# HLTV

HLTV, formerly an initialism of Half-Life Television, is a news website and forum which covers professional Counter-Strike 2 esports news, tournaments and statistics. It is one of the leading websites within the Counter-Strike community with over 4 million unique visitors each month. In February 2020, the site was acquired by the sports betting group Better Collective.

## History

HLTV was founded in 2002 by Martin "Martin" Rosenbæk and Per "Nomad" Lambæk. It was initially created to host recordings of Counter-Strike 1.6 matches, although it grew to include Counter-Strike and Half-Life news. HLTV started storing GOTV demos for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive when they were introduced in 2012. It has since evolved to include news, statistics, and analysis for the professional esports scene of Global Offensive.
Since late 2015, HLTV ranks the teams based on their own rating system. HLTV have awarded Most Valuable Player (MVP) medals to the highest performing player at each tournament. They also award Exceptionally Valuable Player (EVP) medals to players putting in an above average performance. In 2016, HLTV launched dust2.dk, a website dedicated to the Counter-Strike scene in Denmark. They followed this up in 2017 by launching dust2.us, a local website for the Americas. Data, such as professional match results, are fed through from the subsidiary websites to HLTV. Since 2010 with the first version of Counter-Strike, HLTV has ranked all of the professional Counter-Strike players based on their performance that year. In May 2019, HLTV was officially integrated into Global Offensive, where you can now find professional tournaments, provided by data from HLTV.
HLTV has received many visual updates throughout the years, with the most recent one taking place in 2017.
In 2020, HLTV announced that it and sister site dust2.dk had been acquired by Better Collective, a sports betting group based in Denmark.

## HLTV rating

The HLTV rating is the most widely used rating system in Counter Strike 2, and is often used outside of HLTV.

### Rating 1.0

Rating 1.0 was introduced to HLTV in 2010 with the first version of Counter-Strike. This rating was based on the number of kills per round, the survival rate of a player per round, and the amount of multikills a player got, which is known as the impact rating. The higher each of these values are, the higher rating a player would get. The HLTV 1.0 rating came under criticism for being too similar to the Kill/Death ratio.

### Rating 2.0

Rating 2.0 was introduced to HLTV on June 6, 2017, as an update to Rating 1.0. Added were two new factors, Kill/Assist/Survival/Traded (KAST) and Average Damage per Round (ADR), along with a changed impact rating. KAST measures the percentage of rounds where a player contributes by killing an enemy, assisting a teammate, surviving a round or getting revenge on an enemy for killing a teammate, known as trading. Impact rating is based on the number of multi-kills, opening kills, 1vX situations (clutches) won and other undisclosed factors. Rating 2.0 is meant to be more accurate than Rating 1.0, since it includes more factors to measure the player's performance. Despite these new adjustments, it is still considered by some to not cover enough. Generally speaking, AWPers and so-called "star riflers" are favored by this rating. The sniper generally has a higher K/D ratio due to the nature of the weapon, while the star riflers will be put in the most impactful positions on the map. Meanwhile, the players who set up the star players will generally not be favored by this system. This can be through the form of a sacrificial entry fragger who will be traded or a support player throwing utility from the back.

### Rating 2.1

Rating 2.1 was introduced in October 2024 to refine the Rating 2.0 formula for Counter-Strike 2. Key changes include reducing the reward for saving in lost rounds, rebalancing sub-ratings for consistency, and updating averages to align with CS2’s mechanics, such as MR12 format and 26-damage assists. This update restores the average player rating to 1.00 over an event, as originally intended for Rating 2.0.
The five sub-ratings—Kill, Survival, Damage, KAST, and Impact—were recalibrated to carry equal weight. Saving without contributing to the round now impacts ratings negatively, while assisted kills are rewarded more than before. These changes aim to better reflect player contributions, penalizing passive playstyles and rewarding impactful actions.
Rating 2.1 is seen as an interim solution while a broader Rating 3.0 overhaul is under development.

## HLTV MVPs

HLTV awards an MVP medal at notable events, which is given to the player they consider had the most impact in the tournament. Starting in 2016, players who win an MVP award are provided a physical medal which are either gold, silver or bronze depending on the significance of the event which it was awarded.

## Hall Of Fame

In November 2024, HLTV announced the Hall of Fame, an award given to honor notable retired professional Counter-Strike players. Each Hall of Fame inductee will receive a Rolex watch featuring a Hall of Fame inscription on the back of the case. They will also receive a special player profile on the HLTV's website.

