Notable players missing the PGL Copenhagen CS2 Major

The long-awaited maiden Counter-Strike 2 Major is finally here. The PGL Copenhagen CS2 Major is scheduled to begin this weekend on March 17 and the best teams from around the world will be taking the stage in Denmark, though a few legendary individuals will miss the event.

During each Counter-Strike Major cycle, several favorite teams are defeated by underdogs. Combined with the arguably flawed Buchholz system and the Swiss format, big names fail to qualify for the Valve-sponsored tournaments from time to time.

Here are eight of the most notable players to miss out on the first CS2 Major in Denmark.

Magisk and dupreeh

Let’s start by breaking down the elephants in the room, who in this case are Magisk and dupreeh—the previous Major winners with Team Vitality. The Danish duo conquered the stage in Paris last May and went their separate ways as Magisk joined Falcons while dupreeh ended up in Preasy. Expectations were sky-high for Magisk and way more grounded for dupreeh, but they both met the same fate—knocked out in the EU RMR.

For both players, it’s a huge letdown. It’s the first Major in Denmark, and missing such an event in your home country is always heartbreaking. Dupreeh holds the record for the most Majors won in CS:GO with five to his name and attended every CS Major prior to Copenhagen—all 19 of them. Magisk is also no newcomer to Valve-sponsored events, with four trophies under his belt. The kings are dead, long live the kings? We’ll see soon enough.

Dev1ce

Since we’re talking about Danes, let’s not forget another historic player from that country who won’t have the chance to shine in front of the home crowd: dev1ce. The AWPer is part of Astralis, which assembled a true Danish superteam by the end of last year and looked to rekindle the form of old. Yet, the superteam imploded rapidly and also finished in the bottom eight at the RMR. 

For Astralis itself, it’s going to be a third Major missed in a row, so one could argue the legendary organization has grown used to missing Valve’s tournaments. But you can’t help but feel for dev1ce who, like Magisk, holds four Major titles. More importantly, due to his outstanding form between 2015 and 2019, he was considered by many to be the best player in the world.

He still has the brilliance as he recorded only two events with ratings below one in the last four years according to stats site HLTV, and it’s this plus his legacy why his absence in Copenhagen pains CS2 fans.

Twistzz and cadiaN

When you mention superteams imploding, you can’t miss Team Liquid. The North American organization pulled a few strings in the last transfer window and brought in names like Twistzz and cadiaN—but their plan for Major qualification backfired spectacularly.

Both are Counter-Strike legends for different reasons. Twistzz is an Intel Grand Slam and Major winner, with his former FaZe Clan squad considered the strongest in the game in the early days of CS2. CadiaN and his former team Heroic also fought for the top spot dozens of times in recent years.

However, the Danish IGL made himself known to the community through his unmatched passion, energy, and commitment. Having two prominent figures miss the first CS2 Major will certainly make it less exciting.

Seized and 9Pandas

We originally listed Snax here in our list as the Polish legend—alongside TaZ over in the G2 coaching position—are the last active remnants of the almighty Virtus.pro lineup of old. However, after a late call from tournament organizer PGL, it’s fair to say 9Pandas team captain seized and his squad fit this position much more.

Snax and GamerLegion will now be competing at the Copenhagen Major after PGL ruled 9Pandas out due to visa issues with multiple players unable to travel to the event. It’s a cruel end to a comeback of the ages for seized, who has gone six years without an appearance at a Major. Prior to 9Pandas, seized is a 12-time Major attendee with multiple grand final appearances.

Seized and 9Pandas have toughed it out and grinded back through Europe over the past year, finally cracking the Major with a win over GamerLegion in the EU RMR last-chance qualifier—but now their Major dreams have been shattered. It’s a brutal end for the squad who will now watch the Copenhagen Major from the sidelines.

KRIMZ

KRIMZ is a true CS:GO and Fnatic legend who’s been with the organization for almost ten years now (apart from a short break in 2016). The 29-year-old is the only active player on the top level to be part of the legendary Fnatic team who dominated the CS:GO scene in 2015 and 2016. Each player from that lineup is absent in Copenhagen and hasn’t attended a Major in a while, with KRIMZ being an exception from the latter, attending two previous events in Rio de Janeiro and Paris.

Additionally, in the past few months, Fnatic has been in poor form, so the roster missing the Major is all but surprising, but KRIMZ’s absence will always be felt. After all, he’s a true legend of the competition who transformed the way CS:GO was played numerous times. Fnatic established the first true era of domination in the previous version of the games, and they went down in history as a roster for the ages.

S1mple

Last but not least, we need to mention the biggest GOAT of Counter-Strike. The man, the myth, the legend: s1mple. Despite redefining CS:GO numerous times, the Ukrainian star will miss the event in Denmark due to a break from competition he took by the end of 2023.

However, s1mple’s more of an honorable mention because technically he’s an official substitute for Natus Vincere in case things go south and one of the main players picks up and injury or illness. But this almost never happens at the Majors, so the star will very likely miss the event.

S1mple announced his return at IEM Katowice 2024 and then subbed in for Falcons at BLAST Premier Spring Showdown 2024, but they were defeated in the first round by Metizport. At the time of writing, s1mple’s future remains uncertain, and it will probably remain that way until the end of the Major.