Inside Alienware And Liquid's $1M Play To Reignite NA Counter Strike

Forbes

08-07-2025

Team Liquid and Alienware know how to throw a party.
North American Counter Strike just had one of it's biggest moments in years. The BLAST TV Major broke records globally, becoming the most watched CS Major of all time, all in a region that many have claimed in dying when it comes to Counter Strike's popularity. It was, without question, a defiant challenge to that way of thinking, showing that North American Counter Strike is well and truly alive.
While BLAST deserves a lot of plaudits for its event, alongside it were two organisations that have been continuously supporting NA CS for over 13 years, Team Liquid and Alienware. The duo have long been partners, and have made the region a focus of their deal, supporting an NA based CS team, and activating continuously in the region, including the major where they had over $1 million in activations, featuring two fan-facing booths, a giant laptop centerpiece, 1v1 competitions, a NA GOAT Tier List experience, and a two-day watch party.
'North America is a key region for CS2, and we have a long history in the region,' said Steve Arhancet, co-CEO of Team Liquid. 'We've won titles in Dallas, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Boston, so this is definitely not a one-off, it's a part of our long history representing North America in Counter Strike. Some of our organization's greatest moments have come on home soil, and with Valve bring the Major back to the US, it's our chance to let the world know that NA CS is still alive and kicking.'
Liquid players still had fun at the Major despite a 15th place finish.
The commitment to North American Counter Strike has been one of the key parts of the deal with Alienware, with both partners keen to make sure they keep active in the region even if others have started to leave in recent years. This is not only because they see potential financial rewards from NA, but also because they want to continue to support the region they have been such a key part of for many years and not leave it without another major player.
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'There's been significant consolidation within gaming and esports in the region in comparison to Europe, and because the total number of teams has been reduced, that's left a lot of fans yearning for someone new to cheer for,' said Arhancet. 'They want someone that represents North America, taking the gold against the rest of the world. Doing this in North America with North American fans makes perfect sense for Team Liquid and Alienware because we understand that the region is a critical part of our growth strategies and worth investing in.'
While the commitment to NA CS is admiral and from a business point of view is working out, on the competitive side of things, it isn't quite as simple. At the Major, Team Liquid finished in 15th-16th place, right in the middle of the pack. Not a terrible result by any means, but for an organization as storied as Liquid, the expectations are to be right at the top of the pack, even with the challenges their commitment to NA adds.
'Operating a Counter Strike team with a North American base is incredibly challenging,' said Victor Goossens, founder and co-CEO of Team Liquid. 'The talent pipeline has thinned significantly in recent years. This is largely due to ecosystem disruptions during COVID, a shift in focus toward Europe, and the rise of Valorant, which attracted many of North America's promising players. This has made building competitive rosters extremely difficult. Not only is the talent pool limited, but it is also hard to find high-quality practice within North America. Most top-tier teams with American players now spend the majority of their time in Europe, where the practice environment is much more competitive. While this is the only viable path to remain globally relevant, it has accelerated a downward spiral for the North American scene.'
North America still loves Counter-Strike
The extra challenges being an NA team brings obviously make things harder, but with the support of Alienware the Liquid organization has gone a long way to minimise them. The two companies have built state of the art training facilities on both sides of the Atlantic, which gives the team the chance to compete in both regions and should help even up the gap.
'Together with Alienware, we've built training facilities around the world, including in North America and the Netherlands,' said Goossens. 'That global infrastructure was critical during COVID, when we hosted our North American team in the Netherlands to keep them competing at a high level. And that support hasn't stopped, it's something we benefit from every single day. Thanks to our global setup, we're able to give our North American core the best environment possible. We believe in the region, we believe in our players, and with the backing of partners like Alienware, we're confident we'll make it back to the top of the podium.'
It may be a while until a Counter Strike Major graces North American soil again, but with Alienware by their side, there is no doubt that Liquid will still be there, waving the flag for NA CS and supporting a region that many have developed. There is obviously a financial side that the companies see as viable, but it is clear that the deal between the two and the focus on North America is much more than that. Liquid and Alienware have built a legacy in the NA CS scene, and they aren't going to let that come to an end anytime soon, even if others start to walk away.