### Inductees
#### 2024

* Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund
* Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg
* Emil "HeatoN" Christensen
* Tommy "Potti" Ingemarsson

## HLTV Top 20 players

Each year, the HLTV staff rank professional Counter-Strike players based on their performance, and write an article explaining their choice. These rankings are based on how successful the player's team is, the individual performance based on the HLTV Rating 1.0 and Rating 2.0, and MVP/EVP awards given by HLTV. They have ranked both Counter-Strike and Global Offensive players. 2012 was excluded due to it being a transition year between Counter-Strike and Counter-Strike: Source to Global Offensive.
2010
* 1. Yegor "markeloff" Markelov
* 2. Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund
* 3. Martin "trace" Heldt
* 4. Sergey "starix" Ischuk
* 5. Ioann "Edward" Sukhariev
* 6. Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg
* 7. Filip "NEO" Kubski
* 8. Danny "zonic" Sørensen
* 9. Andreas "MODDII" Fridh
* 10. Marucus "delpan" Larsson
* 11. Jordan "n0thing" Gilbert
* 12. Rasmus "Gux" Ståhl
* 13. Christophe "SIXER" Xia
* 14. Danny "fRoD" Montaner
* 15. Roman "roman" Ausserdorfer
* 16. Johan "face" Klasson
* 17. Bum-Ki "peri" Jung
* 18. Richard "Xizt" Landström
* 19. Danylo "Zeus" Teslenko
* 20. Harley "dsn" Örwall
2011
* 1. Filip "NEO" Kubski
* 2. Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund
* 3. Yegor "markeloff" Markelov
* 4. Martin "trace" Heldt
* 5. Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg
* 6. Wiktor "TaZ" Wojtas
* 7. Michael "Friis" Jørgensen
* 8. Finn "karrigan" Andersen
* 9. Marcus "delpan" Larsson
* 10. Rasmus "Gux" Ståhl
* 11. Karl-William "kalle" Haraldsen
* 12. Eduard "ed1k" Ivanov
* 13. Richard "Xizt" Landström
* 14. Johan "face" Klasson
* 15. Ioann "Edward" Sukhariev
* 16. Andreas "MODDII" Fridh
* 17. Timi "aslak" Verkkoperä
* 18. Jarosław "pashaBiceps" Jarząbkowski
* 19. Mihail "Dosia" Stolyarov
* 20. Sergey "starix" Ischuk
2013
* 1. Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund
* 2. Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg
* 3. Richard "shox" Papillon
* 4. Mihail "Dosia" Stolyarov
* 5. Nathan "NBK-" Schmitt
* 6. Richard "Xizt" Landström
* 7. Adil "ScreaM" Benrlitom
* 8. Jesper "JW" Wecksell
* 9. Spencer "Hiko" Martin
* 10. Ladislav "GuardiaN" Kovács
* 11. Adam "friberg" Friberg
* 12. Kenny "kennyS" Schrub
* 13. Robin "flusha" Rönnquist
* 14. Nicolaj "Nico" Jensen
* 15. Yegor "markeloff" Markelov
* 16. Ioann "Edward" Sukhariev
* 17. Eduoard "SmithZz" Dubourdeaux
* 18. Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen
* 19. Jarosław "pashaBiceps" Jarząbkowski
* 20. Andreas "Xyp9x" Højsleth
2014
* 1. Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund
* 2. Robin "flusha" Rönnquist
* 3. Jarosław "pashaBiceps" Jarząbkowski
* 4. Janusz "Snax" Pogorzelski
* 5. Jesper "JW" Wecksell
* 6. Kenny "kennyS" Schrub
* 7. Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg
* 8. Richard "shox" Papillon
* 9. Freddy "KRIMZ" Johansson
* 10. Vincent "Happy" Cervoni
* 11. Ladislav "GuardiaN" Kovács
* 12. Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer
* 13. Paweł "byali" Bieliński
* 14. Adam "friberg" Friberg
* 15. Dan "apEX" Madesclaire
* 16. Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen
* 17. Nathan "NBK-" Schmitt
* 18. Braxton "swag" Pierce
* 19. Fabien "KioShiMa" Fiey
