NAVI Drop to 9th in HLTV World Ranking as Pressure Mounts Before BLAST Rivals and Budapest Major

NAVI Drop to 9th in HLTV World Ranking as Pressure Mounts Before BLAST Rivals and Budapest Major

Natus Vincere’s Counter-Strike 2 roster has slipped to ninth place in the latest HLTV.org world ranking published on November 10. Team Vitality retain the No. 1 spot, with FURIA and Team Falcons completing the top three. MOUZ climbed into fourth place, overtaking The MongolZ, while NAVI fell one position to the edge of the top eight.

According to HLTV’s updated list, NAVI now sit on 298 points with the lineup of Aleksib, iM, b1t, w0nderful, and makazze, just behind G2 and ahead of Astralis. Vitality lead with 946 points, followed by red-hot FURIA and a star-studded Falcons roster.

EYEBALLERS Surge After Red Bull Win

The biggest positive mover around NAVI in the top 40 this week is Swedish organization EYEBALLERS. Jesper “JW” Wecksell’s squad jumped 19 places to 39th in the HLTV ranking after winning Red Bull GIBAWAY Journey 2025 in Åre, Sweden – their first LAN trophy in almost two years.

At the event, EYEBALLERS topped the best-of-one group stage with a 4–1 record and then beat ENCE, AM, and BetBoom on their way to the title. The victory earned them not only a cash prize but also a significant ranking boost similar in scale to NAVI’s recent drop.

BLAST Rivals Fall 2025: Last Big Test Before the Major

BLAST Rivals Fall 2025 will serve as the final tier-one tournament before the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025. The event runs November 12–16 in Hong Kong, featuring eight teams and a $350,000 prize pool.

The lineup includes Vitality, FURIA, Falcons, The MongolZ, and Team Spirit — making it a crucial form check ahead of the biggest CS2 event of the year in Budapest later this month.

How NAVI Ended Up in 9th: From Cologne High to Chengdu Crash

NAVI’s drop to ninth reflects a roller-coaster 2025 season. They began the second half of the year with a promising top-four finish at IEM Cologne 2025, but later failed to qualify for several BLAST events and finished 9–16th at the Esports World Cup 2025.

There were bright moments along the way. The team won StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2025 in Budapest, defeating Ninjas in Pyjamas 2–0 in the grand final, and reached the Thunderpick World Championship 2025 final in Malta before losing a tight 3–2 series to FURIA.

However, momentum faded quickly. NAVI were eliminated early at ESL Pro League Season 22 and again finished 9–16th at ESWC 2025. The latest disappointment came at IEM Chengdu 2025, where losses to Astralis and Heroic placed them 13–16th, prompting HLTV to describe the team as “struggling.”

Voices From Inside NAVI: “Overestimated Ourselves” and “Not Filled With Confidence”

In-game leader Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen has admitted that the team’s early success with rookie makazze led to overconfidence:

“After having a nice debut with makazze in Cologne, we put our thoughts way above what we actually were.”

Following a later event, Aleksib noted that although they had made improvements, their confidence remained fragile:

“We improved on the Falcons game, but it’s not like we’re filled with confidence now.”

Head coach Andrey “B1ad3” Gorodenskiy framed the team’s struggles as part of a long-term plan, saying:

“The Major will be our exam.”

Analysts have also pointed to a shrinking map pool and consistency issues, noting that NAVI’s previously dominant six-map repertoire has become predictable and easier to counter.

External Criticism: “A Very Deep Crisis” and Scrutiny on makazze

Former NAVI coach Mikhail “Kane” Blagin was blunt after the Chengdu failure, saying the team is in “a very deep crisis” and that even recent smaller trophies hadn’t fixed deeper structural problems. He argued that replacing a single player wouldn’t solve the issues currently holding the team back.

Analyst Aleksandar “kassad” Trifunović was even harsher, targeting young rifler Drin “makazze” Shaqiri. On a recent podcast, kassad called him “the worst star player in the top 15 teams in the world,” citing poor stats against top-30 opponents. He suggested NAVI should consider replacing makazze with Senzu while restructuring the rifler roles, keeping b1t as a core member.

How the Players Themselves See It

Despite the criticism, NAVI players remain optimistic. After winning StarLadder StarSeries Fall, makazze said that the trophy — even if not tier-one — gave him much-needed confidence:

“It’s not tier-one, but at least it gives me confidence.”

Teammate Mihai “iM” Ivan echoed that sentiment, saying the team “just needed to get some wins” to rebuild belief after a string of disappointing finishes.

However, the community has grown skeptical. A recent opinion piece titled “The community no longer believes in NAVI’s current roster” reflected widespread doubts, with Ukrainian commentator Enkanis arguing that the team “lacks aura and soul” and might need a deeper rebuild.

What 9th Place Means Going Into BLAST Rivals and the Major

Dropping to ninth doesn’t push NAVI out of the elite entirely, but it changes the narrative heading into BLAST Rivals Fall 2025 and the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025.

Seeding and perception: NAVI are now chasing the likes of Vitality, FURIA, Falcons, MOUZ, and The MongolZ, instead of contesting for the No.1 spot as in past years.

Roster pressure: Public criticism from analysts and ex-staff, combined with a visible ranking decline, has intensified calls for lineup changes.

Last chance to stabilize: BLAST Rivals will be the final top-tier LAN before the Major — NAVI’s last opportunity to prove that their Cologne and StarSeries results weren’t isolated successes.

For now, NAVI remain a top-10 team on paper, with a talented roster and a Major title in CS2’s early history. But with their ranking slipping and confidence shaken, the next two tournaments could determine whether this version of NAVI survives or faces a complete rebuild — just as B1ad3 warned:

“The Major will be our exam.”