The map veto in CS2 and Valorant, step by step
Before a best-of-three starts, two teams strike maps off a list of seven until three remain. The order of those strikes says a lot about how each side prepared.
Illustration: Maxivaleur design team.
Both CS2 and Valorant play competitive matches on a fixed pool of seven maps. Which three are played in a best-of-three is settled before the series by a veto: teams alternately remove maps or choose them.
A typical best-of-three veto
- Team A removes a map.
- Team B removes a map.
- Team A chooses map one; Team B chooses its starting side.
- Team B chooses map two; Team A chooses its starting side.
- Team A removes a map, Team B removes a map.
- The last map standing is the decider.
Higher seeds usually get the first action. Best-of-five finals follow the same idea with fewer removals.
What the veto tells you
Teams generally remove their weakest maps and the opponent's strongest. When a team chooses a map it rarely plays, it often means a prepared surprise. Our match centres list the maps in play order so you can follow that thread.
Round counts
A CS2 map is won by the first team to thirteen rounds in regulation; Valorant also plays to thirteen. Both go to overtime when tied at twelve. Our map scores show the final round count for each map, for example Mirage 13–9.
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