Welcome to all esports and Counter-Strike 2 fans! From October 26, 2025, to November 1, 2025, one of the biggest tournaments of this autumn — PGL Masters Bucharest 2025 is taking place. Sixteen teams will compete for the championship title and a prize pool of 625 thousand dollars. Among the 1-2 bracket matches, we highlight 3DMAX vs Astralis, which promises to be very exciting. While the teams prepare, we’ll share our CS2 betting tips and insights on this match.
How the bookies view it: 3DMAX favorite
Most bookmakers consider 3DMAX the favorites in the match against Astralis at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025. The team is known for its performances at the highest level, and despite a not very successful start to the tournament, they are one of the favorites to win.
3DMAX form. What result can be expected from 3DMAX
Our betting tips and CS2 picks for the 3DMAX vs Astralis matchup begin with analyzing 3DMAX form. The team returned to pro CS in 2023, participating in just three A-, B-, and C-tier tournaments that year. Their main achievement was winning the ESL Challenger League Season 46: Europe.
3DMAX roster: Lucky, bodyy, Ex3rcice, Maka, Graviti.
In the 2024 season, 3DMAX participated in significantly more tournaments. Although they didn’t secure any major victories, there were still some notable achievements. The team finished in the top 11 at the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024: European Qualifier and IEM China 2024: European Open Qualifier, placed top 4 at RES Western European Masters: Spring 2024, and ended up in the top 12 at European RMR A.
Before ESL Pro League Season 19, 3DMAX competed in the A1 Gaming League Season 8, where they took second place. At ESL Pro League Season 19, 3DMAX proved that they should not be considered a weak team. In their opening match, they defeated sAw, and in the following game against Fnatic, they caused a minor upset by confidently winning 2-0, giving up only 15 rounds across two maps. In the playoffs of ESL Pro League Season 19, they continued to perform solidly, losing only to Astralis and G2, and ultimately finishing in the top 12 out of 32 participating teams.
Throughout the season, 3DMAX also aimed to make their mark at top-tier events. For instance, at Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2024, they finished in the top 24 after a 1-2 loss to Heroic. Later, they attempted to compete at ESL Pro League Season 20 but delivered a weaker performance, ending in the top 20.
However, their results at lower-tier tournaments were much better. 3DMAX became the champions of YaLLa Compass Summer 2024 and secured top-three finishes at both the Thunderpick World Championship 2024 and ESL Challenger League Season 48: Europe.
At the Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024: European RMR B, the team started with a win over TSM and then pulled off a surprise by defeating Eternal Fire 2-0 in the qualification match. They went on to beat G2 Esports and advanced to the Elimination Stage. There, they performed at their expected level, finishing with a 1-3 record and a top-13 placement overall.
In the 2025 season, 3DMAX participated in BLAST Bounty Season 1 but were eliminated early after a 1-2 loss to Heroic, finishing in the top 32. Their next event was IEM Katowice 2025, where they performed noticeably better. The team easily defeated both FlyQuest and MIBR with 2-0 scores. In the group stage, they lost to Vitality and dropped to the lower bracket. There, they managed to beat BIG, but their run was halted by Eternal Fire, leaving 3DMAX in the top 8 of the tournament.
At PGL Cluj-Napoca 2025, the team started strong with a win over Virtus.pro, followed by a loss to MOUZ, and then a victory over MIBR. However, despite a 2-1 standing, they failed to reach the playoffs after back-to-back defeats to Eternal Fire and sAw, finishing in the top 9.
After that, 3DMAX continued to participate in multiple tournaments, consistently placing between 9th and 12th, which reaffirmed their status as a solid mid-tier team in professional Counter-Strike 2.
At IEM Cologne 2025, the 3DMAX team won their first match against MIBR with a score of 2:0. However, in the second round of the upper bracket, they lost to NiP with a score of 0:2, dropping to the lower bracket, where they defeated TYLOO 2-0 and advanced to the Group Stage.
In the Group Stage, 3DMAX lost 0-2 to The MongolZ, dropping to the lower bracket, where they defeated GamerLegion 2-1 and lost 0-2 to G2, finishing 9-12th in the tournament.
At the Esports World Cup 2025, 3DMAX won 2-1 against NAVI in the Round of 16, but then lost to The MongolZ, leaving the tournament in the top 8, which is considered a good result for them.
At ESL Pro League Season 22, 3DMAX passed Stage 1 with a 3-1 record and Stage 2 with a 3-2 record. In the playoffs, 3DMAX lost their first match to Team Falcons and were eliminated from the tournament, finishing 5th–8th.
3DMAX also participated in the CS Asia Championships 2025 and took 2nd place.
Astralis form. What result can be expected from Astralis
We continue our CS2 tips with analyzing Astralis form. CS fans surely know this team, as they have achieved many victories at the highest level. As usual, we start our form analysis with the 2023 season. The team began it quite successfully, taking 4-6th place at BLAST Premier: Spring Groups 2023 and immediately following it up with a victory at the Tier-B tournament CCT Season 1 North Europe Series #3.
