With the BLAST.tv Paris Major now behind us, we’re taking a look at the CS:GO ranking of the teams qualified for IEM Dallas 2023, and answering the big question on everyone’s mind – what’s next for professional Counter-Strike?
Credit: ESL
IEM Dallas 2023 Favorites – The Top CS:GO Rankings
Our favorite among the IEM Dallas teams has to be Heroic. It feels like a broken record at this point, with the team always coming so close but always missing out on the big prize. But with Vitality missing from the competition, and G2, FaZe, and Liquid in poor form, there’s no better opportunity for cadiaN and his men to get IEM Dallas 2023 over the finish line. With a point to prove and a rather favorable Group A draw, Heroic should move beyond the Group Stage with relative ease. It won’t be easy – it never is at this level, but we can definitely see a Heroic victory in Dallas.
Ones To Watch
The latest IEM Dallas CS:GO tournament also sees Cloud9, ENCE, and FaZe among the favorites. After Cloud9 missed the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023, they’ve had a lot of time to prepare for Dallas, so expect to see them climb the CS:GO ranking with a great performance. ENCE disappointed in Paris, but have a lot of firepower to set it right this time. With FaZe, you can never truly count this team out. It’s been a disappointing few months for them, but there’s too much individual quality there that can win matches all by themselves. They’re not our favorite among IEM Dallas teams, but we think the lower level of opposition could help FaZe regain form.
Finally, we’d love to see a much-improved Liquid at IEM Dallas 2023. There were signs of life for the NA roster at the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023, with the performances of NAF and YEKINDAR particular highlights. There will be some concerns over EliGE, but if he moves past his Major form, Liquid will have a big part to play in Dallas. After a tough year, oSee looks to finally be the Tier-1 AWPer this team needs, and his performance will be key.
Take a glance at our CS:GO ranking for all 16 teams looking to take the grand prize at IEM Dallas 2023 for themselves.
Heroic
Cloud9
FaZe
G2
Liquid
ENCE
FURIA
Astralis
MOUZ
Complexity
OG
Fnatic
9z Team
Grayhound Gaming
Evil Geniuses
Nouns Esports
Cloud9 can make a big return in Dallas. Credit: Adela Sznajder | © ESL
IEM Dallas 2023 Underdogs
We couldn’t discuss the CS:GO ranking of the latest Intel Extreme Masters event and not talk about the underdogs. We struggle to see a path to ultimate victory for these IEM Dallas teams, but we’d certainly love to see them try. For our money, the biggest IEM Dallas CS:GO underdog is Astralis. It’s always odd to call four-time CS:GO Major winners “underdogs,” but that’s exactly how you’d describe current Astralis.
There’s a lot to be excited about, though. After dropping Xyp9x for academy talent Altekz, Astralis have been smurfing in online Tier-2 tournaments, with dev1ce looking every bit the elite AWPer we know and love. If they can bring that form to IEM Dallas 2023, they can be a real problem.
dev1ce on LAN will be tough to handle. Credit: Helena Kristiansson | © ESL
We’re also curious about Fnatic‘s chances in Dallas. They’re always fun to root for, and as a late replacement for Virtus.pro, they can be even more unpredictable here. With CS:GO legend f0rest standing in for KRIMZ, they’ll be interesting to watch. Will they rise up the CS:GO ranking, or sink under pressure? We don’t have long to find out.
One More Underdog
The latest IEM Dallas CS:GO tournament represents an odd moment for OG in particular. Much has been made of this team lately, with many events being played with a stand-in for different players. The reasons have differed, and we’re yet to see this team at full strength. IEM Dallas 2023 will be no different, with free agent regali standing in for degster.
There is one thing that makes this so interesting – the contract situation at OG. It’s rumored that many of the contracts of this OG team are soon to expire, meaning they’ll be free to move on to other rosters. This makes IEM Dallas 2023 one of their final opportunities to impress on the big stage, and play their way into a lucrative new contract with a bigger team. With regali a free agent, this includes him, too. If they play with that in mind, they could make a strong run in Dallas.
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