Counter-Strike’s IEM Rio Major 2022 Challengers Stage has been a phenomenal showcasing of Brazilian pride. The South American rosters have had the cheers of the crowd behind them in every match, but this could be a problem for certain rosters.
In an effort to prevent members of the IEM Rio Major crowd from helping certain teams, ESL removed the X-ray feature and the minimap. But after community backlash, possibly sparked by popular Brazilian CS:GO streamer and community member Gaules, ESL quickly backtracked and reverted the changes.
Gaules leveraged his large following and pointed out the fact that viewers around the world should be able to see the minimap and x-ray.
“I apologize, this is the biggest CS:GO broadcast to not watch the game with x-ray and minimap, but we go on,” Gaules said. “It’s always harder for us, and despite ESL making this party happen, they will never understand what is to be a Brazilian.”
Gaules’ comments likely were a large part of why ESL quickly changed its mind despite members of the crowd screaming players’ positions and ruining the competitive nature of the game. This isn’t the first time that crowds have been under fire for cheating, though. In Copenhagen, the Danish crowds were caught yelling “he’s close to you,” with clear favoritism going toward their Danish CS:GO rosters.
The arena currently seats up to 4,000 CS:GO fans, with a select few making it unfair for certain teams who are fighting for their chance to stay in the competition.
This change might’ve come too late for some teams, as squads like 00 Nation have already been ousted from the Challengers Stage, and a select few stand on thin ice, with one best-of-three series deciding their fate in the tournament.
