Which Teams Will Play In First Stage of ESL Pro League Season 22: Favorites, Underdogs and Potential Dark Horses

In just a few days, Stockholm, Sweden, will host ESL Pro League Season 22 with a $400,000 prize pool, running from September 28 to October 12. The first stage of the tournament will take place from September 28 to October 2, where 16 teams will battle for a spot in the second stage. In this article, we will talk about the current form of the participants and analyze their chances in Stage 1.

HEROIC

The team is going through the season without any notable victories. At the summer BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, HEROIC finished 17–19th. After the summer break, they competed at FISSURE Playground #1 (13–16th place). Their other tournaments also ended without significant prize finishes:

• Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2025 – 13–16th place
• BLAST Bounty Fall 2025: Closed Qualifier – 9–16th place
• Esports World Cup 2025 – 5–8th place
• FISSURE Playground #2 – 15–16th place

In August 2025, HEROIC benched Gleb "gr1ks" Gazin and replaced him with young Kazakh player from Team Spirit Academy, Älımjan "Alkaren" Bıtımbai. Alkaren has played only 17 maps with the new roster so far, holding a 0.98 rating over three months.

Gentle Mates

A young Spanish team that is only just beginning its journey on the professional CS scene. Gentle Mates have played only 4 official matches so far. At the recent StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2025, the team finished in 4th place, which is overall a good result for such a young lineup.

At ESL Pro League Season 22, they will replace Lynn Vision, who were unable to present a complete roster for the tournament. Participation in such an event is truly a great opportunity for Gentle Mates to prove themselves on the tier-1 CS stage.

G2 Esports

The legendary European club struggled after losing star players m0NESY and NiKo, finishing 9–11th at the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025. During the summer break, the team signed Alvaro "SunPayus" Garcia, Matúš "matys" Šimko, and brought in Eetu "sAw" Saha as coach. However, immediate success did not follow.

Their true breakthrough came at BLAST Open Fall 2025, where G2 sensationally defeated Team Vitality in the grand final 3:2, claiming their first trophy with the new lineup.

Rooster

The young Australian roster reached this stage after winning the ESL Challenger League Season 49: Oceania, where they beat Mindfreak 3:1 in the final. For most of the year, Rooster played mainly in regional qualifiers without appearances at top events. ESL Pro League Season 22 will be their chance to prove themselves on the big stage against stronger opponents.

Astralis

Once legendary, Astralis are struggling in 2025. They failed to qualify for the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, but did secure silver at PGL Astana 2025 and FISSURE Playground #1.

At the Esports World Cup 2025, Astralis finished 9–16th, and at FISSURE Playground #2 they placed 5–8th. In early September, Martin "stavn" Lund was benched, and Emil "Magisk" Reif joined from Team Falcons’ bench. Magisk has played 13 maps with Astralis so far, averaging a 0.92 rating.

Fluxo

The Brazilian team mostly competes in regional qualifiers and tier-3 events. They ended their BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 run in last place (31–32nd). After the summer break, they played:

• Fragadelphia 19 – 3rd place
• CCT Season 3 South American Series #3 – 1st place
• ESL Challenger League Season 50: South America – Cup #1 – 4th place
• CCT Season 3 South American Series #4 – 5–8th place

In July, Fluxo strengthened their roster with Lucas "decenty" Bacelar and Lucas "Lucaozy" Neves, who have already played 59 maps with 1.12 and 1.09 ratings respectively.

3DMAX

The French team has had average results in 2025. They finished 12–14th at the summer Major, 5–8th at FISSURE Playground #1, 9–12th at IEM Cologne 2025, and reached the quarterfinals of the Esports World Cup 2025, losing to The MongolZ 2:1. 3DMAX biggest success was winning the Perfect World CS Challenge Series #1, defeating Tyloo 2:0 in the final.

Ahead of ESL Pro League Season 22, the team announced that AWPer Bryan "Maka" Canda would miss the event for undisclosed reasons, and Nabil "Nivera" Benrlitom would replace him. The absence of their main sniper could impact performance.

Inner Circle Esports (ex-TNL)

The young Ukrainian team mostly plays tier-2 and tier-3 events but has already made a name for themselves by winning Exort The Proving Grounds Season 1 and Night Shift Invitational 2025: Europe. At CCT Season 3 European Series #5, TNL reached the final but lost 0:2 to BetBoom, finishing 2nd. On September 25, just days before the start of the tournament, Inner Circle officially signed the TNL roster. Now, the team will look to prove themselves under a new banner on the international stage

M80

The North American roster has shown solid progress. At their debut BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, they placed 20–22nd. Their notable victories include:

• NA Revival Series #7
• Thunderpick World Championship 2025: North American Series #2
• Ace North American Masters Fall 2025
• NA Revival Series #8

At BLAST Open Fall 2025, M80 reached the quarterfinals, losing to MOUZ 2:1. In July, Ethan "reck" Serrano left, replaced by Jadan "HexT" Postma from NRG. HexT has played 80 maps over two months with a 1.16 rating, highlighting the team’s improved communication and style.

