The CS:GO scene has been a huge rink ever since the game was released, and over the years, various players have changed the rosters of teams. However, only a few of them have consistently performed at the top, and due to this, they can be considered the best players of Counter Strike: Global Offensive.
The best CS:GO players
Arguably the best CS:GO player in history, Oleksander “s1mple” Kostyliev
The game crowned as the best esports title, Counter Strike: Global Offensive, has come a long way since its release in 2012 and was officially replaced last year by the new version, Counter Strike 2. In just under eleven years, numerous tournaments have taken place, and it’s no surprise that many players have etched their names into history. However, only a few can be considered the very best. Several factors must be taken into account when choosing these players: how long they were active, how many titles they won, how many MVP (Most Valuable Player) awards they earned, and how often they topped the annual rankings published by the renowned Counter-Strike-focused portal, HLTV.org. This article is based on HLTV statistics, which made it possible to create a list of ten players whose names are forever immortalized in CS:GO history and are regarded as the best of the best.
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Top 10 players in CS:GO history
Before we proceed, it’s important to note that the following list focuses on the best individual skills, which is why no support player made the cut. These star players generally don’t carry the burden of team-leading decisions and are positioned to deliver the best performances. Thanks to this, they are consistently able to win MVP (Most Valuable Player) awards, which form the basis of this list.
| Player | Number of MVP awards |
| Oleksander “s1mple” Kostyliev | 21 |
| Nicolai “device” Reedtz | 19 |
| Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut | 16 |
| Christopher “GeT_RiGhT” Alesund | 10 |
| Kenny “kennyS” Schrub | 10 |
| Marcelo “coldzera” David | 8 |
| Nikola “Niko” Kovač | 8 |
| Ladislav “GuardiaN” Kovács | 8 |
| Patrik “f0rest” Lindberg | 8 |
| Olof “olofmeister” Kajbjer | 6 |
The table above shows the number of MVP awards each player earned during their career. Based on this, we can determine a list of the ten best players in CS:GO history, although some may argue that this metric alone is insufficient. However, we must disagree, as even when considering other statistics, the list remains largely unchanged. The bottom five include Swedish legends f0rest and olofmeister, who proved themselves as top players even in Counter-Strike 1.6, Slovakian sniper GuardiaN, one of the best in the early Global Offensive days, Niko, the only player still competing at a high level in CS2, and Brazilian star coldzera, who dominated alongside his compatriots in 2016. French player kennyS excelled particularly with the AWP during CS:GO’s early years (2012–2014), earning many awards but gradually fading away. Swedish player GeT_RiGhT peaked alongside his Swedish peers mentioned above. Meanwhile, French prodigy ZywOo entered the competitive scene much later than his rivals but delivered performances that the veterans could only envy—earning him a well-deserved third place. Danish AWPer device long contended with the Ukrainian player at the top of this list, achieving the most MVP awards during Astralis’ dominant era, greatly aided by his superhuman performances. At the top, we have the player known as s1mple. In the CS esports world, this name holds the same weight as Messi or Ronaldo in football. The best of the best, consistently delivering performances that astonished both teammates and rivals. His primary weapon was the AWP, with which he created several iconic moments in history, but even with standard rifles, he shone like no other. It is his unwavering consistency in delivering top-tier performances that earned him the top spot and the title of GOAT in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. The release of Counter-Strike 2 not only changed the game itself but also team rosters and player activity. A new era of stars is on the horizon, but only time will tell which names will be etched into CS2 history.
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