All Grand Slam Winners In Counter-Strike History
Since its inception in 2017, the ESL Grand Slam (formerly “Intel Grand Slam”) has been a way for teams to define their era in Counter-Strike history. It features the world’s best squads fighting over months—or even years—for a $1 million prize, represented by gold bars serving as a trophy.
To earn a Grand Slam, Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) teams must win three ESL Pro Tour (EPT) Masters and one EPT Championship: Katowice (Krakow from 2026), Cologne, or an ESL-run Major Championship. It’s a huge challenge, made tougher by the rule that it must all happen within ten consecutive events.
As you can tell, winning an ESL Grand Slam is a badge of honor, representing a defining moment when a team proves dominance on the server for an extended period. With that, let’s celebrate all the Grand Slam winners in Counter-Strike history.
Image source: ESL
All CS2 ESL Grand Slam Winners
To date, only ESL Grand Slam Season 5 has concluded in the CS2 era, with Season 6 now in progress. Below, you’ll find the full list of CS2 ESL Grand Slam winners along with each season’s start and end dates.
Please note: We’ll endeavor to update the table above as soon as another ESL Grand Slam is claimed.
| Season | Winner | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ESL Grand Slam Season 5 | Team Vitality | April 17, 2023 | April 27, 2025 |
| ESL Grand Slam Season 6 | TBD | May 19, 2025 | TBD |
Image source: ESL / X
Team Vitality Wins ESL Grand Slam Season 5
ESL Grand Slam Season 5 technically began with IEM Rio 2023 during the CS:GO era, which Team Vitality won by beating HEROIC 2-0 on April 23, 2023. However, Team Vitality went on to win the four required tournaments within ten consecutive events following the release of CS2.
Despite FaZe Clan, MOUZ, G2 Esports, and NAVI all winning two events, it was Team Vitality who managed to complete ESL Grand Slam Season 5. They won IEM Cologne 2024 with a 3-1 score over NAVI on August 18, 2024.
Half a year later, at IEM Katowice 2025, Team Vitality beat Team Spirit with a 3-0 clean sweep in the Grand Final on February 9, 2025. As part of their historic seven S-Tier tournament win streak, Team Vitality demolished MOUZ 3-0 in the Grand Final of EPL Season 22 on March 16, 2025.
To claim the ESL Grand Slam Season 5 prize, Team Vitality beat Team Falcons in a dramatic 3-2 Grand Final at IEM Melbourne on April 27, 2025, with triple overtime required on the decider map to win the tournament.
Team Vitality roster in Grand Slam Season 5:
- Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut
- Shahar “flameZ” Shushan
- William “mezii” Merriman
- Robin “ropz” Kool
- Dan “apEX” Madesclaire (IGL)
- Danny “zonic” Sørensen (Coach)
Image source: ESL
All CS:GO Intel Grand Slam Winners
The Intel Grand Slam began in 2017 with headline sponsor Intel and organizer ESL teaming up. Here are all CS:GO Intel Grand Slam winners, including the season start and end dates, to showcase the scope and timespan.
| Season | Winner | Start Date | End Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intel Grand Slam Season 1 | Astralis | July 4, 2017 | December 9, 2018 |
| Intel Grand Slam Season 2 | Team Liquid | February 14, 2019 | July 7, 2019 |
| Intel Grand Slam Season 3 | NAVI | July 18, 2019 | September 12, 2021 |
| Intel Grand Slam Season 4 | FaZe Clan | December 2, 2021 | March 26, 2023 |
Astralis Wins Intel Grand Slam Season 1
The Danish powerhouse roster of Astralis was a near-unstoppable force in 2018 and 2019, winning three Major Championships. Their historic dominance was further cemented by claiming the first-ever Grand Slam.
Astralis won DreamHack Masters Marseille with a 2-0 score over NAVI in the Grand Final on April 22, 2018—all without dropping a single map. At EPL Season 7 in Dallas, they barreled through the Group Stage and Playoffs undefeated, before taking down Team Liquid 3-1 to lock in the win on May 20, 2018.
At IEM Season XIII Chicago, Astralis crushed Team Liquid 3-0 to win the tournament on November 11, 2018. Needing only one more win, they triumphed again in Odense, Denmark, defeating Team Liquid 3-1 in the EPL Season 8 Grand Final on December 9, 2018, to become the first Intel Grand Slam champions.
Astralis roster in Grand Slam Season 1:
- Nicolai “device” Reedtz
- Peter “dupreeh” Rasmussen
- Emil “Magisk” Reif
- Andreas “Xyp9x” Højsleth
- Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander (IGL)
- Danny “zonic” Sørensen (Coach)
Image source: ESL / Helena Kristiansson
Team Liquid Wins Intel Grand Slam Season 2
Astralis opened Season 2 by winning the IEM Katowice Major 2019 tournament on March 3. After repeatedly losing to Astralis in previous Grand Finals, Team Liquid went on a historic rampage, winning four qualifying events back-to-back to secure the fastest Grand Slam in Counter-Strike history.
