A new star is rising in Counter-Strike 2, and he’s only 16. Liam “MaiL09” Tügel, a Swedish rifler for Metizport, has climbed to number one on the FACEIT global leaderboards with an impressive 4,860 Elo rating.
At only 16 years old, @MaiL09cs the Swedish prodigy, has just reached #1 Elo worldwide on FACEIT.
If he holds the top spot until the end of the season, he’ll become the youngest FACEIT Champion in history, breaking the record held by @donk1337 by 6 months and 9 days! https://t.co/b9Liw8xpsB pic.twitter.com/JcD3f2L25v
— FACEIT CS2 (@FACEITcs) September 3, 2025
This achievement makes him the youngest player to ever hold the top spot, and if he can keep it until the end of Season 6, he’ll break Danil “donk” Kryshkovets’ record by six months and nine days to become the youngest FACEIT Champion in history.
Breaking Records and Building a Legacy
The teenage prodigy, born in May 2009 (yes, the “09” in his nickname is his birth year), has already built a career many pros would envy. He started competing in tournaments at just 11 and was invited to the FACEIT Pro League at 13, becoming one of the youngest ever to do so.
MaiL09 has already played more than 3,500 FACEIT matches, holding a 57% win rate. Alongside Johnny Speeds earlier this year, he helped win the Svenska Elitserien Spring 2025, before joining Norwegian organisation Metizport in July.
A Challenge Ahead
While topping the FACEIT leaderboard is a huge milestone, the hard part will be holding that spot. The Elo gap between him and other contenders isn’t massive, and the season doesn’t wrap until 23 November 2025. Donk himself, widely regarded as the best rifler in CS2, currently sits eighth, while his Team Spirit teammate Ivan “zweih” Gogin holds third.
Image via FACEITTracker
Donk dominated FACEIT Season 5 with a record 5,283 Elo, staying at the top for five consecutive seasons. Now, MaiL09 has a chance to stop his streak and carve out his own legacy as one of Counter-Strike’s brightest young stars.
What’s Next for Metizport’s Rising Talent
Beyond FACEIT, MaiL09 is focused on competing with Metizport. The squad is currently ranked 79th in the Valve Regional Standings, far from the top 32 cutoff needed to qualify for November’s StarLadder Budapest Major. They’ll continue fighting through Tier 2 tournaments this month, including European Pro League Season 2 and ESL Challenger League Season 50.
For now, all eyes are on MaiL09 to see if he can stay on top of FACEIT and officially enter the history books as the youngest champion the platform has ever seen.