What to expect from NA teams in Thunderpick World Championship

The Thunderpick World Championship will start tomorrow, October 27th, and four North American squads are ready to do some damage in the competition. Complexity, M80, Nouns, and Wildcard will all have a tough time making it out of their respective group, as all the other teams will feel the same.

This event has ten teams currently ranked #18 or better in the HLTV World Ranking and only six teams outside the top 20. M80, Nouns, and Wildcard are the three lowest-ranked teams and will have to face some of the current best teams in the world.

The Thunderpick World Championship is separated into two different stages. The group stage features four groups of four teams each, with a GSL Bo3 format, with only the top two teams advancing to the playoffs. The playoffs have a single elimination bracket, and all games will be Bo3s.

The GSL Bo3 groups format means that after the opening games, the series' winners will face off, as well as both losers. The winner of the winners series qualifies for playoffs, while the loser of the losers series is eliminated. The decider series will be between the loser of the winners and the winner of the losers' series, with the winner of that match advancing.

Complexity - Group C (MOUZ, Complexity, Spirit, M80)

Complexity got dealt the worst hand possible. The team comes to this event after a grand final appearance at IEM Sydney and will have to face one of the toughest underdog teams out there, Spirit. The flop vs. The donk will be a good match-up, and don't be surprised if the Russian squad takes the win, although Complexity is the favorite. Group C can host a North American derby if both NA teams get the same result.

M80 - Group C (MOUZ, Complexity, Spirit, M80)

I take it back, M80 got dealt the worst hand possible. The opening game for the squad will be against MOUZ, currently #4 in the world, and if they fail to win that series, they will have to face either Complexity or Spirit. This event for M80 will show if the squad has been taking in all the practice they have been able to get in Europe, as it will be very hard to get a series win in this group.

Nouns - Group D (Heroic, BIG, FURIA, Nouns)

Nouns' opening match will be against a limping Heroic squad, which has recently seen a lot of drama. Although the situation is not good for the organization, the players themselves might not feel that much pressure given their contractual situation, as Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen will be out by the end of 2023, and two MOUZ NXT players are standing in for Heroic.

Nouns have been dominating the North American region, with 15 straight series wins, and will use that in their favor, but their opposition seems too tough to continue the unbeatable run. Should Nouns win, the team has a good chance of upsetting either BIG or FURIA to make playoffs unbeaten, but should they lose, they also have a shot to go through the hard way.

Wildcard - Group B (FaZe, Monte, SAW, Wildcard)

It's the standard David vs. Goliath for Wildcard. The team will have to face Monte, hoping to do the same Complexity did in Sydney, but the squad needs to be realistic and use the game to learn and experience what it's like to be in the server with tier-one opposition. Suppose the group doesn't see any upsets. In that case, Wildcard will have the opportunity to face off against Portuguese side SAW, a team with more international experience than the North Americans. Still, it should be on the same level as them.

This will be a tough group stage for all the North American teams as all will have to defy the odds to stay alive in their respective group. Realistically, Complexity should be the only NA team qualifying for playoffs, but Counter-Strike has brought some surprises lately, so do not discard any other scenarios.

The first NA team to play in Thunderpick World Championship will be Wildcard against Monte, tomorrow at 07:00AM. Complexity and M80 will debut on Sunday at 08:00AM and 11:00AM, respectively. Nouns will be the last team from NA to play for the first time at the event, playing on Monday at 05:00AM.