The top 3 matches not to miss on the opening day of the Major’s Stage 2

There is some special joy in following early-round Swiss System matches from a CS2 Major. The teams have only one map to determine the winners, and their bans are very interesting. There is very little space for adaptation, especially with the MR12 system. The journey ahead of the players is relatively long, and they can bring surprising energy to the battles.

It’s still a Major, and the stakes are high even in Round 1 matches of Stage 2. Some teams will grab an early advantage to aim for a perfect 3:0 run.

Among the ten opening matches, we’ve selected the following three as arguably the most interesting to watch. They highlight different approaches to CS2 from legacy organizations, the best teams from the Budapest Major Stage 1, and the potential favorites of the entire tournament.

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Ninjas in Pyjamas won this match with their creative approach and individual skills.

Astralis had an early advantage in both halves thanks to their pistol wins. They were pretty good at punishing aggression from NiP, so the opponents could not convert their opening kills.

Then, Ninjas switched to a somewhat slower T offense, and it paid off! On the CT-side, NiP dominated gun rounds. Beyond harsh mistakes in round 22, where Astralis won on the individual level, NiP looked like a better team this time. The following Stage 2 matches of the Budapest Major can bring them harder challenges

In terms of tournament wins, we have rather little expectation from either of these teams. Still, Astralis and NiP carry an impressive legacy of Counter-Strike esports. Their ways in CS2 are pretty different, though.

Astralis strongly sticks to the core power of the previous success. Only two members of that best team ever are active in esports as players, and both made it back to Astralis: Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz and Emil "Magisk" Reif.

As for the CS2 results, Astralis delivers a rollercoaster of emotions to their fans. The most recent big tournament presence was surprisingly good: the top 6 for Astralis at IEM Chengdu 2025.

Ninjas in Pyjamas is an organization from the earliest era of Counter-Strike esports. For a while, it followed the old pattern of signing star players with big trophies, including dev1ce. Now, NiP features a roster of young players, who have refreshed the very perception of CS2 Ninjas in Pyjamas.

The team played in Stage 1 of the StarLadder CS2 Major 2025 in Budapest and advanced with a 3:1 score. One of their victories was over FaZe.

FaZe won this match, even if it was much closer than they would have wanted.

There was quite a lot of active, aggressive play for FaZe this time. They weren’t afraid to rush into battles and earn frags. Often, it meant losing players as well. Finn "karrigan" Andersen finally looked like himself with tricky rotations and excellent kills. Helvijs "broky" Saukants was a menace with his AWP.

Passion UA delivered a few mind-blowing rounds and made Dust II uncomfortable for such big opponents. Nicholas "nicx" Lee absolutely amazed everyone with his ace in Round 11. Håkon "hallzerk" Fjærli had a wonderful Round 20. It wasn’t enough for PUA to win, but this team is certainly worth following in the future matches of Stage 2 and probably beyond at the Budapest Major.

The first team in this pair is one of the Major’s dark horses. Many people are even surprised that Passion UA started their tournament run from Stage 2.

Right before the StarLadder event in Budapest, PUA played at BLAST Rivals Fall 2025. They got one win over The MongolZ and had a close match versus Falcons. It was a good performance overall.

FaZe were considered one of the top favorites in Stage 1, and they really were phenomenal — with their inconsistency. One moment they played great, and the next moment they fell apart.

Now, with very cautious assumptions about FaZe’s true power, the community wants to see them playing Stage 2 matches at the Budapest Major. They sure can take down Passion UA, right?

NAVI won this match, and it wasn’t clear whether they were playing a wonderful Counter-Strike or filming a frag movie.

We had a real chance of a 13:0, as nothing went right for FlyQuest in the first half. Train is known to be CT-favorable, but not to the point of a 12:0.

FlyQuest won the second pistols and the conversion round. Then, they lost the match. It’s a blow for the team, indeed. Can they recover?

NAVI can’t rest for now. Even Stage 2 has plenty of matches, and the Major is a long tournament.

FlyQuest is one of two teams with a perfect run in the Budapest Major Stage 1. First, they broke the curse that started in Austin, and now, they have a good chance to step even further.

NAVI should be in Stage 3, as one of the Major’s favorites. However, their tournament results in the second half of 2025 drag them lower in the regional standings.

It’s really interesting to see the form NAVI comes to this tournament with. Facing FlyQuest in the opening matches of the Major’s Stage 2 is a great test for Natus Vincere.

The second round of matches on Stage 2 Day 1 features even more best-of-one matches. After that, four teams will have advancement matches for a quick qualification for Stage 3. Four teams will battle for their tournament life.