* 20. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz
2015
* 1. Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer
* 2. Ladislav "GuardiaN" Kovács
* 3. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz
* 4. Janusz "Snax" Pogorzelski
* 5. Robin "flusha" Rönnquist
* 6. Kenny "kennyS" Schrub
* 7. Freddy "KRIMZ" Johansson
* 8. Vincent "Happy" Schopenhauer
* 9. Nathan "NBK-" Schmitt
* 10. Jesper "JW" Wecksell
* 11. Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund
* 12. Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen
* 13. Richard "shox" Papillon
* 14. Egor "flamie" Vasilyev
* 15. René "cajunb" Borg
* 16. Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg
* 17. Filip "NEO" Kubski
* 18. Dan "apEX" Madesclaire
* 19. Aleksi "allu" Jalli
* 20. Tyler "Skadoodle" Latham
2016
* 1. Marcelo "coldzera" David
* 2. Gabriel "FalleN" Toledo
* 3. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz
* 4. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 5. Janusz "Snax" Pogorzelski
* 6. Richard "shox" Papillon
* 7. Patrik "f0rest" Lindberg
* 8. Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer
* 9. Adil "ScreaM" Benrlitom
* 10. Robin "flusha" Rönnquist
* 11. Nikola "NiKo" Kovač
* 12. Egor "flamie" Vasilyev
* 13. Kenny "kennyS" Schrub
* 14. Emil "Magisk" Reif
* 15. Fernando "fer" Alvarenga
* 16. Markus "Kjaerbye" Kjærbye
* 17. Ladislav "GuardiaN" Kovács
* 18. Christopher "GeT_RiGhT" Alesund
* 19. Lincoln "fnx" Lau
* 20. Dennis "dennis" Edman
2017
* 1. Marcelo "coldzera" David
* 2. Nikola "NiKo" Kovač
* 3. Fernando "fer" Alvarenga
* 4. Håvard "rain" Nygaard
* 5. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz
* 6. Gabriel "FalleN" Toledo
* 7. Kenny "kennyS" Schrub
* 8. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 9. Ladislav "GuardiaN" Kovács
* 10. Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen
* 11. Abay "HObbit" Khasenov
* 12. Jonathan "EliGE" Jablonowski
* 13. Andreas "Xyp9x" Højsleth
* 14. Kristian "k0nfig" Wienecke
* 15. Markus "Kjaerbye" Kjærbye
* 16. Tomáš "oskar" Šťastný
* 17. Dauren "AdreN" Kystaubayev
* 18. Ricardo "boltz" Prass
* 19. Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer
* 20. Janusz "Snax" Pogorzelski
2018
* 1. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 2. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz
* 3. Nikola "NiKo" Kovač
* 4. Denis "electronic" Sharipov
* 5. Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen
* 6. Keith "NAF" Markovic
* 7. Emil "Magisk" Reif
* 8. Lukas "gla1ve" Rossander
* 9. Freddy "KRIMZ" Johansson
* 10. Marcelo "coldzera" David
* 11. Ladislav "GuardiaN" Kovács
* 12. Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken
* 13. Andreas "Xyp9x" Højsleth
* 14. Tomáš "oskar" Štastný
* 15. Jonathan "EliGE" Jablonowski
* 16. Miika "suNny" Kemppi
* 17. Timothy "autimatic" Ta
* 18. Håvard "rain" Nygaard
* 19. Robin "ropz" Kool
* 20. Valdemar "valde" Bjørn Vangså
2019
* 1. Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut
* 2. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 3. Nicolai "device" Reedtz
* 4. Jonathan"EliGE" Jablonowski
* 5. Emil "Magisk" Reif
* 6. Denis "electronic" Sharipov
* 7. Keith "NAF" Markovic
* 8. Vincent "Brehze" Cayonte
* 9. Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken
* 10. Robin "ropz" Kool
* 11. Nikola "NiKo" Kovac
* 12. Özgür "woxic" Eker
* 13. Jere "sergej" Salo
* 14. Andreas "Xyp9x" Højslet
* 15. Justin "jks" Savage
* 16. Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen
