North America is one of the first regions that come to mind when it comes to esports. Canada is also one of the countries that most strongly represents the North American region.
Today we will take a look at Canada's top five highest earning esports players to date. Let's start without waiting too long.
5. Keith "NAF" Markovic (Counter-Strike: Global Offensive)
Keith "NAF" Markovic is now 24 years old. His esports career started in December 2012 and his current team is Team Liquid. Reaching his most important successes with his current team, NAF also achieved a lot in OpTic Gaming and Renegades.
NAF decided his nickname when he was younger and stands for "nutty as fuck". The -FLY suffix, which he uses many times at the beginning of his nick, is a reference that reminds one of his Counter-Strike: Source teammate, Joshua "BRUNDLE-FLY" Switzer, who died after a hit-and-run accident.
Along with Team Liquid, he finished first in Intel Grand Slam Season 2. This is his greatest achievement. When we look at the tournaments, we can say the ELEAGUE Season 2 or ESL Pro League Season 9 championships are his most important titles.
NAF has many MVP awards. He was awarded the MVP award by HLTV at the StarLadder i-League Invitational #2, cs_summit 2, SuperNova Malta 2018, iBUYPOWER Masters 2019 and BLAST Pro Series: Los Angeles 2019 events.
He was named the sixth best player in 2018 by HLTV, the seventh best player in 2019, and the fourteenth best player in 2021. He is ranked fourth in Thorin's Top 10 CS:GO Players rankings as well. In short, NAF is one of the leading names in CS:GO esports, not only in Canada.
- Most important titles: Intel Grand Slam Season 2, ELEAGUE Season 2, ESL Pro League Season 9, IEM Chicago 2019, ESL One: Cologne 2019, DreamHack Masters Dallas 2019, IEM Sydney 2019
- Teams played: mouseSpaz, High Rollers Gaming, Denial eSports, LunatiK eSports, Denial eSports, Chill guys, Team Liquid, Luminosity Gaming, eLevate, Sponsorless, Conquest, OpTic Gaming, Renegades, Team Liquid (Present)
- Approximate total earnings: $1,105,648
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4. Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken (Counter-Strike: Global Offensive)
Next up is Russell "Twistzz" Van Dulken, another Canadian CS:GO player. Twistzz's age is 22. He is considered one of the best CS:GO players in North America. Together with NAF, they won the Intel Grand Slam Season 2 with Team Liquid. His greatest achievement is the PGL Major Antwerp 2022 championship, which he won in 2022 with FaZe Clan. Twistzz became the first Canadian player to win a CS:GO Major with this success.
He was named the ninth best player in 2019 and the seventeenth best player in 2021 by HLTV. He was ranked fifth in Thorin's Top 5 CS:GO Players rankings. He also holds the MVP award at the ESL One New York 2018 and IEM Sydney 2019 tournaments.
- Most important titles: Intel Grand Slam Season 2, PGL Major Antwerp 2022, IEM Cologne 2022, IEM Katowice 2022, ESL Pro League Season 9, ESL Pro League Season 15, IEM Chicago 2019, ESL One: Cologne 2019, DreamHack Masters dallas 2019, IEM Sydney 2019
- Teams played: Tectonic, SapphireKelownaDotCom, Team AGG, KKona, Team SoloMid, Misfits, Team Liquid, FaZe Clan (Present)
- Approximate total earnings: $1,218,793
3. Williams "Zayt" Aubin (Fortnite)
Next up is Williams "Zayt" Aubin, who continues to play for NRG, the team where he started esports in 2018. Zayt's biggest achievement was 4th place with Saf at the Fortnite World Cup Finals - Duos. In addition, he and his teammate Saf became champions in ESL Katowice Royale - International Edition: Duos.
- Most important titles: ESL Katowice Royale - International Edition: Duos, Fortnite Summer Skirmish: Week 3 - North America, FNCS: Chapter 2 Season 2 - Grand Finals: NA East, FNCS: Season X - Week 2: North America East, Ninja Battles - Week 5
- Teams played: NRG (Present)
- Approximate total earnings: $1,331,631
2. Kurtis "Aui_2000" Ling (Dota 2)
We are slowly approaching the top of our list. Next up is Kurtis "Aui_2000" Ling, who continues his career as the coach of Tundra Esports. The 29-year-old player is the oldest player on our list. His most important achievement is The International 2015 championship with Evil Geniuses. However, he did not enjoy this title much because he had to leave Evil Geniuses just one week later with Arteezy's return to the team. He is the first and only Canadian player to become The International champion. He has a quite important name in Dota 2 esports, both as a player and as a coach.
- Most important titles: The International 2015, DAC 2015, Dota Pit League Season 3
- Teams played: PotM Bottom, Team Dignitas, RSnake.int, Speed.int, Cloud9, Evil Geniuses, Digital Chaos, Evil Geniuses, Team Secret (Coach), Team NP, Cloud9, Animal Planet, Iceberg Esports, Animal Planet, Digital Chaos, Fnatic (Coach), Quincy Crew (Coach), Forward Gaming (Coach), Newbee (Coach), Fighting PandaS, CR4ZY, Arkosh Gaming, Tundra Esports (Coach)
- Approximate total earnings: $2,008,582
1. Artour "Arteezy" Babaev (Dota 2)
At the top of our list is Artour "Arteezy" Babaev, a Canadian/Uzbek Dota 2 player. He is 26 years old and a quite experienced player. He currently plays for Evil Geniuses and has spent most of his career with them. On June 28, 2016, he became the second player in Dota 2 history to pass a 9000 matchmaking rating. On August 6, 2017, he became the third player to pass the 10000 matchmaking rating. As of October 18, 2020, he has reached 11000 MMR.
He placed third in The International twice with Evil Geniuses. These are his greatest achievements. He also won ESL One Frankfurt 2015 and The Summit 3 with Team Secret. He is seen as one of Canada's top esports players with his long-standing career and stable performance.
- Most important titles: The Manila Masters, ESL One Frankfurt 2015, The Summit 3, Mars Dota 2 League 2016 Autumn, MarsTV Dota 2 League 2015 Spring, StarLadder StarSeries Season 10, World E-sport Championships 2014, MGL Championship Columbus
- Teams played: Kaipi, Take Five, S A D B O Y S, Evil Geniuses, Team Secret, Evil Geniuses, Team Secret, Evil Geniuses (Present)
- Approximate total earnings: $2,491,595
Canadian esports players have always made a name for themselves and they have succeeded in increasing the viewing pleasure of esports. We think that this will continue in the future as well. More list articles will follow in the future. Stay tuned to Luckbox.
