The qualification stage for the first CS:GO Major of 2022, PGL Major Antwerp, is now well underway with Americas and Asia RMR matches almost being over. Most anticipated leg of the tournament, the European super-region’s Group A qualifiers, will begin on this Sunday 17th and end on 20th which will be followed by Group B matches on 21st.
Teams will face off to get a chance at the PGL Antwerp Major 2022, as well as their corresponding status —Legends, Challengers, or Contenders— divided by area. The first Valve-sponsored tournament of the year will take place from May 9 to May 22, with the winner receiving $500,000.
Schedule & betting odds
Below are the current predictions for the upcoming matches. Teams that are highlighted in bold have the odds in favour. You can click on the dates to take yourself directly to the detailed match page, and watch the matches as they play out live.
- NAVI Natus Vincere vs. Team QUAZAR (April 17, 2022 - 11:00 CEST) 1.02 vs. 10.00
- Outsiders vs.Team Unique (April 17, 2022 - 11:00 CEST) 1.15 vs. 4.80
- FaZe vs. Eternal Fire (April 17, 2022 - 12:15 CEST) 1.15 vs. 4.80
- Heroic vs. forZe (April 17, 2022 - 12:15 CEST) 1.32 vs. 3.10
- Vitality Team vs. Dignitas (April 17, 2022 - 13:30 CEST) 1.17 vs. 4.40
- Fnatic vs. GamerLegion (April 17, 2022 - 13:30 CEST) 1.40 vs. 2.70
- MOUZ vs. OG (April 17, 2022 - 14:45 CEST) 1.82 vs. 1.90
- BIG vs. SAW (April 17, 2022 - 14:45 CEST) 1.40 vs. 2.70
What to expect from PGL Major Antwerp 2022: European RMR A
Europe will be divided into two groups, A and B, for the first time as the super-region of the tournament.
On the European and CIS side, 13 slots were allocated to teams who finished in the top 16 at the previous Major, with the remaining distributed over five qualifiers: four for Europe & CIS teams and one for Far East Russia. All of the legends that are invited from the PGL Stockholm 2021 are here: Natus Vincere, Heroic, Virtus.pro (attending as Outsiders), Team Vitality, FaZe Clan, MOUZ. This leg of the tournament will be an all stars show.
There’s not much to say about the bigshots, unlucky Team QUAZAR will face off against NAVI in the first game of the RMR A, fresh from the far east qualifiers and with an odds of literally 10 to 1, it’s going to be hell for the QUAZAR, but it will be interesting to see the how David vs. Goliath duel will go down and what they will try to pull off against their overwhelming adversary. Who wouldn’t root for the underdog?
Turkish powerhouse Eternal Fire seems to have risen from their ashes and will be facing off FaZe in a battle to prove their relevance. They performed rather poorly in their most recent Pinnacle series, and they are facing off the winners of IEM Katowice and ESL Pro League 15. But with their coach XANTARES’ years of experience they may surprise us all. They certainly have a solid base to build up from.
MOUZ will be facing off the rather new comer OG in a very close match with almost even odds. OG is another rising star of the CS:GO scene in which they even pushed NAVI to their limit back in 2020, both teams look even on skill with very close results in Katowice.
After the first matches are played out we will see how the teams are faring in this new competition. We hope to see some surprises here and there but there are so many big shots in this RMR that it may feel like a Deja Vu of PGL Stockholm 2021.
