The Pinnacle Cup Championship is the flagship esports tournament series created and hosted by Pinnacle. In this series we're putting the spotlight on some of the participating teams - this time it's Imperial.
Primarily known for their CrossFire team, Imperial Esports began their Counter-Strike: Global Offensive venture when they acquired former Santos e-sports players Gustavo “SHOOWTiME” Goncalves, Thiago “tifa” Franca, and Denis “dzt” Fischer, with former YeaH Gaming players Caio “zqk” Fonseca and Bruno “shz” Martinelli joining them.
However, the seemingly promising roster did not live up to expectations and was released by the Brazilian organisation in less than seven months. And from 2019 to 2021, Imperial Esports went through numerous roster shuffles, though slowly but surely the franchise has established a commanding presence in the South American CS:GO scene. They have proven that they are good enough to be top dogs within the region, but they have bigger dreams.
Brazilian powerhouse
On January 1, 2022, Imperial Esports decided not to renew the contracts of the squad, which still included “SHOOWTiME” and “zqk”, and on February 18, 2022, Imperial Esports signed Last Dance, a line-up comprised of CS:GO veterans Gabriel "FalleN" Toledo, Lincoln "fnx" Lau, Fernando "fer" Alvarenga, Ricardo "boltz" Prass, and Vinicius "VINI" Figueiredo, who is a product of FURIA Academy.
With the legendary “FalleN” as the In-Game Leader and catalyst of the squad, this line-up has propelled Imperial Esports to be a strong contender, not just in South America but on the world stage. The combination of “FalleN”, “fer”, “fnx”, and “boltz” have formed an intimidating core for Imperial – their chemistry is impeccable, as they have been on the same roster on multiple occasions in the past, including the iconic SK Gaming 2016 - 2018 roster with Marcelo "coldzera" David.
The Brazilian all-star SK Gaming team dominated the scene by rampaging through and winning various major tournaments, such as ESL One: Cologne 2016 and 2017, IEM XII - Sydney 2017, EPICENTER 2017, and ESL Pro League Season 6, to name a few.
Current state and room for growth
Since playing under the Imperial banner, the squad are showing that they have a lot more to offer, demonstrated by them winning the OMEN WGR European Challenge in March and contending in the recently concluded PGL Major Antwerp 2022.
Even though the team could not break the barrier and advance to the playoffs, the Brazilian squad came close and eventually fell to the hands of the Copenhagen Flames in round five of the Legends Stage.
It is apparent that this Imperial team need a little more time to iron out the wrinkles in regards to overall execution and positioning. Based on their performance in the PGL Major Antwerp, the squad seem to be lacking the ability to pull off clutch plays and also regain the leads once they are behind.
The pressure is surely on coach Luis "peacemaker" Tadeu, a retired CS:GO player, to recompose and prepare the team for the upcoming Pinnacle Cup Championship, taking place in June 2022 in Sweden.
Road to Pinnacle Cup Championship
Positioned as one of the top Brazilian squads in the current CS:GO circuit, Imperial desperately need an international victory in the near future to prove that they have what it takes to achieve more.
They definitely have the talent, the experience, and the determination to win it all at Lund. Can “FalleN” and the team lift the first Pinnacle Cup Championship trophy for Imperial?
Be sure to stay tuned to the Pinnacle Cup Championship!
About the Pinnacle Cup Championship
The Pinnacle Cup Championship is the final stage of the Pinnacle Cup series for 2021/2022. Scheduled to commence on June 8, the tournament will feature a total prize pool of $250,000 and will be held in the Sparbanken Skane Arena in Lund, Sweden. The biggest teams in CS:GO will converge and fight for the Championship title!
