BLAST Pro Series Lisbon Champions 2018
All tickets for BLAST Pro Series in Altice Arena were sold out and the massive number of fans did certainly not disappoint. Throughout the day and into the night the atmosphere was electric and the players obviously also enjoyed the last big Counter-Strike tournament of the year!
Local favorites MIBR fell short of reaching the Grand Final, which was won by 2018’s all dominating CS:GO team, Astralis. Ukrainian NaVi, who entered the tournament as reigning BLAST Pro Series Copenhagen champions, took second place.
6.000 fans wanted more
After sweeping the Group Stage by winning 5 of 5 matches, Astralis also took the Grand Final in a tense and very close 2-1 victory, securing the world’s best team in 2018 their 10th trophy of the season.
Eventhough Brazilian founded MIBR were the clear fan favourites, the fans showed world-class by just turning up the volume before and throughout the Grand Final!
As “A Portuguesa” (the national anthemn of Portugal) rang through the arena, NaVi and Astralis opened the final game of a historic night in the Portuguese Capital.
After the Grand Final and an amazing trophy celebration, the fans wouldn’t let the teams go, and Altice Arena certainly left a lasting impression with the players.
Even the world’s best players can be amazed
The Grand Final was also a duel between the two players that are widely regarded as the best in the world in 2018 and both were awestruck about the crowd.
Astralis’ Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz:
– We have played all over the world in many great places and I really love the Counter-Strike fans. I just have to say that the fans in this arena tonight created a truly unique atmosphere that I have never experienced before. It was a true pleasure to play in Portugal, and I think the fans deserve more major events like BLAST Pro Series!
– Winning our tenth trophy of the year and ending the season this way is almost magical. We have had an amazing season and go on break as the clear number one in the world. It is almost impossible to do this again in 2019, but we will certainly do everything in our power to try. You never get tired of winning, but right now I think we are all very happy to go home and take a break. It has been a long season and we need to recharge our batteries, and what better memory to take with us than this Portuguese experience, Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz comments.
NaVi’s Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev picthes in:
– I love playing this format of BLAST Pro Series where the fans get all the action in one day. You feel it on stage, and the crowd was really impressive tonight.
– We won the Trophy in the Copenhagen tournament, and we really wanted to win it again. We end the year with a good feeling, though and I just want to thank the fans for supporting us. We would love to come back to Portugal and play again.
Next BLAST Pro Series will take place in March in Sao Paulo, Brazil.