eSports
Intel® Extreme Masters Sydney 2023: FaZe Clan crowned the first-ever Counter-Strike 2 Champions following an electrifying Grand Final
The Intel® Extreme Masters (IEM) Sydney 2023 Grand Finals have concluded today, with powerhouse FaZe Clan emerging victorious with a score of 2-1 against Complexity. The first international in-person tournament played on Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) saw a nail-biting final, with FaZe Clan claiming the victory after an exhilarating double overtime final set, in what will surely go down as an iconic IEM final.
IEM Sydney 2023 is both the fastest-selling and largest Australian esports tournament in history. Australian Counter-Strike fans returned in force to the first live IEM Sydney in over 4 years, with 20,000 fans in attendance throughout the Playoffs in the Aware Super Theatre.
Group Stage
The tournament commenced on October 16 with a Group Stage during which the teams were divided into two groups of eight. Group A saw MOUZ dominate the upper bracket, with BetBoom Team coming in a close second. Both teams made it through to the Playoffs, alongside FaZe Clan who fought through the lower bracket for their spot, knocking out Natus Vincere in the process.
In Group B, G2 Esports and ENCE secured the top two spots in the upper bracket, and Complexity beat out Monte in the lower bracket final to claim the final spot in the Playoffs.
Playoffs
The Playoffs kicked off on October 20 with the quarterfinals that saw MOUZ, FaZe Clan, G2 Esports, and Complexity make it to the top four.
FaZe Clan showed their strength early during the Playoffs with a 13-0 win over ENCE, the first time a team has 13-0’d a competitor in a live Counter-Strike 2 tournament. Complexity also started their playoffs run strong with a 2-0 against BetBoom Team.
In the semi-finals, FaZe Clan dominated MOUZ winning 2-0, taking the first set 13-4 on Nuke, before converting a closer win of 13-9 on Vertigo.
Complexity also scored a 2-0 semi-final victory, dispatching G2 Esports, storming home 13-8 on Anubis, before winning the second set more comfortably 13-3 on Ancient, with Ricky “floppy” Kemery posting some impressive stats.
Grand Final
FaZe Clan and Complexity both booked their places in the Grand Final with impressive performances during the Playoffs where neither team dropped a map.
The first set of the Grand Final was incredibly tight, with Complexity eventually edging out a 13-11 win in the final round of the set, following a brilliant comeback. FaZe Clan rallied for set 2, winning it 13-11 and bringing the match to the decisive third set.
The third set nearly saw one of the greatest comebacks of IEM history, with Complexity recovering from 9-3 down, to win six consecutive games to bring it back to 10-9. In a nail-biting final few rounds, Complexity continued their magical form to take the Grand Final to overtime, and then a second overtime. Despite Complexity’s resurgence, FaZe Clan were able to recover, dominating the second overtime to take home the trophy, with Robin ‘Ropz’ Kool taking the title of ESL Pro Tour DHL MVP.
“It feels amazing to be the first CS2 champions,” said Håvard “rain” Nygaard of FaZe Clan. “I want to say thank you to all our fans here and around the world. This was hands down the best crowd I’ve ever played in front of.”
“It feels great, we’ve spent so much time practicing CS2 together before this,” said Robin ‘ropz’ Kool. “The first loss against GamerLegion hurt, but we stuck with it and managed to come back. It’s been a turbulent year for us, but I’ve been playing as much as possible, and CS2 gave us the motivational boost to improve our performance and work harder for this IEM.”
IEM Sydney 2023 saw a peak viewership of more than 463,081* concurrent viewers, over 6.6 million hours watched and attracted more than 20,000 attendees.
THE CACHES IV Showmatch
Ahead of the Grand Final on October 22, THE CACHES IV Showmatch Powered by Intel® and Acer Predator took place, which saw Team Australia and Team UK face off once more following a 4-year hiatus. Chad “SPUNJ” Burchill, Joshua “INS” Potter, Christopher “dexter” Nong, Justin “jks” Savage, Declan “Vexite” Portelli, Chris “GoMeZ” Orfanellis (Coach) represented Australia, while Alex “Hawka” Hawkins, Guy “NertZ” Iluz, Sebastian “volt” Maloș, Vladislav “nafany” Gorshkov and Henry “HenryG” Greer lined up in the British corner.
The match started closely, with both teams taking a few rounds each. However, Team Australia eventually got into a winning rhythm and swept away Team UK 13-7, winning The Caches for the fourth consecutive time. The showmatch also marked the launch of the Intel® Core™ 14th Gen Desktop Processor.
The ESL Pro Tour (EPT) for Counter-Strike continues with the currently ongoing ESL Challenger League Season 46, which will conclude on December 3. The year will be closed off by ESL Challenger Jönköping on November 24-26 and ESL Challenger Atlanta on December 15-17, before kicking off 2024 with a bang with the EPT Championship IEM Katowice 2024 on January 31-February 11.
eSports
PandaScore’s premade esports BetBuilder breaks onto the scene
After a highly successful launch of its dedicated esports BetBuilder, PandaScore’s premade BetBuilder – or Prebuilt markets– is live across its full client base.