Virtus.pro

The Russian team has had a rough season. After finishing 9–11th at the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, Virtus.pro placed:

• FISSURE Playground #1 – 13–16th
• IEM Cologne 2025 – 17–20th
• BLAST Bounty Fall 2025 – 5–8th
• Esports World Cup 2025 – 9–16th
• FISSURE Playground #2 – 9–11th

Following these struggles, Denis "electroNic" Sharipov was benched and replaced by Vadim "tO0RO" Arkov from VP.Prodigy. So far, tO0RO has played 12 maps with a 0.98 rating.

Legacy

The Brazilian roster got a lucky break when Bestia failed to secure visas for the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, allowing Legacy to participate. They shocked the world by beating Team Vitality 13:1 on Inferno in a bo1. Although they finished 9–11th at the Major, they proved they could fight stronger teams. At FISSURE Playground #2, Legacy ended 12–14th.

B8

The Ukrainian team has been showing consistent growth. At their debut BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, they placed 17–19th. Other achievements include:

• CCT Season 2 Global Finals – 2nd place
• MESA Nomadic Masters Spring 2025 – 3rd place
• Perfect World CS Challenge Series #1 – 4th place
• StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2025 – 3rd place

B8 regularly reach quarterfinals and could well deliver a surprise at EPL. Their steady progress throughout 2025 proves they can consistently challenge stronger opponents, even if they sometimes fall short of the podium. If the team manages to break past their usual ceiling, they could emerge as one of the main dark horses of the tournament.

GamerLegion

After failing to qualify for the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, GamerLegion still reached quarterfinals at several events:

• IEM Melbourne 2025 – 5–6th
• IEM Dallas 2025 – 5–6th
• FISSURE Playground #1 – 5–8th

Recently, GamerLegion signed young Polish player Milan "hypex" Polowiec from Betclic Apogee Esports. This will be their first big tournament with the new roster, giving them a chance for a fresh run.

NRG

The American team mostly competes at tier-2/3 level. They finished 25–27th at the BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025 but won:

• CCT Season 3 North American Series #1
• ESL Challenger League Season 50: North America – Cup #1
• Fragville 2025

ESL Pro League Season 22 will be their chance to return to the big stage. The team will need to prove that their regional dominance can translate into success against tier-1 opposition. A strong showing here could mark the beginning of NRG ’s rise back into relevance on the international scene.

FURIA

The Brazilian organization began internationalizing their roster by signing Danil "molodoy" Golubenko and Mareks "YEKINDAR" Gaļinskis, which quickly boosted results. In just four months, FURIA climbed from 20th to 5th in the HLTV world ranking.

Their recent victory at FISSURE Playground #2, defeating The MongolZ 3:2 in the final, proves they are in excellent form. FURIA enter EPL as one of the strongest contenders.

HOTU

The Russian team lacks notable achievements. HOTU mainly play regional qualifiers and tier-2/3 events. Their only tier-1 appearance was at PGL Astana 2025, finishing 12–14th.

In August, they signed Kim "frontales" Argunov (77 maps, 1.10 rating) and loaned David "n0rb3r7" Daniyelyan from Virtus.pro for two months. Despite being with the team for less than a month, n0rb3r7 already played 32 maps with a 1.15 rating.

Favorites, Underdogs and Potential Surprises at ESL Pro League Season 22

At the start of EPL S22, the main favorites are FURIA and G2 Esports. The Brazilians are in excellent shape after winning FISSURE Playground #2 and rising rapidly in the rankings, while G2 have already lifted a trophy this year with their revamped lineup.

In contrast, Rooster and HOTU look like underdogs. Rooster lack experience at big events, while HOTU are mostly a tier-2/3 squad. Similar problems could also hold back Fluxo and Virtus.pro, who remain inconsistent despite roster changes.

Several teams, however, have the potential to surprise. B8 have consistently reached quarterfinals and could finally break through. M80, with HexT performing strongly, are on the rise. GamerLegion with hypex may also strengthen their standing, while Legacy have already proven dangerous with their upset over Team Vitality at the BLAST.tv Austin Major.

In just a few days, ESL Pro League S22 will kick off, and from the very first matches we will witness a true battle. The tournament promises to deliver plenty of intense clashes, where the favorites will prove their strength while the underdogs search for a chance to create an upset. Very soon, we will find out who advances further and who, perhaps, becomes the main sensation of the tournament.

ESL Pro League Season 22: Format and Significance

ESL Pro League Season 22 will run from September 28 to October 12, 2025. A total of 24 teams will participate, featuring both top-tier giants and up-and-coming challengers.

The first stage will feature 16 teams, with only 8 advancing to the second stage. The high-pressure format means even one slip-up could cost a team their EPL run.

The tournament’s prize pool is $400,000, with the champion claiming $100,000. Beyond the money, EPL carries great importance for HLTV rankings and preparation ahead of future BLAST and PGL championships.