Brazil hasn’t been as relevant in CS:GO ever since its golded era in 2016 and 2017, in which the country won numerous tournaments, including two Majors. And FalleN, the main face of that era, isn’t too optimistic about Brazil’s odds to dominate Counter-Strike again like it did in the past.
The Imperial captain shared his honest thoughts after FURIA were pushed to the brink of elimination following a loss Ninjas in Pyjamas at BLAST Paris Major on May 13. Unlike what many Brazilian fans think nowadays after seeing the country repeatedly fail in tournaments since the end of SK Gaming’s era in 2017, Brazil doesn’t lack skill in comparison to Europeans, according to FalleN.
The issue for him is that Brazilian teams have to deal with constant travel to Europe in order to boot camp and get decent results, which is exhausting in the long run. The only way to fix this would be to move to Europe indefinitely, according to the Imperial captain.
“I don’t see another way for a Brazilian team to become the best in the world again unless they live in Europe,” FalleN said on Gaules’ BLAST Paris Major broadcast. “And I say that not because you can play tournaments and do boot camps [in Europe], we already do that, it’s because [players must] have a life [outside the game].”
European teams have the perk, according to FalleN, of getting top practice and lots of tournaments to attend while living in their own house instead of gaming houses and hotels. The European players can be around their family and friends after a day of work and use that to reset their mind after practice and tournaments. The Brazilian teams, on the other hand, have to deal with constant travel and the players rarely spend time at home with friends and family.
This makes sense to some extent because Brazil’s downfall in CS:GO effectively happened once North America lost its relevancy as well, and most tournaments shifted to Europe around 2020. The North American scene was healthy during 2016 and 2017, the years Brazil dominated, so they could move there and get good practice in addition to playing in lots of tournaments while staying away from home.
Nowadays, most Brazilian teams playing abroad still live in North America and have to go to Europe to practice with the best teams and to attend tournaments. While this is feasible in the short run, it becomes too much of a burden long-term, according to FalleN.
Imperial, for example, practically lived in Europe when FalleN assembled the team in 2022 and nearly reached the playoffs of PGL Antwerp Major in May 2022, which was a solid result considering fer and fnx were inactive months before. But they could not keep up with all the practice needed while being away from home and their form eventually declined.
FURIA are the only Brazilian team left at the BLAST Paris Major and could be eliminated in the next couple of days if they lose their best-of-three series. If that happens, Brazil won’t have a team in the Major playoffs for the first time since StarLadder Berlin in 2019.
