StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 Power Rankings: Will FURIA match up to predictions?

The final event of the 2025 CS2 calendar is here: the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025. Alongside the BLAST.tv Austin Major, it is the most anticipated Counter-Strike tournament of the year, the one every single player wants to win more than any other.

Coming into the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, most predictions and Power Rankings have FURIA taking all the marbles. Is that how we see it? Let’s find out.

FURIA undeniable favorites after staggering run of form

Even I can’t quite believe I’m saying this, but after three consecutive tournament wins, it’s undeniable: FURIA are the favorites to win the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025. They are undeniably the best Counter-Strike team in the world right now, and FalleN‘s men look a level above the competition. In every aspect of the game, from sheer firepower to mid-round adaptations, FURIA are seriously in the groove at the moment.

My only concern surrounding FURIA is this: have they just peaked too soon? It doesn’t look like it at the moment, of course, and you have to give them the edge over Vitality based on all the evidence presented at the moment. But they really have to hope that their recent BLAST Rivals Hong Kong victory wasn’t the pinnacle. After all, winning four events in a row would be pretty crazy, especially for a lineup that previously hadn’t won anything together.

It all hinges on the molodoy we get at the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025. He is the hot topic in the Counter-Strike scene right now, the prodigy impressing the most. He has faced no struggles with pressure so far, but will that continue under the bright lights of the Major? If he continues to deliver as he has, then FURIA are comfy frontrunners to become CS2 Major winners in Budapest.

Is this NiKo’s time?

If you can believe it, the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 will be NiKo‘s 16th crack at winning a Major. Still, Counter-Strike’s greatest prize eludes one of its greatest riflers, and he’s giving it another go with yet another new Falcons lineup. This time, it’s kyousuke in for veteran Magisk, who competed for the team earlier this year in Austin.

It’s clear that Falcons aren’t quite the finished article yet. But importantly, they do seem to be getting better with every passing tournament, and so they do arrive at the StarLadder Budapest Major among the favorites. It’s a bold statement to make about a lineup that hasn’t yet won a single trophy together, but stranger things have happened, especially given the sheer quality on this lineup.

Much of it will depend on NiKo himself. He is so often the difference-maker for Falcons, in both positive and negative ways. When he plays well, then Falcons typically beat everyone. When he doesn’t, things go downhill fast, even with m0NESY enjoying much stronger form at the moment. And in Grand Finals, NiKo has not been playing well, to say the least. In 2025, NiKo has mustered only a 1.02 rating in Grand Finals, a sign that he hasn’t enjoyed the big moments at all this year. But win the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 and claim the trophy he’s been chasing for over a decade now, and all will be forgotten.

Potential StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 underdogs

The Major is the Major, and the existence of best-of-ones alongside the high stakes can throw up some truly wacky results. It’s in this environment that underdogs often operate best, and we’re going to talk about a few of note coming into the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025.

First up is Astralis. If we’re being honest with ourselves, they don’t look at all comfortable together at the moment. This isn’t the best this team can perform. And yet, this is Astralis at a Major. This is where magic happens, and after a five-Major hiatus, you would hope the Danes show up looking to remind the world of their status as four-time Major winners. I’m not suggesting Astralis have to win the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 – this is not a trophy-winning team at the moment. But show up, make a splash, and don’t let Astralis crash out of their first Major in years with a whimper.

Then there’s G2. We see so much professional Counter-Strike played that it’s easy to forget that just two months ago, they beat Vitality in a best-of-five to win BLAST Open London. They are Tier 1 trophy winners this season, and have shown the capability to take down anyone on the server. When you think about the favorites for the StarLadder Budapest Major, G2 simply aren’t in that conversation. They’ve not shown the consistency to merit that status. But if they find an absurd peak at just the right moment, then yeah, there’s a very real world in which G2 make a truly miracle run in Budapest.