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Strafe Wrapped 2025: A Look Back at Our Year in Esports
Just like that, a year of esports action has come and gone. Whether you're a fan of FPS games, a devoted MOBA gamer, or anything in-between, chances are that 2025 delivered its fair share of thrills, heartbreaks, and unforgettable moments.
Before we move on to a new season of competition and coverage, join us as we go through our Strafe Esports Wrapped, taking a look back at our best performing esports, players, teams, and news articles throughout the year.
Most Viewed Articles: Our Top 10 of 2025
1) LoL Gets a New Champ, and a New Mechanic
Our single most read article of 2025 came very early in the year (January, to be exact) with the release of a new champion to League of Legends: Mel. In our article, we took a close look at Mel's entire kit, which included a brand new mechanic into the game. And it appears just about everyone was interested to find out more.
2) A Western Jungler Stands Out at Worlds 2025
When it comes to LoL esports, the East runs the scene. That is precisely why the fact that a Western player made it to our list of the top 5 Junglers at Worlds 2025 was so noteworthy. Even if FlyQuest did end up having a disappointing run at Worlds, Kacper "Inspired" Słoma more than earned his spot on the list before the start of the tournament.
3) T1 Worlds Skins Craze
T1 winning Worlds for a second consecutive time at the end of 2024 was news enough. Then, fans all over the globe waited for months before the champions chosen for the T1 Worlds 2024 skins were finally revealed. Naturally, nobody wanted to be out of the loop.
4) CS Souvenir Packages Take Over
Our first Counter-Strike article of the top 10 had to be tied to a Major. During the Austin Major back in May, the Pick'Em Challenge offered the chance to earn up to three souvenir packages, and of course, we provided a guide to it. The tournament may have put the finishing touches on Team Vitality's historic seven consecutive trophies run, but for a lot of the viewers, it was all about the souvenir packages.
5) Brazil and VALORANT skins
The Night Market is no small deal in VALORANT, and least of all in Brazil. Our first and only article in Brazilian Portuguese on this list came with our reveal of the Night Market returning to the game in February, including a complete list of the skins that would be eligible for a discount.
6) Uzi Officially Becomes Legend
Two years into his retirement from League of Legends competition, Jian "Uzi" Zi-Hao continues to be a household name in China. One of the greatest AD carries to ever play the game, Uzi's induction into the Hall of Legends came tied to a Pass that included a set of new Kai'Sa skins which were both gorgeous and highly sought after, selling for millions in a matter of hours.
7) Serious Allegations in the World of CS
Our number 7 most viewed article of 2025 was a more serious piece of news, one that shed some light on the several grave allegations former Elevate player Adam "nbgee12" Zanzoul was facing half way through the year. The story involves accusations of theft and fraud, and should serve as a serious cautionary tale for anyone looking to make a name for themselves in esports.
8) Every Problem Needs a Fix
Half way through the year, VALORANT was running into some issues ('PMID Problem Generic') which would not allow you to buy in-game currency through the shop. Fortunately, Strafe covered the issue and its potential fixes. If you ever run into this problem in the future, do make sure to give the article a read.
9) New LEC Format in 2026
Towards the end of the year, the LEC (top division of League of Legends in Europe) revealed they would be debuting a brand a new tournament and format to kick off 2026, including the addition of two new teams to the league. The announcement generated a lot of hype, and Strafe not only covered the news, but also took a closer look at the new format, schedule, where to find tickets for the event, and more.
10) Austin Major Makes a Second Appearance
We've talked about souvenir packages in relation to the Austin Major, but the tournament's Pick'Em Challenge was about a lot more than that. As is tradition, we came out with Strafe's guide to the Austin Major Pick'Em Challenge, guiding CS fans through the tall task that is predicting how a CS Major's Swiss Stage might play out.
Most Viewed Month: The Stars Align
June proved to be a particularly important month for esports this year, and boy did it show. To kick off the month, both the BLAST.tv Austin Major for Counter-Strike and Masters Toronto for VALORANT ran almost entirely parallel to each other, giving FPS fans everywhere tons of high-stakes action to follow.
As if that wasn't enough, MSI for League of Legends also got going immediately after both events concluded, pitting the best LoL teams from all over the world against one another in Canada. With so much top-tier competition going on across three of the biggest esports, it's no wonder June ended up being Strafe's most viewed month of 2025.
Most Popular Team
2025 may not have been their year, but NAVI's CS squad continues to be the most followed team in Strafe Esports all the same. With over half a million followers on our site and app, NAVI's strong showing the year before (in which they won the Copenhagen Major) and their rich history in Counter-Strike allows them to continue to be one of the most beloved teams in esports.
Most Popular Player
And speaking of NAVI's rich history in Counter-Strike, their former star AWPer Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev remains the most followed player on Strafe after coming back from a break halfway through the year.
Now on BC.Game Esports, s1mple continues to turn heads his way as fans eagerly await his return to the top, amassing almost 400k followers on Strafe.
Top Performing Esports
Going by monthly active users (MAU), Counter-Strike is king among esports — at least as far as Strafe is concerned. With over 32k MAU, CS claims the top spot, followed by the two biggest MOBA games in the world, League of Legends and Dota 2.
VALORANT, perhaps Counter-Strike's most direct competition, comes in at number 4 before Rainbow Six Siege rounds out our list of the top 5 esports on Strafe by MAU.
After winning the Best Esport Game at the 2025 Game Awards, perhaps it's not too surprising to see Counter-Strike as the top performing esport of the year on Strafe as well.
Goodbye to a Year for the History Books
Whether it be Vitality's legacy-defining run in Counter-Strike, T1 lifting an unprecedent third consecutive Worlds trophy, Serral returning to the top of the StarCraft 2 scene, or NRG putting on one of the most impressive Cinderella runs ever at VALORANT Champions Paris, 2025 has been an unforgettable year in esports. As this historic season draws to a close, 2025's hype and thrills will live on as we receive a new year of action on all fronts with eyes peeled and arms wide open.
And to all of you who continue to rely on us for your latest esports news, live scores, and more: thank you.
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Featured image credit: Strafe Esports