CS2 Esports World Cup: Pick, Predictions and Odds

The inaugural Esports World Cup in Saudi Arabia is in full flow with two events having already concluded.

Both the League of Legends and Call of Duty: Warzone tournaments have finished at the Esports World Cup and just over the horizon is the CS2 Esports World Cup, which begins on Wednesday July 17.

The CS2 Esports World Cup - a Counter-Strike 2 event - has a prize pool of $1million and will feature 15 teams.

The teams involved come from across the globe and booked their place in the CS2 Esports World Cup event either through qualifiers or their ESL World Rankings.

Among the teams set to be involved are Team Spirit, Team Vitality and FaZe Clan and it is sure to be a tournament to remember.

The League of Legends event recently attracted more than one million peak viewers and the CS2 equivalent tournament could be equally compelling.

In terms of format, the tournament begins with 14 of the 15 teams competing in the opening stage with the winners of the individual ties set to advance to the playoff quarter-finals, while the losers will join minnows JiJieHao in the play-in stage.

One team will progress from the play-in stage, joining the initial seven winners for the playoffs and the chance to be crowned EWC champions for 2024.

CS2 Esports World Cup betting picks and predictions

Team Spirit to win CS2 Esports World Cup (+275)

The odds make Team Spirit favorite to win the CS2 Esports World Cup event at +275 and it is hard to argue with that assertion.

Not only do Team Spirit occupy top spot in the HLTV world CS2 rankings but they are also fresh from winning the BLAST Premier Spring Final last month.

There has been a brief hiatus since then, but Spirit have been consistently dangerous throughout 2024, having also won S-Tier event the Intel Extreme Masters Katowice 2024 in Poland back in February.

Sandwiched between that title triumph and their more recent successes, Spirit also placed 3rd-4th at the IEM Dallas in early June and were runners-up at the less prestigious BetBoom Dacha Belgrade 2024.

It is a busy time of year for roster changes in the world of CS2, but Team Spirit has done well to keep their group together and enter the CS2 Esports World Cup as one of the more settled teams competing.

Spirit has been clear ab out their intentions this season, withdrawing from the latest edition of the ESL Pro League, and the straight knockout format should suit them.

In the tournament's opening stage they are up against +5000 shots MIBR and they should have few issues booking their place in the playoff quarter-finals.

Natus Vincere to win CS2 Esports World Cup (+600)

Three teams - Team Vitality, FaZe Clan, MOUZ - separate market leaders from Natus Vincere and NAVI could indeed represent some outside value in the CS2 Esports World Cup outright betting.

At +600, NAVI look overpriced to win, having finished as runners-up to Team Spirit in the BLAST Premier Spring Final just last month.

On top of that, they already have one major tournament triumph under their belts this year, rising to the top in the CS2 Major Copenhagen back in March.

They were also in the 1st-4th positions in January's BLAST Premier Spring Groups and it is fair to say they have recently been there or thereabouts.

They reeled off convincing wins over Virtus.pro, FaZe and Astralis at the recent BLAST Premier Spring Final and, although fifth in the world HLTV rankings, they are worth a bet.

NAVI have endured their fair share of setbacks this year, most notably at the ESL Pro League Season 19 and IEM Dallas, but they bounced back in the Spring Groups and they held their own in the final against Spirit.

There is both individual talent and group adaptability in this NAVI roster and they have as good a chance, if not better, of winning this Esports World Cup event as the sides above them in the betting.

CS2 Esports World Cup odds

Team Spirit	+275
Team Vitality	+325
FaZe Clan	+400
MOUZ	+500
Natus Vincere	+600
G2 Esports	+700
Virtus.Pro	+1200
The MongolZ	+1400

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.