Natus Vincere are the freshly crowned CS2 Major champions, but some of their Copenhagen Major stats might catch you by surprise
Despite their storied history, Natus Vincere were not one of the biggest favorites to lift the 2024 PGL Copenhagen Major. They had a newly assembled squad that still appeared to be on fine tuning mode. The uncertainty over star man Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyljev’s future cast a dark shadow over NAVI’s campaign, but they overcame all obstacles to become the first-ever CS2 Major champion. The Copenhagen Major stats, however, suggests that the Ukrainian powerhouse have underperformed across several key metrics in the competition.
NAVI’s Copenhagen Major Stats: What Are the Anomalies?
In a feat never seen before, NAVI secured the Major championship despite winning less than half of the total rounds played. This unprecedented achievement, highlighted by analyst Jacob “Pimp” Winneche, has left many Counter-Strike fans baffled.
NAVI won the major winning less than 50% of the rounds they played, I bet you that’s never ever happened before.
When they won it was close, tight, well fought games.
When they lost it was often non competitive maps.
That’s both crazy impressive, and slightly worrying 😝 https://t.co/vtqqQ7G3HY
— Jacob “Pimp” Winneche (@PimpCS2) April 1, 2024
The raw numbers wouldn’t have predicted NAVI’s victory at the PGL Major Copenhagen. The Copenhagen Major stats imply that Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen and company were somewhat lucky to lift the trophy. They finished with a negative kill-death ratio, a total deficit of 37 kills across 18 maps. Interestingly, their pistol round win rate remained close to 50%. This suggests NAVI might have struggled in sustained engagements but capitalized on early opportunities, defying expectations based solely on kill stats.
Credit: PGL
A deep dive into Major history confirms Pimp’s observation – NAVI’s sub-50% round win rate stands alone. It’s the lowest recorded for any Major champion, eclipsing the previous mark of 51% set by NiP at ESL One Cologne 2014. This never-before-seen development adds another layer of intrigue to NAVI’s remarkable Copenhagen Major victory.
Natus Vincere also surpassed Ninjas in Pyjamas’ record for most grand final appearancesin Counter-Strike Majors, despite both teams previously only managing to secure one Major trophy each. Now, NAVI joins the exclusive club of organizations with multiple Major wins, a group previously consisting solely of Fnatic and Astralis.
NAVI secured their record-breaking Major title with a thrilling 2-1 victory over FaZe Clan in a back-and-forth grand final. The series saw close battles on Ancient (13:9) and Inferno (13:3), with FaZe dominating Mirage (2:13).
Credit: HLTV
NAVI’s Copenhagen Major triumph was fueled by both veteran leadership and rising stars. Justinas “jL” Lekavicius’ stellar performance earned him the MVP title, highlighting his exceptional talent. Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen’s strategic prowess shone brightly as he masterfully led a team with less experience to the ultimate prize. The win marked a second Major title for both Valerij “B1T” Vakhovkyj and coach Andrij “b1ad3” Ghorodenskyj, a shared accomplishment that further cements their place among the Counter-Strike greats.