At IEM XIV Sydney, Team Liquid beat Fnatic 3-2 in a thrilling Grand Final series on May 5, 2019. Less than a month later, they defeated ENCE 2-1 at DreamHack Masters Dallas 2019. In Montpellier, Team Liquid extended their lead by winning EPL Season 9 after beating G2 Esports 3-1 on June 23.
Two weeks later, Cologne’s iconic Lanxess Arena set the stage for Team Liquid’s historic Intel Grand Slam Season 2 victory. Riding the momentum, they beat Team Vitality 3-1 in the Grand Final of ESL One Cologne 2019 on July 7, lifting the coveted trophy and claiming the $1 million Grand Slam prize.
Team Liquid roster in Grand Slam Season 2:
- Jonathan “EliGE” Jablonowski
- Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken
- Keith “NAF” Markovic
- Jacky “Stewie2K” Yip
- Nicholas “nitr0” Cannella (IGL)
- Eric “adreN” Hoag (Coach)
Image source: ESL / Stephanie Lieske
NAVI Wins Intel Grand Slam Season 3
On March 20, 2020, NAVI won the IEM XIV World Championship LAN in Katowice, marking the start of their campaign to win the Intel Grand Slam Season 3. As fate would have it, the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the cancellation of several events.
NAVI won the DreamHack Masters Spring 2021 online tournament dramatically, reverse sweeping both FURIA and HEROIC on their way to the Grand Final, where they beat Gambit Esports 3-0 on May 9.
IEM Season XVI Cologne marked the first big Grand Slam on LAN since the start of the pandemic. NAVI thrived, topping Group B before smashing FaZe Clan 2-0 to make it to the Grand Final. On July 18, 2021, NAVI beat G2 Esports with a sweeping 3-0 in the Grand Final to win the tournament.
Online via the European servers, EPL Season 14 marked the end of the Intel Grand Slam Season 3. NAVI eliminated ENCE 2-0 and HEROIC 2-1 to make it to the Grand Final, where they beat Team Vitality in a 3-2 nailbiter on September 12, 2021.
NAVI roster in Grand Slam Season 3:
- Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev
- Denis “electronic” Sharipov
- Valerii “b1t” Vakhovskyi
- Ilya “Perfecto” Zalutskiy
- Kirill “Boombl4” Mikhailov (IGL)
- Andrii “B1ad3” Horodenskyi (Coach)
Image source: ESL / Adela Sznajder
FaZe Clan Wins Intel Grand Slam Season 4
Led by red-hot rifler Robin “ropz” Kool, FaZe Clan began their Intel Grand Slam Season 4 campaign with a flawless 3-0 win at IEM XVI Katowice, convincingly taking down G2 Esports in the Grand Final on February 27, 2022. FaZe didn’t lose a single map in the Playoffs Stage with a 7-0 record.
With the Katowice triumph still fresh, FaZe Clan impressed in Düsseldorf, Germany, winning the EPL Season 15 Grand Final with a 3-1 score over ENCE on April 10, 2022. A few months later at IEM XVII Cologne, they dominated in Germany again, topping their group with a clean 6-0 record.
In the Playoffs, FaZe Clan made quick work of Movistar Riders with a 2-0 victory. On July 17, 2022, FaZe Clan pulled off a thrilling comeback in the Grand Final against NAVI, coming back from being 1-2 down to win 3-2 to lift the IEM XVII Cologne trophy.
Eight months and a handful of events later, FaZe Clan finally completed the Intel Grand Slam Season 4 in Malta. Rallied by Finn “karrigan” Andersen, FaZe Clan beat Cloud9 with a 3-1 score in a best-of-five Grand Final on March 26, 2023, lifting the EPL Season 17 trophy.
FaZe Clan roster in Grand Slam Season 4:
- Håvard “rain” Nygaard
- Helvijs “broky” Saukants
- Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken
- Robin “ropz” Kool
- Finn “karrigan” Andersen (IGL)
- Robert “RobbaN” Dahlström (Coach)
Image source: ESL
FAQs
Who has won the $100,000 Giant Killer Bonus in the ESL Grand Slam?
After five seasons, no team has won the $100,000 “giant killer” bonus. This award goes to a team that denies another team a Grand Slam win in a tournament’s final.
Has any Counter-Strike team ever won two ESL Grand Slams?
No Counter-Strike team has ever achieved two ESL Grand Slam titles.
Which Counter-Strike 2 team won the fastest ESL Grand Slam season?
Team Liquid completed the fastest Grand Slam run in history, dominating from February 14 to July 7, 2019, taking less than five months (143 days) to win Season 2.
Why did the Intel Grand Slam change its name to ESL Grand Slam?
The name changed in March 2025, following a renewed multi-year partnership between ESL FACEIT Group and Intel. ESL later clarified that the Grand Slam was no longer part of that partnership, prompting the rebrand.
Have any CS2 players won two ESL Grand Slams?
Two players have done it: Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken, who won with Team Liquid (Season 2) and FaZe Clan (Season 4), and Robin “ropz” Kool, who triumphed with FaZe Clan (Season 4) and Team Vitality (Season 5).
