The largest CIS eSports event starts in Astana: PGL tournament starts
One of the largest esports tournaments in the CIS region in recent years, PGL Astana 2025, has officially begun in Kazakhstan’s capital. Sixteen professional Counter-Strike 2 teams from around the world are competing for a total prize pool of $1.25 million, Kazinform correspondent reports.
The tournament started on May 10 and will run until May 18 at Barys Arena. According to organizers, all matches, including those leading up to the playoffs, will be held on-site in Astana. The playoffs will take place in front of a live audience at the arena.
PGL, the tournament organizer, pointed to Astana’s growing esports infrastructure as a key reason for selecting the city as host. In a statement, the company noted that “Astana has rapidly grown into a hub for international esports, and this event will further solidify its reputation as a key location for top-tier tournaments.”
Several Kazakhstani players will be competing at the tournament across both local and international teams. Kaisar “ICY” Faiznurov (Virtus.pro) and Danil “molodoy” Golubenko (FURIA) bring Kazakh representation to two prominent international lineups. Meanwhile, Aidos “kade0” Khairzhan, Suleımen “dukefissura” Orazaly, and veteran coach Rustem “mou” Telepov will represent Kazakhstan’s own team, HOTU.
Kazinform has compiled a full list of participating teams and players, attached below:
Team Spirit (Russia)
● Leonid “chopper” Vishnyakov (In-Game Leader) – Russia
● Dmitry “sh1ro” Sokolov – Russia
● Boris “magixx” Vorobiev – Russia
● Myroslav “zont1x” Plakhotia – Ukraine
● Danil “donk” Kryshkovets – Russia
● Sergey “hally” Shavaev (Coach) – Russia
Natus Vincere (Europe)
● Aleksi “Aleksib” Virolainen (In-Game Leader) – Finland
● Mihai “iM” Ivan – Romania
● Valeriy “b1t” Vakhovskiy – Ukraine
● Justinas “jL” Lekavicius – Lithuania
● Ihor “w0nderful” Zhdanov – Ukraine
● Andrey “B1ad3” Gorodenskiy (Coach) – Ukraine
Aurora (Turkey)
● Engin “MAJ3R” Küpeli (In-Game Leader) – Turkey
● Ismailcan “XANTARES” Dörtkardeş – Turkey
● Özgür “woxic” Eker – Turkey
● Ali Haydar “Wicadia” Yalçın – Turkey
● Samet “jottAAA” Köklü – Turkey
● Sezgin “Fabre” Kalaycı (Coach) – Turkey
The MongolZ (Mongolia)
● Garidmagnai “bLitz” Byambasuren (In-Game Leader) – Mongolia
● Sodbayar “Techno” Munkhbold – Mongolia
● Munkhbold “Senzu” Azbayar – Mongolia
● Ayush “mzinho” Batbold – Mongolia
● Usukhbayar “910” Banzragch – Mongolia
● Erdenedalai “maaRaa” Bayanbat (Coach) – Mongolia
G2 (Europe)
● Janusz “Snax” Pogorzelski (In-Game Leader) – Poland
● Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač – Bosnia
● Mario “malbsMd” Samayoa – Guatemala
● Olek “hades” Miskiewicz – Poland
● Nikita “HeavyGod” Martynenko – Israel
● Wiktor “TaZ” Wojtas (Coach) – Poland
GamerLegion (Europe)
● Fredrik “REZ” Sterner (In-Game Leader) – Sweden
● Erik “ztr” Gustafsson – Sweden
● Sebastian “Tauson” Lindelof – Denmark
● Henrich “sl3nd” Hevesi – Hungary
● Oldřich “PR” Nový – Czech Republic
● Ashley “ash” Battye (Coach) – United Kingdom
Virtus.pro (Russia)
● Denis “electroNic” Sharipov (In-Game Leader) – Russia
● Evgenii “FL1T” Lebedev – Russia
● Petr “fame” Bolyshev – Russia
● Timur “FL4MUS” Marev – Russia
● Kaisar “ICY” Faiznurov – Kazakhstan
● Ivan “F_1N” Kochugov (Coach) – Russia
Astralis (Denmark)
● Nicolai “device” Reedtz (In-Game Leader and Sniper) – Denmark
● Martin “stavn” Lund – Denmark
● Jakob “jabbi” Nygaard – Denmark
● Victor “Staehr” Staehr – Denmark
● Casper “ruggah” Due (Coach) – Denmark
paiN Gaming (Brazil)
● Franco “dgt” Garcia (In-Game Leader) – Uruguay
● Rodrigo “biguzera” Bittencourt – Brazil
● David “dav1deuS” Maldonado – Chile
● Lucas “nqz” Soares – Brazil
● João “snow” Vinicius – Brazil
● Henrique “rikz” Waku (Coach) – Brazil
MIBR (Brazil)
● Raphael “exit” Lacerda (In-Game Leader) – Brazil
● Lucas “Lucaozy” Neves – Brazil
● Rafael “saffee” Costa – Brazil
● Breno “brnz4n” Poletto – Brazil
● Felipe “insani” Yuji – Brazil
● Jhonatan “jnt” Silva (Coach) – Brazil
M80 (United States)
● Fritz “slaxz-” Dietrich (In-Game Leader) – Germany
● Michael “Swisher” Schmid – United States
● Ethan “reck” Serrano – United States
● Elias “s1n” Stein – Germany
● Mason “Lake” Sanderson – United States
● Rory “dephh” Jackson (Coach) – United Kingdom
FURIA (Brazil)
● Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo (In-Game Leader and Sniper) – Brazil
● Yuri “yuurih” Santos – Brazil
● Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis – Latvia
● Kaike “KSCERATO” Cerato – Brazil
● Danil “molodoy” Golubenko – Kazakhstan
● Sid “sidde” Macedo (Coach) – Brazil
BIG (Germany)
● Johannes “tabseN” Wodarz (In-Game Leader) – Germany
● Jon “JDC” de Castro – Germany
● Karim “Krimbo” Moussa – Germany
● Can “kyuubii” Ali – Germany
● Marcel “hyped” Köhn – Germany
● Sebastian “xenn” Hoch (Coach) – Germany
Ninjas in Pyjamas (Europe)
● Marco “Snappi” Pfeiffer (In-Game Leader) – Denmark
● Rasmus “sjuush” Beck – Denmark
● Artem “r1nkle” Moroz – Ukraine
● Michel “ewjerkz” Pinto – Portugal
● Rafael “arrozdoce” Wing – Portugal
● Richard “Xizt” Landström (Coach) – Sweden
ODDIK (Brazil)
● Adriano “WOOD7” Cerato – Brazil
● Fillipe “pancc” Martins – Brazil
● João “naitte” Maia – Brazil
● João “matios” Guedes – Brazil
● Italo “ksloks” Meinberg – Brazil
● Caio “CX1” Coutinho (Coach) – Brazil
HOTU (Russia)
● Aidos “kade0” Khairzhan – Kazakhstan
● Suleımen “dukefissura” Orazaly – Kazakhstan
● Dmitry “mizu” Kondratev – Russia
● Mark “lampada” Ivanov – Russia
● Anatoliy “youka” Aprosimov – Russia
● Rustem “mou” Telepov (Coach) – Kazakhstan