* 17. Freddy "KRIMZ" Johansson
* 18. Tsvetelin "CeRq" Dimitrov
* 19. Ludvig "Brollan" Brolin
* 20. Ethan "Ethan" Arnold
2020
* 1. Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut
* 2. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 3. Nicolai "device" Reedtz
* 4. Nikola "NiKo" Kovač
* 5. Denis "electronic" Sharipov
* 6. Benjamin "blameF" Bremer
* 7. Robin "ropz" Kool
* 8. Jonathan "EliGE" Jablonowski
* 9. Peter "dupreeh" Rasmussen
* 10. Florian "⁠syrsoN⁠" Rische
* 11. Emil "⁠Magisk⁠" Reif
* 12. Martin "⁠stavn⁠" Lund
* 13. Nemanja "huNter-" Kovač
* 14. Yuri "⁠yuurih⁠" Santos
* 15. Ludvig "Brollan" Brolin
* 16. Henrique "⁠HEN1⁠" Teles
* 17. Freddy "KRIMZ" Johansson
* 18. Kaike "⁠KSCERATO⁠" Cerato
* 19. Justin "⁠jks⁠" Savage
* 20. Vincent ⁠"Brehze⁠" Cayonte
2021
* 1. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 2. Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut
* 3. Nikola "NiKo" Kovač
* 4. Dmitriy "sh1ro" Sokolov
* 5. Sergey "Ax1Le" Rykhtorov
* 6. Abai "HObbit" Hasenov
* 7. Denis "electroNic" Sharipov
* 8. Mareks "YEKINDAR" Gaļinskis
* 9. Valeriy "b1t" Vakhovskiy
* 10. Dzhami "Jame" Ali
* 11. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz
* 12. Nemanja "⁠huNter-⁠" Kovač
* 13. Benjamin "blameF" Bremer
* 14. Keith "NAF" Markovic
* 15. Kaike "KSCERATO" Cerato
* 16. Martin "stavn" Lund
* 17. Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken
* 18. Robin "ropz" Kool
* 19. Jonathan "EliGE" Jablonowski
* 20. Helvijs "⁠broky" Saukants
2022
* 1. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 2. Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut
* 3. Dmitry "⁠sh1ro⁠" Sokolov
* 4. Sergey "⁠Ax1Le⁠" Rykhtorov
* 5. Nikola "⁠NiKo" Kovač
* 6. Helvijs "⁠broky" Saukants
* 7. Ilya "⁠m0NESY⁠" Osipov
* 8. Robin "ropz" Kool
* 9. Kaike "⁠KSCERATO⁠" Cerato
* 10. Martin "⁠stavn⁠" Lund
* 11. Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken
* 12. Benjamin "⁠blameF⁠" Bremer
* 13. Håvard "⁠rain" Nygaard
* 14. Nemanja "huNter-" Kovač
* 15. Mareks "⁠YEKINDAR⁠" Gaļinskis
* 16. Valeriy "b1t" Vakhovskiy
* 17. David "frozen" Čerňanský
* 18. Lotan "Spinx" Giladi
* 19. Yuri "yuurih" Santos
* 20. Dzhami "Jame" Ali
2023
* 1. Mathieu "ZywOo" Herbaut
* 2. Nikola "NiKo" Kovač
* 3. Robin "ropz" Kool
* 4. Ilya "⁠m0NESY⁠⁠" Osipov
* 5. Lotan "⁠Spinx⁠" Giladi
* 6. Álvaro "⁠SunPayus⁠" García
* 7. Oleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev
* 8. Dmitry "sh1ro" Sokolov
* 9. Martin "stavn" Lund
* 10. Helvijs "⁠broky" Saukants
* 11. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz
* 12. David "⁠frozen⁠" Čerňanský
* 13. Nemanja "⁠huNter-⁠" Kovač
* 14. Guy "NertZ" Iluz
* 15. Jakob "jabbi" Nygaard
* 16. Benjamin "blameF" Bremer
* 17. Emil "Magisk" Reif
* 18. Casper "cadiaN" Møller
* 19. Kaike "⁠KSCERATO⁠" Cerato
* 20. Russel "Twistzz" Van Dulken
2024
* 1. Danil "⁠donk⁠" Kryshkovets
* 2. Ilya "⁠m0NESY⁠" Osipov
* 3. Mathieu "⁠ZywOo⁠" Herbaut
* 4. Nikola "NiKo⁠" Kovač
* 5. Justinas "⁠jL⁠" Lekavicius
* 6. Dmitry "⁠sh1ro⁠" Sokolov
* 7. Shahar "⁠flameZ⁠" Shushan
* 8. Helvijs "⁠broky⁠" Saukants
* 9. Valeriy "⁠b1t⁠" Vakhovskiy
* 10. David "⁠frozen⁠" Čerňanský
* 11. Ihor "⁠w0nderful⁠" Zhdanov
* 12. Mario "⁠malbsMd⁠" Samayoa
* 13. Lotan "⁠Spinx⁠" Giladi
* 14. Dorian "⁠xertioN⁠" Berman
* 15. İsmailcan "XANTARES" Dörtkardeş
* 16. Mihai "⁠iM⁠" Ivan
* 17. Jimi "⁠Jimpphat⁠" Salo
* 18. Robin "⁠ropz⁠" Kool
* 19. Jonathan "⁠EliGE" Jablonowski
* 20. Ádám "⁠torzsi⁠" Torzsás