The Intel Extreme Masters Rio Major 2022 wrapped up on the 13th of November. This Major had a prize pool of $1,250,000 and took place in front of a sell-out screaming crowd at the Jeunesse Arena in Rio De Janeiro. In an amazing upset, Outsiders beat a field that featured legendary teams such as FaZe Clan and Natus Vincere to scoop the $500,000 first-place prize. This tournament featured some wild twists and turns and was one of the highlights of the CS:GO 2023 season.
FaZe Clan Had a Terrible Tournament
Coming into the Intel Extreme Masters Rio Major 2022 FaZe Clan was the team to beat. In 2022 alone they had won over $1.5 million from tournaments and won the Intel Extreme Masters XVII – Cologne and the Intel Extreme Masters XVI – Katowice.
The North American team looked unbeatable as they crushed world-class teams throughout the year. However, Brazil was not friendly to them! FaZe Clan didn’t even make it to the knockout stage. During the Legends Group Stage, they went 0-3 losing to Cloud9, Team Vitality, and Bad News Eagles. These are all teams that FaZe Clan was expected to beat without any issues.
After this shocking performance, FaZe Clan may hit the market and start shopping for new players. It was incredible to see Bad News Eagles, a small team from Kosovo completely overwhelm FaZe Clan with all-out aggression using their signature push style.
Natus Vincere Didn’t Perform Much Better Than FaZe Clan
If FaZe Clan wasn’t going to win the Intel Extreme Masters Rio Major 2022 then we expected Natus Vincere to! The Ukrainian team was in strong form coming into the event which included a win at the BLAST Premier: Spring Finals 2022 for $200,000. They also had the advantage of being led by the best CS:GO player on the planet, Oleksandr “S1mple” Kostyliev.
During the Legends Group Stage, Natus Vincere got off to a strong start with a win over Team Vitality. But then they lost two matches in a row to Cloud9 and Team Liquid. They recovered by winning their next two games over Bad News Eagles and BIG. However, their poor 3-2 record left them in 7th place.
Unfortunately, for Natus Vincere in their knockout stage match, they ran into a powerful FURIA Esports squad who won 2-1. And just like that Natus Vincere was eliminated from the tournament!
Outsiders Score a Massive Upset to Win the Intel Extreme Masters Rio Major 2022
Nobody expected the Outsiders to win this elite tournament after their poor 2022 season. The Russian squad formerly known as Virtus.pro was previously an elite CS:GO team that had to rebrand after Russian teams were banned from competitions due to the invasion of Ukraine. The newly dubbed Outsiders kept the same players but they struggled to find form in 2022.
At the Intel Extreme Masters Rio Major 2022, they had to start in the Challengers Group Stage where they compiled a 3-1 record and beat the likes of Team Vitality and Fnatic. Then they progressed to the Legends Group Stage where they looked even better, again going 3-1 and defeating the likes of Team Spirit, MOUZ, and Ninjas in Pyjamas. Outsiders had the perfect run in the playoffs, beating Fnatic 2-0, then MOUZ 2-1, and then in the Grand Final they proved their class by crushing Heroic. Virtus.pro is well and truly back on the CS:GO scene!
Final Thoughts
It was shocking to see FaZe Clan kicked out of the Intel Extreme Masters Rio Major 2022 in 15th place. They were in amazing form after winning so many big CS:GO tournaments in 2022. We expected them to at least make it deep into the knockout stage. In another amazing twist, Natus Vincere who was also a strong favorite crashed out of the event in 5th. Congratulations to the Russian squad which has now firmly cemented itself as one of the best CS:GO teams on the planet!
