2023-05-21 10:43:54
At the Accor Arena in Bercy, 12,000 excited fans attended Saturday the qualification of the French team Vitality for the final of the ultimate Major of Counter-Strike, a historic first which will take place this Sunday at 5:00 p.m. “I’m really happy with our performance. Everyone was at the level to bring this final to the French public. It’s an incredible feeling,” team captain Dan “apEX” Madesclaire, 30, reacted after the victory as thousands of fans sang the Marseillaise.
The French club, which celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, overcame in two sets (16-14, 16-12) the Norwegians of Apeks, little thumb of the competition. The prodigy Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, twice voted best player in the world (2019, 2020), assumed his role as a superstar by chaining prowess mouse in hand. “There is a lot of emotion. A Major organized in Paris, we had been waiting for ten years. So in addition to Vitality being qualified and in top form, it’s just incredible,” rejoiced Maxime Chabby, 20-year-old sound engineer. Dressed in the official yellow and black t-shirt of his favorite team, he came with several friends to attend the semi-finals of the first Major organized in France, the last of the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive era before the release of a continued this summer.
Production licked
For fans and players, the stakes are high: winning a Major is the equivalent of a Grand Slam victory in tennis, separating the good players from the legends of the game. Valve, the American publisher of the title, has planned an overall endowment of 1.25 million dollars (1.15 million euros) for the occasion.
In the stands of the sports hall, clapping, chants of supporters and cries of encouragement began from the first game of the day, opposing the Danes of Heroic and their leader Casper “cadiaN” Moeller, 27, to the German team Gamer Legion. “My favorite player was eliminated in qualifying, but “cadiaN” has been trying to win a Major since 2013. It’s an example of perseverance so I hope it will pay off,” explained Oksana Amery, 23, during the match. , Franco-Ukrainian in the jersey flocked with the nickname “S1mple”, Ukrainian player considered the best in history.
Alas, the Germans finally won 2 sets to 1 and will face Vitality in the final. In the dark enclosure of the room, the floor was filled with fans all day, seated in front of a circular stage, overlooked by a giant screen.
The principle of a meeting has been the same since the release of the original game more than twenty years ago: two teams compete to detonate a bomb or kill all their opponents before the end of a two-minute round. After ten years of tournaments organized on the current version of the game, the production is more polished than ever. When a team places a bomb, the contours of the giant screen and the lights of the bleachers take on a red hue to warn of the imminence of the explosion.
Orchestra and smoke bombs
When a player manages to eliminate several opponents, real flames spring from the front of the stage under the unleashed cries of the public. “We take our eyes off for hours”, was satisfied from the first row Joao, 28, from Brazil where the shooter is very popular.
Since the start of the final stages on Thursday, the show has also been on the outskirts of Bercy, where the supporters of each organization tease each other with a lot of predictions. For Vitality’s entry into the running, the Golden Hornets – the team’s supporters’ association, whose official logo is a bee – marched by the hundreds, accompanied by an orchestra, banners and smoke bombs.
“It’s a magnificent celebration of e-sport,” said Fabien “Néo” Devide, boss of Vitality, shortly before the semi-final. “Kids, we dreamed of being able to fill the stadiums and live from our passion. To see all this enthusiasm today is a lot of pride (…) Now we have a story to mark, ”he said. The kick-off of the final between Vitality and Gamer Legion will be given on Sunday at 5:00 p.m.
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