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Owen Goulding

Home favourites TYLOO will hope to make the perfect start in their quest to make the play-offs of BLAST Premier Rivals Hong Kong when they take on the world’s best team, Team Vitality, at the AsiaWorld-Arena on Wednesday.
The Chinese Counter-Strike (CS) squad have become fan favourites in 2025, spearheaded by the enigmatic antics of Ji “Jee” Dongkai.
With the opening matches played behind closed doors before moving to the arena on Friday, TYLOO will need to win a pair of matches to play in front of what would be a partisan home crowd.
That goal has been made much harder by a group that includes the reigning Major champions Team Vitality, recent IEM Chengdu winners FURIA and paiN.
Dongkai’s squad will look to put a pair of poor results in Shanghai and Chengdu behind them.

“In the last month we’ve played twice in China but haven’t played well,” Dongkai said. “I hope Hong Kong can be a better performance from us.
Asian Counter-Strike has continued on the rise this year, with TYLOO securing China’s first Tier One victory and The MongolZ winning the Esports World Cup. The latter sit fifth in the world rankings and were top as recently as October, with Dongkai citing them as a reason for TYLOO’s success.
“I think The MongolZ are the biggest contribution to the Asian scene right now,” Dongkai said. “[They are] a top-five team, so they give opportunities to other Asian teams to play.”

FURIA, who won IEM Chengdu with a 3-0 clean sweep over Team Vitality on Sunday, are the form team. Their star rifler Kaike “KSCERATO” Cerato was staying grounded, however, as they prepared for their opener against fellow Brazilian squad paiN.
Cerato won a tournament in 2019 on his only previous visit to the city.
“The Chinese fans are crazy, they cheer a lot for everyone and are respectful,” he said. “It’s been a quick turnaround from Chengdu but I’m loving being back here.”

The feature match of the day is undoubtedly Team Spirit taking on Falcons. The star power of Danil “donk” Kryshkovets and Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov will collide.
Falcons can rely on plenty of star power, including Nikola “NiKo” Kovac. The 28-year-old is well versed in travelling the globe for Counter-Strike but has a particular soft spot for Asia.
“I think every player loves coming to China – the fan base is huge and in general I think the fans are very passionate about all the players coming,” Kovac said. “When playing in an arena, we get an amazing experience and most of the time the arenas are packed.
“For any player, I would probably say the Asian crowds are one of the nicest to play in front of. You just feel very welcome; when you arrive at the hotel or the airport, the fans are waiting for you and there to support you.”

The other Asian team in attendance are Mongolians The MongolZ, reeling from the loss of top player Azbayar “Senzu” Munkhbold.
They will take on international mix Passion UA, being seen for the first time since a minor win at Urban Riga Open Season 1, and in-game leader Johnny “JT” Theodosiou is hoping their absence can be a strength.
“I think we definitely have an advantage in terms of preparation after a month of practice,” Theodosiou said. “The teams haven’t been able to see what we’ve created, so it’s going to be very difficult for them to know what we’re going to do.”


How League of Legends remains the most popular PC game in China after 15 years

FURIA defeat Falcons in front of sold-out AsiaWorld-Arena as esports take over Hong Kong

Falcons set up grand final with FURIA as sold-out BLAST Premier Rivals takes over Hong Kong

Team Vitality wins an epic as Hong Kong’s biggest Esports event wows packed crowd

Esports

BLAST Rivals: teams relish Asia swing as Counter-Strike descends on Hong Kong

Ji “Jee” Dongkai at the BLAST Austin Major 2025. Photo: Handout

Ji ‘Jee’ Dongkai hoists China’s first Tier One trophy at Fissure Playground 1 in Belgrade, Serbia. Photo: Handout 

Dongkai ‘Jee’ Ji at the BLAST Austin Major 2025. Photo: Stephanie Lindgren

Lucas ‘nqz’ Soares at the BLAST Austin Major 2025. Photo: Stephanie Lindgren

Sodbayar ‘Techno’ Munkhbold at the BLAST Austin Major 2025. Photo: Michal Konkol

TYLOO take China to new heights in Counter-Strike with first Tier One win

TYLOO, China’s No 2 team, became the first Chinese team to win a Tier One event by securing FISSURE Playground 1 in Belgrade, Serbia on Sunday. Photo: Handout

TYLOO beat Danish favourites Astralis 3-1 in the final. Photo: Handout

TYLOO’s star player Yang “Jamyoung” Yi was named tournament MVP. Photo: Handout

Hong Kong ready to play in esports arena, executive of video-gaming gear company says

Players and fans enjoy an e-sports event on August 30, 2025, at CyberArena in the Cyberport Mall. Photo: Karma Lo

Gamers play at a press conference for the esports event Rivals HK 2025 at Cyberport Mall on June 10, 2025. Photo: Dickson Lee

Sport

Hong Kong

Tech

Home favourites TYLOO and fellow Asian side The MongolZ will be in action on day one at the AsiaWorld-Arena


Home favourites TYLOO and fellow Asian side The MongolZ will be in action on day one at the AsiaWorld-Arena.


BLAST Rivals: teams relish Asia swing as Counter-Strike descends on Hong Kong

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Home favourites TYLOO and fellow Asian side The MongolZ will be in action on day one at the AsiaWorld-Arena

Home favourites TYLOO and fellow Asian side The MongolZ will be in action on day one at the AsiaWorld-Arena