Top 5 CS2 Teams to Watch

The biggest winter tournament is underway, but the Budapest Major playoffs are still a long way off. Although the strongest teams have not yet entered the fray, CS.MONEY Blog will tell you about the five main favorites of the Budapest Major.

We’re having a big giveaway! Predict the winner and increase your chances of getting a cool knife or skin for a meta weapon!

ANGER

• FallN
• You
• UNITE
• KSCERATO
• young adult

Let’s start with the leaders of the world ranking. When FURIA signed Molodoy from AMKAL in April this year, even most die-hard CS fans asked: “Why?” Now things are different: everyone admits that FalleN found a real gem and built a sick team around him. FURIA is having a crazy autumn: in the last three months they have won four major tournaments and are one of the main favorites of the event at the moment.

What can help them win the tournament: molodoy skills, crazy present tense.

What can stop them from becoming champions: opponent preparation, mental pressure.

Team Vitality

• peak
• reputation
• ZywoOo
• apiZ
• method

Another big favorite to win the trophy. Team Vitality dominated the first half of 2025, and their roster is nearly perfect. The real question is whether the team managed to prepare well for the event and reach peak performance. If they do, stopping the French club will be very difficult.

What can help them win the tournament: superstar list, ZywOo domination

What can stop them from becoming champions: decline in performance, opponents chase momentum.

Team Spirit

• helicopter
• sh1ro
• tN1R
• bro
• two

Never underestimate a team that has a donk, the best player of 2024. Team Spirit decided to hit the reset button and take two talented young shooters. In theory, that firepower was enough to reach first place. In practice, it is unclear how the newcomers will handle the pressure of the Budapest Major.

What can help them win the tournament: donk, youth, aggression

What can stop them from becoming champions: predictable calls from helicopters, inconsistent performance.

Team Falcon

• NiKo
• TheSeS
• m0NESY
• kyxsan
• Kyousuke

Team Falcons may have the strongest lineup in terms of raw individual skill. However, there are still many questions about these five players, because they are not yet a perfect team. Recently NiKo said that his squad decided to skip bootcamp before the Budapest Major, which also raised doubts about their discipline. How hungry are the players for trophies? We’ll find out.

Why they can win the tournament: individual play, superstar power.

What can stop them from becoming champions: no bootcamp, low team chemistry.

MongolZ

• bombard
• Techno
• mzinho
• 910
• control

We will finish our list with a team that has played brilliantly, but decided to change the roster shortly before the event in Hungary. MongolZ is pure magic. This is a squad that can really upset anyone, even if they are not on the same level of favorites as FURIA or Team Vitality. Will they achieve their momentum at the right time? That’s the key question.

What can help them win the tournament: momentum, fearless style of play

What can stop them from becoming champions: there is no magical, consistent play from top opponents.

The Budapest Major champion will be crowned in the grand final on December 14. For the first time, a CS2 major will feature a best-of-5 main event.