck down by COVID. Others will point to the historical significance of Cloud9's Major victory, finally bringing the most prestigious title in CS:GO to NA. Others still would prefer ENCE in Katowice, or Gambit in Krakow, or Ninjas in Pyjamas in Oakland, or any other majestic performance for a thousand different reasons, or combination of reasons.

What is beyond argument or critique is the fact that CS:GO has blessed us with some of the most dramatic, heart-wrenching and thrilling fairy-tale runs in all of esports. Our game seems to lend itself to Hollywood-style storylines, allow for tournament-long over-performances, and bring out the very best and most combative moments from the people that play it. There are so many reasons why we all love this game, and those reasons come together in many of these beautiful fairy-tale runs. Long live the fairy-tale run, and long live CS:GO.

Honourable mentions:

NIP at IEM Oakland 2016
NIP at IEM Oakland 2017
Gambit at PGL Major Krakow 2017
MOUZ at ESL One New York 2018
North at DreamHack Masters Stockholm 2018
fnatic at IEM Katowice 2018
Gambit at IEM Katowice 2021