ESL Pro League Season 22 Preview: Who Are the Contenders?

ESL Pro League Season 22 Preview: Who Are the Contenders?

From September 28 to October 12, 2025, Stockholm will host ESL Pro League Season 22, where 24 of the world’s top Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) teams will vie for one of the longest-running trophies in the franchise’s history. 

Teams secured their spots via Valve Regional Standings (VRS), the ESL Challenger League, and regional open qualifiers, creating a stacked field of title hopefuls and dark horses alike. 

Format, Prize & Stakes

Three-stage structure: Stage 1 (Swiss, best-of-three), Stage 2 (Swiss, best-of-three), then Playoffs (single elimination, best-of-three, except Grand Final as best-of-five).

Prize pool: $400,000 USD is on the line.

VRS & Grand Slam implications: Teams can gain crucial VRS ranking points, which affect invitations to future events. ESL Pro League Season 22 is part of the sixth ESL Grand Slam cycle, where the first organization to win four designated events (IEM, ESL Pro League, or ESL One) will claim a $1 million bonus

Seeding mechanics: “Team Selected Seeding” establishes initial matchups, while Live Ratings dynamically adjust standings during Swiss rounds.

Stage 1 will run from September 28 to October 2, Stage 2 from October 3 to 7, and the Playoffs will culminate on October 12. 

Top Teams & Storylines to Watch

Rise of FURIA and Vitality

Among the eight teams that earned direct invites to Stage 2, NAVI is the only one to win a tournament in September — a timely boost after early exits from BLAST Open London and the Esports World Cup.

Meanwhile, Team Vitality and The MongolZ remain firmly in the title conversation. Vitality claimed second place at BLAST Open London, while The MongolZ were runners-up at FISSURE Playground 2. 

No team has secured back-to-back Tier-1 event wins since BLAST Bounty Season 2. If FURIA can take the Pro League title, it would reinforce their status among CS2’s elite. 

The pairing of Danil “molodoy” Golubenko and Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis, guided by veteran captain Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo, has boosted FURIA’s depth and consistency. 

On the Vitality side, the organization recently brought in Pablo “VdaK1NG” Escobar as a data analyst, aiming to improve tactical decisions during matches. 

A potential showdown between Vitality and FURIA could be a five-map thriller, with FURIA’s broad map pool being a significant advantage. 

Esports Insider’s prediction leans toward FURIA as the most likely winner.

The FaZe Enigma & Recent Roster Moves

FaZe Clan finds itself in flux heading into Season 22. After the BLAST.tv Austin Major, Helvijs “broky” Saukants rejoined the starting lineup, and Jonathan “EliGE” Jablonowski was benched in favor of Jakub “jcobbb” Pietruszewski. 

More controversially, FaZe announced the return of Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken from Team Liquid just before the tournament. The abrupt roster change raises questions about chemistry and consistency heading into the Pro League. 

Can Team Falcons Soar?

Team Falcons’ roster has undergone heavy restructuring over the past months, especially after acquiring Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov and Maxim “kyousuke” Lukin. 

Despite showing promise — three consecutive top-four finishes — the team has also made costly errors in big moments. For example, in FISSURE Playground 2, Falcons squandered a 5v3 map-point situation vs. FURIA, and lost control in a clutch. 

m0NESY has expressed excitement about teaming up again with Nikola “NiKo” Kovač, citing an intrinsic connection and synergy.

“It just feels like there’s a different connection when I play with NiKo. We just have this balance … It’s just nice to play with him.” 

In a broader interview, m0NESY revealed that although he had other offers, he chose Falcons because of his belief in the project and his desire to help NiKo win a Major:

“I had other offers… but when I looked at other teams, there was only one team I wanted to join — Falcons. I didn’t have much faith in other teams.” 

However, his departure from BLAST.tv Austin Major still stings:

“A terrible game from us … Very disappointed in myself, that’s all.” 

Falcons’ ambition is clear: the NiKo–m0NESY duo, supported by youth talent like kyousuke, is viewed as a potential disruptor in CS2’s upper echelon. 

Dark Horses & Upset Watch

Several teams will start in Stage 1 and aim to gatecrash the later rounds:

FURIA, G2 Esports, GamerLegion, Astralis, 3DMAX, Lynn Vision, HEROIC, and M80 are all expected to make it through. 

G2 Esports, fresh off a BLAST Open London win, may carry momentum. 

M80 rides the momentum of a recent playoff run. 

Early matchups for Stage 1 offer intriguing clashes, such as FURIA vs HOTU, G2 vs Rooster, and Astralis vs Fluxo. 

FURIA’s opening match vs HOTU is especially lopsided on paper. 

What to Watch

Map pool depth: Teams with broader map versatility will likely outlast those with narrower specialties.

Roster cohesion under pressure: How will FaZe adapt with its late change? Can Falcons build chemistry quickly?

VRS movement: Every match matters beyond the trophy — performance here could influence future invites.

Potential five-map thrillers: The FURIA vs Vitality prospect looms large.

Sleeper runs: Which Stage 1 team can break through and disrupt expectations?