PandaScore’s Prebuilt markets give operators the ability to tap into the rich storytelling behaviours that are key to esports engagement, through ready-made BetBuilder wagers in a simpler, sweeter fashion.
Prebuilt markets are available across all three major titles: Counter-Strike, Dota 2 and League of Legends. Additionally, Prebuilt markets will launch with the inclusion of Valorant, and PandaScore’s trailblazing Valorant player props – a hotly sought-after feature as bet volumes on the game continue to grow.
PandaScore’s Prebuilt markets are live with two primary premade options for bettors to choose, both a combination of Match Winner 2-way and player props. On these markets, Antoine Vallespir, PandaScore Product Manager stated “we’re starting with two MVP-focused storylines: a team’s star player popping off and carrying his team to victory, and a star player being shut down, with his team unable to win.”
This combination serves as a key starting point based on extensive user research over the last six months of PandaScore’s BetBuilder product. Esports bettors were combining these two markets to the point where it was almost a compulsory combination.
Along with tailoring Prebuilt markets bets to specific teams and players within teams, operators will be able to create wagers that develop and tell the story of a competition during its lifecycle. Additionally, part of the product’s strength is also that it’s incredibly flexible: PandaScore will be updating and rolling out new combinations based on BetBuilder feedback.
Prebuilt markets are also one of the simplest integrations available to operators. It functions like any other single market: if you know how to integrate a Winner 2-way market, you can integrate our Prebuilt markets.
PandaScore CEO Flavien Guillocheau commented that “tailored, personalised experiences are not the exception, but the expectation in modern entertainment – the same goes for betting. We confirmed the popularity of our BetBuilder, and with it comes freedom of choice but complexity of product. Prebuilt markets allow you to switch from the complex to the simple, to offer operators easy access to a market-leading product and to give all types of esports bettors the most exciting betting opportunities in esports.”
eSports
DATA.BET Launches Esports Bet Builder
The company advances the betting experience for esports fans
DATA.BET, a leading esports betting provider, releases Bet Builder, designed to create highly customized compound bets within a single match, offering a thrilling experience for professional bettors and avid esports enthusiasts.
Unlike traditional express bets, which span across multiple events, Bet Builder operates within a single event. It allows players to tailor their bets with flexibility, making it ideal for skillful users who deeply understand the game and seek a more personalized and strategic betting experience. With Bet Builder, users can bet on a wide range of markets within a single event, freely combining their selections without any restrictions.
In addition to its powerful functionality, this product is versatile in its integration. It can be seamlessly connected to any platform via API, allowing operators to offer this premium feature without technical limitations.
The novelty is already available for Counter-Strike 2 and will soon expand to cover other popular esports titles such as Valorant, League of Legends, and other disciplines.
“Our Bet Builder is a game-changer in the esports betting landscape,” said Rostyslav Likhtin, Head of Product at DATA.BET. “We’ve developed a sophisticated mathematical model that allows us to offer this feature on compound events without compromising on profitability. Beyond providing a unique experience that boosts engagement rates, loyalty, and expands the user base, it also significantly increases the operator’s turnover from the existing audience. Additionally, Bet Builder helps attract new players who are eager to explore combined bets on popular sports, allowing them to become more familiar with these disciplines.”
eSports
BETBY EXPANDS ESPORTS PORTFOLIO WITH LAUNCH OF eSTREETBALL
BETBY, a leading provider of premium sportsbook solutions, has announced the addition of eStreetball to its BETBY Games esports content portfolio, further enhancing its impressive lineup of e-simulator sports. BETBY Games now features nine different sports, hosting over 50 tournaments across various disciplines.
The newly introduced eStreetball title brings players the excitement of three unique tournaments: NBA All-Star, NBA All-Classic, and CBA All-Star. Combining state-of-the-art graphics with extensive betting options, the game delivers an exhilarating and immersive experience for esports enthusiasts.
Each eStreetball match offers rapid gameplay, with games concluding in just seven minutes. For an enhanced betting experience, the game provides more than 10 betting markets, including options like winner, total points, home total, away total, handicap, odd/even, and race to points. This latest addition follows a series of recent updates to BETBY Games’ esports portfolio, showcasing the company’s commitment to delivering innovative and engaging content for its partners.
Kirill Nekrasov, Head of BETBY Games, commented: “We were thrilled with the success of our recent Classic eBasketball release, which motivated us to accelerate the launch of new content for this game. We’ve now introduced another basketball-based sport, and I’m confident it will resonate with both casual players who enjoy quick bets and instant outcomes, as well as esports enthusiasts who are always eager for new disciplines.
He added that: “We are continually striving to innovate and enhance our offerings, aiming to provide the best possible esports experience for our partners and their players. The introduction of Streetball to BETBY Games’ e-simulator portfolio reflects our dedication to the esports sector. By delivering top-tier content, we empower our partners to differentiate themselves in the market while keeping players engaged, particularly during periods when live sports events may be limited.”
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