The group stage portion of the StarLadder Budapest Major is over. Eight teams are still in title contention, with 24 other squads failing to qualify for the playoffs.
Despite not making it to the MVM Dome, plenty of teams can be proud of their Major campaigns as they punched above their weight and delivered quality performances against the world’s best.
Here’s what teams made an impression in the Major group stages.
B8 secured a 9-11 placing at the Major. Credit: © StarLadder
Being the team with the youngest average age at the Major, one might have expected B8 to struggle with the nerves and pressure. However, the Ukrainians were nothing but solid throughout their Major campaign.
They comfortably advanced through the first two stages with a 3-1 record in each, beating decent teams like Liquid, 3DMAX, and Legacy along the way. Stage 3 began equally well, with B8 stopping the Falcons’ 10-map Ancient win streak.
Things turned for the worse later, when they got blown out by two contender teams, MOUZ and Vitality. A victory over paiN meant they had a chance to make the playoffs in a rematch against NAVI, but ultimately, it wasn’t to be.
Overall, the StarLadder Budapest Major was a big success for B8, and they should be extremely proud of what they accomplished. Additionally, the Ukrainians earned a lot of VRS points, which will net them several big event invites in 2026.
PARIVISION won six overtime maps at the Major. Credit: © StarLadder
PARIVISION were one of the teams that barely qualified for the Major, but thanks to the online grind and some fortunate results, they made it to Budapest. While some people thought they could make it to Stage 2, not many foresaw how much trouble they would cause the top teams.
The Russians beat so many high-profile names, eliminating GamerLegion and Legacy in Stage 1, before outplaying Liquid and Aurora, two of the biggest Major disappointments, in Stage 2.
For a team made up of four Major rookies, a Major-winning coach Dastan “dastan” Akbayev, and Major MVP, Dzhami “Jame” Ali, PARIVISION did much better than anyone expected.
It’s only a matter of time before top Russian-speaking teams like Spirit and Virtus.pro look to bring in some of the talent currently within PARIVISION’s roster.
No bigger underdogs than Imperial. Credit: © StarLadder
It’s quite frankly a mystery how Imperial managed to advance all the way through Stage 1 to Stage 3, ending their StarLadder Budapest Major campaign in a 12th-14th placing.
Virtually nobody predicted the Brazilians to make an impact in Budapest, but they quietly took care of business when they had to and put together a string of good results. Granted, their draws were easier than most other teams’.
Imperial’s most impressive victories came against M80, which netted them qualification from Stage 2, and The MongolZ, whom they bested in the opening game of Stage 3. Beating a Major playoff team is no easy feat, so kudos to the Brazilians.
That being said, it’s difficult to foresee Imperial replicating the same success in upcoming tournaments. It’s likely that the team’s sniper and best player, Santino “try” Rigal, gets poached by an international team during the winter break, which would be very difficult to recover from.
Feature image credit: © StarLadder
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