After months of rebuilding and grinding, Ninjas in Pyjamas have finally reached the point where they can receive direct invites to tournaments based on their Valve ranking. This is a big moment for the legendary organization, which took a massive risk at the start of the 2025 season by building a completely new roster from scratch.

Instead of keeping their old roster, which was ranked in the top 50 and could receive occasional invites, NIP chose to start from zero. It was a dangerous move – without points in the Valve ranking, they had no access to direct invites and had to fight through qualifiers and low-tier events. For months, it seemed like that risk might not pay off. But now, things have changed.

The first breakthrough

NIP's first major step came when they qualified for the closed qualifiers of PGL Astana 2025. Before that, they had tried to climb the ranking using creative methods, like temporarily adding Audric "JACKZ" Jug to their lineup to gain wildcard invites to CCT events. However, these efforts didn’t bring real progress. NIP failed to qualify for any CCT main events and only gained minimal points, putting them around 150th place – far from being relevant.

Everything changed when the team won the open qualifier for PGL Astana and later secured their spot in the LAN event. That one result gave them a huge boost: +144 points and a jump of +72 spots in the Valve ranking. They climbed all the way up to 84th place. It still wasn’t enough for major invites, but it gave them real momentum.

LAN events make the difference

After the PGL Astana qualification, NIP started playing small LAN events to earn more points. One of these was the Level Up Lund tournament in Sweden. There, NIP reached the playoffs but finished in the top 8. Unfortunately, the group stage results didn’t count in Valve's ranking system, so they got -11 points from that event. It was a missed chance.

But then came Fragadelphia x LVL UP EXPO 2025 – a smaller North American LAN with a prize pool of just $10,000. NIP won the tournament after beating Sharks and NRG in the playoffs, and this time, it paid off. They earned +192 points and climbed another +46 spots in the Valve ranking, reaching 39th place. That put them inside the invite zone, meaning they now qualify for small and mid-tier online tournaments through their ranking.

Upcoming Tournaments They Can Join

Thanks to their results at PGL Astana qualifiers and Fragadelphia Las Vegas, NIP should now be eligible for invites to several online tournaments scheduled for June and July:

• The Proving Grounds Season 1 (June 6–22) – €75,000
• CCT Season 3 European Series #3 (June 10–22) – $50,000
• Galaxy Battle 2025 // Phase 3 (June 11 – July 1) – $50,000
• European Pro League Series 2 (June 15 – July 4) – $20,000
• The Proving Grounds Season 2 (July 1 – July 13) – €75,000

These tournaments will give NIP more chances to grow, improve their ranking further, and gain much-needed LAN experience.

PGL Astana 2025 – The key event

While online events are useful, PGL Astana 2025 is by far the most important tournament for NIP this season. Starting on May 10, the event offers a massive prize pool of $1,250,000. Even finishing in last place guarantees $12,500, which is more than double what they earned by winning Fragadelphia.

But NIP should want more. Their goal must be to reach the playoffs, which would bring them even more prize money, ranking points, and experience against top teams. Some big names, like Vitality, won’t be attending Astana, giving NIP a better shot at making a deep run.

A strong performance at PGL Astana could push NIP into the top 20 of the Valve ranking, setting them up to receive direct invites to larger tournaments and closed qualifiers for the next Major.

The bigger picture

NIP’s journey is a clear example of how big organizations can build new rosters from scratch and rise through the ranking system, even without a starting spot. Unlike smaller teams that can’t afford months without income, NIP had the resources to invest in a rebuild. They played local LANs, entered low-tier online tournaments, and kept improving their lineup.

It’s taken time, but the plan is finally paying off. The win at Fragadelphia and the qualification for PGL Astana show that this team is growing fast. If they do well in Astana, they’ll be on track to fully return to the top tier.

The next Valve ranking update is expected on May 5-7, and when it drops, NIP will likely stay inside the invite zone. That means their calendar will soon be full of tournaments – and full of chances to prove they belong back at the top of Counter-Strike.

If they can reach the playoffs at PGL Astana and keep their form in the coming weeks, the new NIP project might not just survive – it might succeed in a big way.