The Counter-Strike community is debating the decision to make Esports Nations Cup a VRS-ranked event. Analysts and team representatives warn that the tournament could damage the integrity of the Valve Regional Standings system. At the center of the criticism is long-time VRS expert Jesper “Udknud” Larsen, who publicly urged Valve to remove the event from the rankings.
You can’t allow this to be VRS ranked. This is a parallel universe, not part of the regular CS circuit.
Why VRS integrity is being questioned
Esports Nations Cup is a national teams tournament. Its rosters are not tied to standard organizations. According to Larsen and other experts, this creates a dangerous loophole. Three-player cores from tier-one teams can earn VRS points. The remaining roster spots can be filled by players outside the organization. This setup allows teams to benefit from results that do not reflect real competitive conditions.
This event will have tier-one ranking impact, Larsen warned.
He pointed to the format: 24 teams, four groups of six, a full round-robin stage, and playoffs. That means around 60 LAN matches with high VRS weight. Larsen’s main concern is the direct impact on invites. Results from this event could influence access to BLAST Bounty or IEM Kraków, despite coming from a non-standard competitive environment.
These are not real rosters competing for invites, Larsen said. If real three-man cores sign up, it becomes point farming that other teams cannot access.
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Hypotheticals highlight structural risks
The discussion quickly moved beyond Larsen’s original post. Graham “messioso” Pitt, Head of Operations for 100 Thieves CS, outlined further risks. He questioned whether organizations might lend star players to national teams only to boost VRS points.
Would Falcons give m0NESY and kyosuke to boost Spirit’s VRS in an event they can’t play themselves? Pitt asked. Who would choose this over preparing for the Major or playing BLAST Rivals?
Although Russia is banned from fielding a team at the Esports Nations Cup, experts stress that the core structural problem remains. The format itself creates the risk.
Prize pool rules vs ranking logic
Valve rules limit unranked tournaments to prize pools below $100,000. Esports Nations Cup offers $1.3 million, which explains why organizers kept it ranked. Larsen argues that Valve should step in.
Valve makes exceptions all the time. If the prize pool forces this event to be ranked, then create a special rule, he said. You cannot load a national teams event of this scale into VRS without serious integrity risks.
Several community figures compared the situation to traditional sports. National tournaments often sit outside league ranking systems. A common example is the Davis Cup in tennis, which does not affect ATP rankings.
Community reaction: consensus forming
Across social media, analysts, players, and fans share similar concerns. Many agree that national representation has value. However, it should not affect the system that decides tier-one invitations. Larsen summed it up clearly:
VRS exists to invite the correct teams to tier-one events. This does the opposite.
What happens next?
Valve has not commented on the VRS status of the Esports Nations Cup. Still, pressure from industry insiders continues to grow. For many, this debate is about more than one tournament. It is about protecting the credibility of Counter-Strike’s competitive hierarchy. Any decision Valve makes could set a precedent with long-term consequences for the CS2 ecosystem.
