CS:GO ESL One New York Odds & Picks: Astralis Listed as Even-Money Favorite

• ESL One New York takes place September 26-29
• Will Astralis start another historic run?
• Can Liquid find their form and make a run in The Big Apple?

ESL One New York is set to begin September 26 at the Barclays Center and will see eight teams competing for the lions share of the $200,000 prize pool as well as the opportunity to get one step closer to the Intel Grand Slam. This is the fourth year in a row that ESL One New York will be taking place in the Barclays Center, with mousesports, FaZe, and Na’vi taking the titles in the past three years.

After an impressive showing in Berlin that saw Astralis capture their fourth Major title, the Danes sit as the even-money favorite to come out on top in The Big Apple and take one step closer to their second Intel Grand Slam. Are we witnessing the beginning of another historic run by Astralis? Or are there other teams to be considered to hoist the trophy at ESL One New York?

ESL One New York Odds

*Odds taken on 09/24/19

Another Era of Danish Dominance?

There is no doubt about it, the run that Astralis went on in 2018 was the most dominant run ever by a team in Counterstrike and will more than likely never be rivaled again. It lasted for the better part of a year and saw the legendary Danish roster take home 12 tournament wins and one Intel Grand Slam within an 11-month span.

It honestly looked like they would just keep on winning until they decided to retire, that was until they made the choice to attend less tournaments. This decision proved to be fatal to their era of dominance and would lead to the rise of another team in Liquid, the perennial runner-ups who consistently fell to the Danes in the finals throughout all of 2018.

The blue camo has proven to be a lucky charm for @TeamLiquid this season. Gear up like the no. 1 #CSGO team in the world to support them at #IEM Chicago!

??? https://t.co/Dqzc37et3j pic.twitter.com/oVcwuf8hYL

— Intel®ExtremeMasters (@IEM) June 13, 2019

Astralis looked like a shell of their former selves, while Liquid finally looked like they figured everything out. It looked all but certain that Liquid would come out on top of the Berlin Major after winning six straight premier events and an Intel Grand Slam heading into the pre-major player break, but Astralis had other plans.

The Danes rolled through the tournament dropping just one series in the New Legends Stage, and not a single map in the Legends Stage in Berlin. They found themselves matching up with Liquid in the quarterfinals in what may as well have been the unofficial Grand Final, and showed their 2018 form cruising through to an easy 2-0.

The rest of the tournament was a breeze for the Danes, not dropping a single map and only conceding ten rounds in their ‘closest’ game. If they are able to string together another performance like that in New York, then the Danes won’t only win, but the Counterstrike world may be witness to the beginning of another run of Danish Dominance.

Redemption for Liquid?

Liquid appeared to be the best bet to come out on top on the Berlin Major after an impressive run of tournaments that saw them dominate the competition but struggled greatly coming out of the player break. They took home six premier tournaments in a row, overtook Astralis as the world’s best team, and seemed poised to be the second North American team to take home a Major.

Exactly like what happened to Astralis when their era ended, once you stop attending high-level tournaments every week or two your performance and momentum will see the effect, and that’s what happened to Liquid. They may be able to regain their form from earlier in the year in New York and make a run for the title, but I don’t see them beating Astralis if the Danes are playing as well as they did in Berlin.

NA’s New Number One?

Another team I would urge you to at least consider is NRG. They have been on the come up for quite some time now, and I would confidently say they are at least a top-4 team in the world. They were the only team that managed to beat Astralis at the Major, and they played them reasonably close when they matched up again in the semifinals.

They are a very solid team top to bottom and literally, any player on their team can pop off any given game. I think it is pretty likely we see a run to the finals from NRG in New York, and at +600 they offer more value than Astralis of taking it all.

Pick: Astralis (+100)