Counter-Strike returns to the Esports World Cup for just the second time in its history in 2025 with Counter-Strike 2 at EWC 25. Beginning on August 20, the tournament will feature 16 of the world’s best CS2 teams, battling for supremacy and to be crowned an Esports World Cup champion. The start date is growing ever closer, and it’s time to look at the tournament itself, the potential favorites, and other essential details.
Image source: Esports World Cup
CS2 at the Esports World Cup will begin on Aug. 20 and run until the grand final on Aug. 24. Fans will witness 16 of the best teams battle it out to take the victory. Winning will result in them sharing the $500,000 prize money and 1,000 club championship points, too. 15 teams earned direct invites after finishing their placement in the Valve Regional Standings; the 16th team was TYLOO, who earned their place by winning the Asian Champions League.
The prize pool for CS2 at EWC 25 is $1,250,000, one of the largest in all of CS for 2025.
The split for the winners is as follows:
That means every team will walk away with at least $20,000, just for qualifying!
CS2 at EWC 25 will feature a single, pre-seeded single-elimination bracket. All matches are in Bo3. There will also be a third-place match on the same day as Grand Finals. In the EWC, this is important as teams earn Esports World Cup Club Points as well just prize money for their finish.
Image source: Esports World Cup
After taking a little look at the basics about the tournament, it’s time to look at all of the teams that will be taking part in the tournament. There’ll be 16 teams, and they include:
Below, we’ll be going through some of the favorites.
The clear favorite among fans would be Team Spirit. The team were most recently were victorious at PGL Astana 2025 and Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2025, making them one of the top teams around.
They have star power with prodigy Danil “donk” Kryshkovets, who is considered the best rifler in CS2 currently. With his high impact and mechanical superiority, Team Spirit is a force to be reckoned with.
From their tactical discipline, their versatility within the map pool, and their consistent wins within tier one events, Team Spirit has become the favorite to take the overall victory come August 24.
The second favorite to take victory is Team Vitality, with some strong odds in the betting markets. Their recent titles include wins at IEM Dallas 2025, as well as some notable deep bracket runs.
Their star power? Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut is considered one of the most complete players in CS history, due to his dominance with both rifle and AWP.
Being able to withstand pressure and large crowds, Team Vitality thrives in front of crowds and remains unfazed by high-stakes playoff scenarios. Their consistent core lineup puts them as favorites for some.
Another one of the favorites to win the tournament is FaZe. They are multiple-time Major and LAN winners, and have proven that they can win under pressure.
Having several players that bring them the wow-factor, including Helvijs “broky” Saukants, David “frozen” Čerňanský, and Håvard “rain” Nygaard, will bring them a huge advantage in terms of aim and clutch potential.
They have an aggressive style with their fast-paced decision-making. This often catches their opponents off guard relatively quickly in maps. This team thrives on chaos.
Fans can tune into this through the EWC YouTube and Twitch channels. The tournament can also be followed live on the EWC’s official website.
Counter-Strike 2 first appeared at the Esports World Cup in 2024, with the event having been held just once before. Despite that, it’s already become one of the most-watched tournaments on the calendar. In 2024, the CS2 event became the 5th most-watched of that year.
The tournament had an average of around 238,000 concurrent viewers, with a peak of around 756,000 viewers during the Grand Final.
Viewers watched Navi defeat G2 2-1, and take home the prize money of $400,000 after winning both Mirage and Nuke. They beat the other 14 teams, and Valeriy “b1t” Vakhovskiy took MVP of the tournament.
Fans are able to watch the tournament through EWC’s YouTube and Twitch channels, which will be broadcasting every match. You can also watch directly on the EWC’s website.
The tournament will be contested in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It is set to begin on August 20 and end on August 24, where the grand final will take place to crown a champion.
Natus Vincere took victory in 2024, after a best-of-three series with G2 Esports. The round finished 2 -1 in favor of NAVI, and took home $400,000 in prize money.
There is a total prize pool of $1,250,000 for the 2025 competition. Additionally, there will be an MVP of the tournament who will take home an extra $10,000 on top of their share of the $500,000 first-place prize.
