The original Counter-Strike has delighted millions in the gaming community for almost 20 years, in history that, in many ways, parallels the rise to the popularity of eSports across the globe. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO) and its predecessor, Counter-Strike: Source, have influenced competitive gaming, eSports, and first-person shooters in a variety of ways.
Because of the games' enormous influence on the modern gaming community, talented broadcasters and players have climbed to unprecedented levels of popularity and success in the game. The aggregate earnings of the top ten best paid CS: GO players are in the millions of dollars. The game is well-liked all around the globe, and fans are still playing it years after it was released in 2012. It was even named eSports Game of the Year at the 2016 eSports Industry Awards. Because of its long history with gambling and eSports wagering, the game has the ability to last a very long time in the ever-changing eSports market.
Let's get started by looking at our list of the top ten CS:GO players on the globe.
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1. Marcelo “Coldzera” David
Michael “Coldzera” David, a true legend in the CS:GO community, has consistently led the top of the CS:GO leaderboards and been recognized for his skill by winning tournaments and awards, including eSports Player of the Year and PC Player of the Year in the 2016 Game Awards, while CS: GO took home the Game of the Year Award.
Coldzera has won MVP or Player of the Year awards from a variety of clubs and organizations, and he came to prominence while playing with Luminosity Gaming (He now plays for MIBR, or Made in Brazil, a team representing his Latin-American home country). Even as recently as the autumn of 2018, the guy was taking home hundreds of thousands of dollars at a time, winning tournaments left and right. He's taken MIBR to new heights in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
He is most renowned for his incredible frag abilities, which have made him a famous participant in competitive betting on the game. In 2016, for example, he eliminated four players and the AWP in front of millions of viewers in the MLG Championship.
2. Christopher “GeT_RiGhT” Alesund
It's hard to dispute that Christopher "GeT RiGhT" Alesund, a Swedish player, is one of the best of all time. GeT RiGhT is one of the community's oldest players, at 29 years old, but it hasn't stopped him from breaking records and creating history with his abilities.
He holds the record for the longest winning run in CS: GO, with an unbroken streak of 87 games dating back to the game's early days when it was known as Ninjas in Pajamas. Despite a recent dip in the leaderboards, GeT RiGhT has held the title of "king of CS: GO" for much longer than many others, winning 20 international titles and placing in the Top 8 of dozens more.
At a period when many others battled with accuracy and the huge surge of worldwide attention to the best professional players, he topped the leaderboards. Many will remember him as a champion from the game's golden days as a result of this.
3. Richard “shox” Papillon
Richard “Shox” Papillon is a well-known French eSports player that plays for the VeryGames French squad. Shox is renowned for how simple he makes dominating the game seem. He was one of the best players in the original Counter-Strike: Source game, and anybody who has heard or seen him play in CS: GO would agree.
He not only catapulted himself to the top of the game's rankings, but he also guided VeryGames from underdogs to global champions, surpassing even Ninjas in Pajamas to become the greatest CS: GO team in the world in 2013.
Between NiP and Titan, he played for a variety of teams, all of which benefitted from having the second greatest player at the time (Coldzera, also of NiP, was regarded barely above Shox to win the top championship) backing them up. He was a feared player in his prime, which is why he ranks so high on our list.
4. Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer
Olof “Olofmeister” Kajbjer, perhaps the most versatile player to ever play CS: GO professionally, can rock any match with any role and any weapon. In the summer of 2014, he joined the eSports team Fnatic, which catapulted him to stardom. While he is very flexible, he isn't always consistent, succeeding at crucial times throughout matches and tournaments to guarantee his team's long-term success.
Similarly, although many of the other players on this list took a year or two off in the early days of CS: GO's dominance, Olofmeister seems to have taken his time settling in. In 2015, he took home his first major championship at ESL One Katowice.
With Fnatic's back-to-back victories in 2015, he was part of the first team to win more than one major championship, setting an eSports record. Over the course of his career, he has earned over $700,000 in prize money, and despite injuries and personal problems, he was still able to finish in the top 20 in 2016 and 2017.
5. Nicolai “dev1ce” Reedtz
Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz, 24, has risen to professional renown and prestige with his two closest friends and colleagues, Xyp9x and Dupreeh, thanks to his strong abilities as an AWP. With a net worth of almost $1 million, he has the financial means to turn down TSM due to "contract issues," and then go on to establish Astralis, a successful professional club.
His squad is the greatest in the world right now, having won the 2017 ELeague Major (the first Valve major title for dev1ce himself). Dev1ce was a high performer in tournaments as recently as March of this year, winning the Intel Extreme Masters Katowice Major.
6. Kenny “kennyS” Schrub
Kenny "kennyS" Schrub can pinpoint shots on his enemies in incredible angles and shots that make it look easy and like his only goal is to entertain himself in a game where a sniper is known for being a challenging role for even the most talented players (who, even if they excel at the sniper, often do much better in their primary roles of fragger), Kenny "kennyS" Schrub can pinpoint shots on his enemies in incredible angles and shots that make it look easy and like his only goal Others enviously admire his raw skill for placing fast shots and dazzling quick scopes.
Unfortunately, kennyS has a habit of staying with a team for much too long. His career may have seemed more uncertain owing to frequent team changes in France or getting fired from VeryGames due to bad performance, but because to his unshakable skill, he has remained in the top ten worldwide for most of the past six years. Many of the greatest haven't been able to do this.
7. Janusz “snax” Pogorzelski
Janusz “Snax” Pogorzelski, a Polish pro player, began playing CS: GO in late 2013, more than a year after the game was launched, while other elite players had already spent hundreds of hours in the game. Snax was able to achieve worldwide levels of notoriety as a next-level AWPer with Virtus.Pro and subsequently Mousesports, where he moved alongside his gaming buddy Taz, due to his enthusiasm and talent.
Despite the glitch of Virtus. gradual Pro's burnout, which temporarily reduced his position on the global leaderboards, Snax only finished #20 in 2017, an incredibly high ranking that was nonetheless the lowest of his career. Things are looking better for him, though, as Mousesports continues to grow as a contender year after year.
8. Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev
This Ukrainian talent powerhouse has redefined what it means to be a CS: GO champion. Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev began playing in amateur teams in 2014, and after making an impact online and receiving an invite from Spencer “Hiko” Martin, he moved up to play with Team Liquid. He was subsequently able to make his last transfer to Natus Vincere ( Na'Vi), his ideal squad, where he found his stride.
He began working his way up the leaderboard after finding a real home for his talent, and he is now ranked in the top ten players. He'll undoubtedly continue to win and surprise, and if his present pace continues, he may even reach the top position. For the time being, his prospective status is just slightly greater than his present one. Only time will tell how far S1mple can go.
9. Nikola “NiKo” Kovac
Nikola “NiKo” Kovac has been steadily developing his skill since he began playing CS: GO in 2013, rising through ever more well-known eSports organizations until reaching his current position in FaZe. He's developed into one of FaZe Clan's top CS: GO players and his aim and tactics make him a clever player.
Although his experience on elite teams may attest to his ability, he has yet to win a major or premier championship, and as of 2016, he was rated #11 worldwide.
10. Patrik “f0rest” Lindberg
Patrik “f0rest” Lindberg, a Swedish player with not only talent but talent when it matters, has done so well in the numerous big games he's played in, including several majors, that he now teaches a MasterClass in gaming skills.
He is most known for his time with Fnatic, but his adventures with Ninjas in Pajamas have maintained him in near-peak form, as he is still extremely amazing to watch. His earnings amount to just over $600,000, and he still competes in International Championships with NiP.