Astralis continued the season by playing in qualifiers and A-tier events, and things seemed to be going well. They successfully qualified for the BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 and won the CCT Season 1 South Europe Series #4, but then the team slightly lost form. The best achievement of the 2024 season for Astralis was 3-4th place at Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2023.
Astralis roster: dev1ce, Staehr, jabbi, HooXi, Magisk.
The 2024 season began for Astralis with a showmatch and qualifiers. Then there were two attempts to get to the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024, but both were unsuccessful: TOP-11 at European RMR B and TOP-6 at European RMR Decider put an end to Astralis' participation in the home Major.
In the first match of IEM China 2024, Astralis played against steel helmet, as Monte could not make it to China. And if Monte had played there, the score would hardly have been as lopsided as 13-2 in Astralis’ favor. However, judging by the match against FaZe, where Astralis were a cut above and beat the world’s top team 2-0, perhaps Astralis were really fired up for IEM China 2024. In the playoffs of the tournament, Astralis met FaZe Clan again, but this time were the weaker team and lost 1-2, exiting the tournament.
Astralis took part in ESL Pro League Season 19, where they reached the top 4 but lost to Vitality in the match for a grand final spot. The team later achieved similar results at the CCT Season 1 Global Finals and YaLLa Compass 2024.
At BLAST Premier: Spring Finals 2024, Astralis played in Group A, where they finished in third place. They advanced to the playoffs but lost to VP and exited the tournament at the TOP-6 stage. After that, Astralis played at IEM Cologne 2024, where they placed 12th.
In the long season of ESL Pro League Season 20, they lost to Fnatic (1-2), then to CoL (0-2). They ended ESL Pro League Season 20 just as badly as they started — with another loss to CoL and elimination at the TOP-28 stage.
Next, Astralis competed at BLAST Premier: Fall Final 2024, where they placed TOP-8, and at Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2024, where they ended their run in the TOP-12. As you can see, their attempts were unsuccessful.
The team returned to good form at the BLAST Premier: World Final 2024, leaving behind MOUZ, FaZe, and NaVi. After winning Group A, Astralis advanced directly to the semifinals. However, their journey at BLAST Premier: World Final 2024 ended there, as Spirit advanced to the grand final instead.
At PW Shanghai Major 2024: European RMR B, Astralis Long Sogpeg started with a loss to 9 Pandas, then lost to Sashi Esports. Only in the third match against B8 did the team manage to regroup. However, this "music" quickly ended, and Astralis failed to qualify for Perfect World Shanghai Major 2024.
The 2025 season began with Astralis hoping to return to the top of professional CS2. So far, their best results are 3rd place at PGL Cluj-Napoca 2025 and 2nd place at PGL Astana 2025 and FISSURE Playground #1.
Astralis started IEM Cologne 2025 with a 2-0 win over B8, then lost 0-2 to FURIA and beat paiN Gaming 2-1, which allowed them to advance to the Group Stage of the tournament.
In the Group Stage, Astralis suffered two defeats and were eliminated from the tournament, finishing 13-16th.
Astralis performed successfully at BLAST Bounty Fall 2025: Closed Qualifier — the team secured victories over Rare Atom and Natus Vincere, earning a slot in the main event.
At BLAST Bounty Fall 2025, Astralis lost to MOUZ and were eliminated from the tournament in the TOP-8.
The next tournament for Astralis was Esports World Cup 2025, where they lost their first match to Tyloo and finished TOP-16.
At ESL Pro League Season 22, Astralis passed Stage 1 with a score of 3-2, but in Stage 2 they played 0-3 and were eliminated from the tournament, finishing in 15th-16th place.
Recent head to head
3DMAX and Astralis have played each other 2 times, each securing 1 victory. The match at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025 is important, as the winner will continue to fight for a spot in the playoff stage, while the loser will be eliminated from the tournament.
Which maps does 3DMAX pick and ban most often?
Let’s analyze both teams map statistics to make smart CS2 picks.
Strong maps
- Inferno: high win percentage (68.1%) with 47 matches played.
Average results
- Dust2: average winning percentage (54.3%) with 35 matches played.
- Train: average winning percentage (53.3%) with 15 matches played.
- Nuke: average winning percentage (51.4%) with 35 matches played.
Weak maps
- Anubis: low win percentage (46.7%) with 15 matches played.
- Ancient: low win percentage (37.5%) with 32 matches played.
Which maps does Astralis pick and ban most often?
Strong maps
- Nuke: high win percentage (61.0%) with 41 matches played.
- Ancient: high win percentage (60.0%) with 30 matches played.
- Inferno: high win percentage (55.3%) with 38 matches played.
Average results
- Train: average winning percentage (46.2%) with 13 matches played.
Weak maps
- Mirage: low win percentage (40.6%) with 32 matches played.
- Dust2: low win percentage (25.0%) with 20 matches played.
Predicted result of the match between 3DMAX and Astralis at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025
Predicting the result of the match between 3DMAX and Astralis at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025 is quite difficult. Both teams are among the strongest in this tournament, but they had a not very successful start. In our opinion, this match will be a full bo3. Fans should expect tactical and exciting game.
Betting prediction: total +2.5.
