Confirmation of the validity of the HLTV ranking

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Rejthar, Jan^{a; *} | Kotrba, Vojtěch^{b; ***; **}

Affiliations: [a] Prague University of Economics and Business, Czech Republic | [b] University of New York in Prague, Czech Republic

Correspondence: [**] Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected].

Note: [*] Department of Econometrics, Prague University of Economics and Business, nám. W. Churchilla 1938/4, 130 67, Praha, Czech Republic.

Note: [***] Department of Business Administration, University of New York in Prague, Londýnská 41, 120 00, Praha, Czech Republic.

Abstract: This paper aims to test the validity of the esports ranking system published by HLTV, which is widely recognized and used for ranking teams in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO). The results of the study demonstrate that the HLTV ranking system has a reasonable level of explanatory power in predicting the outcomes of CS:GO matches. Furthermore, the study reveals that the difference in abilities between two consecutively ranked players decreases as their ranking in CS:GO gets lower, similar to tennis rankings, resulting in a pyramid-like structure. As a result, spectators, sponsors, and bettors can rely on the information provided by the ranking system to make informed decisions and enhance their viewing experience during tournaments.

Keywords: Esports, counter-strike: global offensive, video games

DOI: 10.3233/ICG-230229

Journal: ICGA Journal, vol. 45, no. 1, pp. 2-15, 2023