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Analysts from the Ukrainian company Esports Charts have continued tracking viewership data for Ukrainian-language esports broadcasts during the first quarter of the year. After previously outlining general trends and highlighting the most popular tournaments, they’ve now released rankings of the matches and teams that attracted the largest audiences on Ukrainian-language streams in early 2025.
Unsurprisingly, Natus Vincere was the most-watched team on Ukrainian-language broadcasts at the start of 2025. According to analysts, matches featuring NAVI accumulated over 1.5 million hours of Ukrainian-language viewership during the quarter. Team Spirit took second place in the rankings—a position that may be partly attributed to their frequent matchups against NAVI early in the year.
Some teams in the top rankings gained viewership on Ukrainian-language broadcasts thanks to matches against Natus Vincere. However, in certain cases, NAVI had no influence at all. For instance, Team Vitality, MOUZ, G2 Esports, Team Falcons, and FaZe Clan didn’t face NAVI during the first quarter. As a result, the interest in these teams from Ukrainian-speaking audiences can be considered more organic, driven by their strong performances in tournaments. This is particularly true for Team Vitality, which secured three championship titles early in the year.
The only team in the top 10 not from Counter-Strike was Tundra Esports, which secured the eighth spot with 302,600 hours of viewership. Tundra Esports had a strong start to the season in Dota 2, playing in four grand finals at international tournaments during the first quarter, winning two of them. Notably, their only match against a Ukrainian team during this period was a victory over NAVI in the PGL Wallachia Season 3.
“Counter-Strike remains the leading esports title for Ukrainian-speaking viewers. Moreover, Natus Vincere continues to dominate their attention. Without considering NAVI’s matches, the total volume of Ukrainian-language esports broadcasts would likely be much lower,” said Viktor Pronyakin, Product Manager at Esports Charts. “This is reflected in the performance of Team Vitality, which, despite being the strongest team in the world right now, still falls three times behind NAVI in total viewership hours in the Ukrainian-language esports segment.”
In the first quarter of 2025, Ukrainian esports fans were most engaged with Natus Vincere’s matches at Counter-Strike tournaments. The season for Valve’s shooter started off strongly, with several international tournaments taking place early in the year, the largest of which was IEM Katowice 2025.
The most popular match on Ukrainian-language broadcasts during this period was the semifinal between Natus Vincere and Team Spirit at IEM Katowice 2025. The match peaked at 114,518 viewers, marking the second-highest viewership ever for Ukrainian-language esports broadcasts. Notably, several matchups between Natus Vincere and Team Spirit at different stages of tournaments also made it into the rankings. Both teams are ranked in the top five globally, are the strongest squads in Eastern Europe, and frequently meet at major championships. In 2025, they have already played four official matches, with Team Spirit winning three of them.
Additionally, two matches between NAVI and The Mongolz made it into the rankings. In 2025, Natus Vincere secured victories over The Mongolz at both IEM Katowice 2025 and BLAST Open Spring 2025 but lost a series during ESL Pro League Season 21. The only match in the top rankings that didn’t feature NAVI was the final between Team Spirit and Team Vitality at IEM Katowice 2025, which reached a peak of 43,633 viewers on Ukrainian-language streams.
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