Zakaria Almughrabi

Texas

Freelance Writer at Hotspawn

Freelance Esports Writer at Freelance

Freelance Esports Writer. Caster and Analyst at @RGL_gg. Contact me at: [email protected]

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Articles

Vitality Holds On Against MOUZ To Win BLAST Open Spring 2025

3 weeks ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

Map one was Vitality’s pick of Inferno. Prior to today, they had won their last nine Inferno games in a row. This wouldn’t be any different, but no one expected how one-sided the map would be. Vitality stomped MOUZ flat, sweeping them 12-0 on the T side before closing out a perfect 13-0, the very first in a grand finals in CS2. If that display was any indication, this Grand Final would surely be a quick and easy one for the best team in the world.
FURIA’s Failure - Is It Time For A Full Rebuild? - Hotspawn

1 month ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

At the turn of the decade, FURIA Esports was making waves as the next big top tier Brazilian team in Counter-Strike. For a scene as large and passionate as the Brazil’s, it had been a decent while since the Luminosity/SK guys gave them a squad to rally behind on the biggest stages the game had to offer. From 2019 through 2022, it wasn’t strange to see FURIA in Major Playoffs or Semifinals at IEM and ESL events.
BLAST Open Spring 2025 Underdogs

1 month ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

G2 EsportsEveryone saw this coming, but losing one of the most prolific rifles in the history of Counter-Strike does a number on a team. With Nikola “NiKo” Kovac now gone to Falcons, G2 has been notably lacking in firepower and killer instinct. They’ve been struggling to beat teams in the top 10, their most notable win of the year coming against Falcons.
HLE Takes First Ever First Stand 2025 Title Over KC

1 month ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

An Unlikely Finals OpponentThere was no question that HLE would be one of the two teams who made it to the First Stand 2025 finals. As the strongest region’s strongest team, they rushed out the gate crushing their opponents. The gap between Hanwha and everyone else was so big that they were picking Champions like Kayle and Zed and still styling on world class players. After a 4-0 Group Stage, HLE embarrassed Chinese rivals TOP Esports in the semis to claim their spot in the Grand Finals.
G2 Earns First Grand Finals Spot At VCT Masters Bangkok

1 month ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

G2 Esports has been a force to be reckoned with in VALORANT for over a year now. The Ascension team turned Americas favorites have battled into the top four at international events multiple times so far. With this victory over EDG, G2 has earned their first Grand Finals berth in VALORANT. This is a huge moment for the team and is already deserving of high praise. As the VCT Masters Bangkok Playoffs were to feature the top team from each region, no match would be a gimme.
HLE Takes Inaugural LCK Cup 2025 Title Over Gen.G In Five Games

2 months ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

The Summer Rematch Goes The Distance Once MoreJust like how HLE and Gen.G went to all five games at the end of last year’s LCK season, they did the same at the start of this year’s. Side select was of heavy importance once more, as the Blue side team won every game this series. Throughout HLE’s wins in games one, three, and five, Choi “Zeus” Woo-je looked like he could have been an incarnation of his namesake.
Falcons Finally Did Something

2 months ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

No Takeoff for FalconsCS’s most expensive project had an incredibly disappointing 2024. Rumors of a potential super team in the off-season ended up falling short, as multiple contracts didn’t end up coming to fruition. What they got was a mix between a rising but inconsistent ENCE squad and a handful of the previously prime Astralis roster. What should have been a ramping team with a high ceiling ended up being anything but.
DK Vs HLE LCK Cup 2025 Preview: Bid For The Top Spot - Hotspawn

2 months ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

HLE Makes Their MarkThe defending LCK Champions have been a bit shaky at the start of this new season. With an identical roster sans the surprise addition of Choi “Zeus” Woo-je from T1, they should still have the ability to perform at title contender level. In Groups, they dropped two matches to Gen.G and DK, the former not even being that close of a match. Yet in the rematch against Gen.G for a spot in winners’ finals on the line, HLE turned things around quite quickly.
Team Spirit On The Hunt For Back-to-Back IEM Katowice Trophies

2 months ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

Start of the Spirit Era? The current Team Spirit roster rose to the top of the Counter-Strike scene exactly one year ago. With rookie Danil “donk” Kryskovets dropping a nuke at his debut event, Spirit went on to win their first IEM Katowice in the org’s history. That tournament was truly a sight to behold, I know that I was staring at my screen, mouth agape in disbelief half of the time Spirit was playing.
Can FaZe Clan Make It Back To The IEM Katowice Grand Finals?

2 months ago | hotspawn.com | Zakaria Almughrabi

A Year of StrugglesTo say that FaZe’s 2024 was a roller coaster isn’t quite correct. They started off the year where they left off in 2023, making every Grand Final that they could. Though their runner-up finishes at IEM Katowice to Team Spirit and the PGL Copenhagen Major to NAVI were disappointing, FaZe quickly bounced back for their first trophy of the year at IEM Chengdu. Little did anyone know, it would be their only trophy of 2024.