Strife claim victory in the fl0m Cup

The fl0m Cup, the inaugural event for North America in 2023, has come to a close, with Strife taking down Vendetta in the finals to secure the $4,000 grand prize. Strife collected the scalps of numerous heavyweight sides en route to their victory, as they bested Disconnected and EG Black in addition to Vendetta before claiming their event win.

The grand finals began on Strife's pick of Inferno, a map that would prove to be the most hotly-contested of the series. Strife and Vendetta traded blows early on in the first half, but ultimately Strife managed to edge out their opponents to claim a 9-6 lead at the half. A pistol-round victory to kick off the second half allowed Vendetta to even things up 9-9, but Strife quickly ran away with six of the next seven rounds to lock down match point.

Despite Strife's strong showing on the CT-side, Vendetta did not falter as they racked up five rounds of their own to force overtime. With first overtime being unable to provide a winner, the map was soon dragged into double overtime, where Strife were able to secure their pick 22-19 following a flawless T-side.

Strife looked to carry their momentum into Vendetta's pick of Mirage, where Strife managed to carve out an early 5-2 lead on the defense. Strife were unable to maintain this lead for long, however, as Vendetta fought back to narrowly secure an 8-7 lead on their pick. Vendetta snatched the second pistol round to extend their lead, but Strife quickly rallied to reclaim their lead. With Strife within striking distance of stealing away their map pick, Vendetta put up a stalwart defense to keep their series hopes alive, locking down their map pick 16-12.

With the series all tied up, Strife and Vendetta were brought to the deciding map of Overpass. An early four-round streak by Strife on the offense was quickly broken up by a three-round streak by Vendetta, suggesting that this map may end up being as close as the previous two maps. That inclination would be incorrect, however, as Strife simply went on to win every single round from here on out, fueled by phenomenal showings from all five members of the squad. This performance allowed Strife to claim Overpass 16-3, winning them the series and earning them the $4,000 grand prize.

The final standings of the fl0m cup are:

1. Strife - $4,000
2. Vendetta - $2,000
3-4. Nouns
3-4. Evil Geniuses Black
5-8. Disconnected
5-8. Detonate
5-8. 4Bots & Eric
5-8. Davenport University

Strife will be hoping to carry this momentum into Season 44 of ESL Challenger League, which is slated to begin on January 24th.