StarSeries Season 5: First Champion Title for Natus Vincere in Two Years
StarSeries Season 5: First Champion Title for Natus Vincere in Two Years
The fifth season of StarSeries i-League concluded with the confident victory of Natus Vincere. In the grand finals they defeated NRG Esports, receiving $125,000 in prize money and their first championship since 2016.
The $300,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament started with a group stage on May 28th, which featured 16 teams competing in a Swiss system format with best-of-three series. Top eight teams advanced to the playoffs, while the others were eliminated. The results of the group stage can be found below.
Group Stage:
| # | Team | Matches | Rounds | RD |
| 1. | AGO Esports | 3-0 | 112-80 | +32 |
| 1. | SK Gaming | 3-0 | 114-93 | +21 |
| 3. | Team Liquid | 3-1 | 155-121 | +34 |
| 3. | Ninjas in Pyjamas | 3-1 | 116-103 | +13 |
| 3. | mousesports | 3-1 | 141-134 | +7 |
| 6. | Natus Vincere | 3-2 | 154-130 | +24 |
| 6. | North | 3-2 | 168-147 | +21 |
| 6. | NRG Esports | 3-2 | 142-128 | +14 |
| 9. | GODSENT | 2-3 | 159-144 | +15 |
| 9. | AVANGAR | 2-3 | 149-159 | -10 |
| 9. | Renegades | 2-3 | 138-195 | -57 |
| 12. | HellRaisers | 1-3 | 108-124 | -16 |
| 12. | Virtus.pro | 1-3 | 120-137 | -17 |
| 12. | TyLoo | 1-3 | 94-136 | -42 |
| 15. | Gambit Esports | 0-3 | 104-116 | -12 |
| 15. | VG.FlashGaming | 0-3 | 73-100 | -27 |
Both Natus Vincere and NRG Esports advanced to the playoffs from the sixth place in the group stage: Na`Vi lost to TyLoo (0-2) and mousesports (1-2), while defeated VG.FlashGaming (2-0), Virtus.pro (2-0) and AVANGAR (2-0); NRG started with two losses (0-2 to Team Liquid and 1-2 to Heroic), but then managed to bounce back by defeating VG.Flashgaming (2-0), HellRaisers (2-0) and Renegades (2-0).
The playoffs stage was held in a single-elimination format with best-of-three series, including the finals. On their way to the grand finals Na`Vi defeated SK Gaming (2-1) and mousesports (2-1), while NRG Esports managed to outplay Team Liquid (2-1) and North (2-1). In the grand finals the crowd-favourites from Na`Vi looked far stronger than their opponents and managed to secure the series with the 2-0 score (16:8 at Overpass; 16:7 at Mirage). Despite placing high at multiple events, this victory brought Na`Vi their first champions title since 2016, when they emerged victorious at ESL One: New York 2016.
Playoffs Bracket:
Tournament Results:
| Place | $ USD | Team |
| 1st | $125,000 | Natus Vincere |
| 2nd | $50,000 | NRG Esports |
| 3rd-4th | $25,000 | mousesports, North |
| 5th-8th | $10,000 | SK Gaming, Ninjas in Pyjamas, AGO Esports, Team Liquid |
| 9th-11th | $6,000 | AVANGAR, Renegades, DOGSENT |
| 12th-14th | $4,000 | TyLoo, HellRaisers, Virtus.pro |
| 15th-16th | $2,500 | VG.FlashGaming, Gambit Esports |