As the season progresses the April 6 deadline for IEM Cologne Major invites looms ever closer, and there is plenty of movement ongoing when it comes to the lower end of the invite range.
Some teams are seeing their Major dreams slip away whilst some are making heroic strides towards attendance in Cologne, and there is much drama still yet to unfold as teams fight for their place at Counter-Strike's marquee event.
As such it's time to take stock of recent developments more regularly, as well as look ahead to the upcoming events that will most significantly impact the Major invite race.
One of the teams who are making a charge towards Major contention is BIG , who have started the year in fine form with three tournament wins, two of which came on LAN. Their recent form has seen them enter the Major invite range in the live rankings.
BIG are currently competing in the Stake Ranked Episode 1 closed qualifier, and picking up a spot at the $100,000 event would be a significant boon for the team should they manage it. It's a LAN event attended by sides ranked in the 10th-20th range and sports a significant prize pool, which both equate to significant VRS gains if you can grab some wins.
Liquid , Ninjas in Pyjamas and 3DMAX have watched their Major chances shrink in recent times due to their poor results.
Liquid have signed up to several VRS LANs following their ESL Pro League exit, realizing their chances are very slim should they leave potential LAN wins on the table. The LAN win aspect of the VRS ranking was where Liquid were likely to suffer, so they have helped their prospects by adding DraculaN Season 6 and Roman Imperium Cup VI to their schedule. Still, things are not looking good.
As for Ninjas in Pyjamas , they have a fairly healthy schedule ahead of them but they need to actually start winning some matches if their schedule is to have any impact on qualification chances. 3DMAX will be praying to pick up some victories in ESL Pro League Stage 2 but the chances are they will need to sign up for some more LANs, as their schedule is looking light.
In the next week, there are several things to keep an eye on when it comes to Major qualification, both in Europe and in South America.
In Europe the Stake Ranked Episode 1 qualifier is worth taking note of, as whoever qualifies to the event will have a prime opportunity to bolster their VRS point total. BIG , SINNERS and K27 are the most significant names to watch. Parken Challenger Championship Season 2 is also coming up, where 100 Thieves are the only notable team in attendance.
Over in South America BetBoom Circuit X Pantanal Cuiaba is ongoing, which features the likes of BESTIA , RED Canids , Imperial and ODDIK , all of whom are fighting for one of the last Americas Major berths. The results there are likely to have a significant impact on who makes it to Cologne.