Rambo joins fRoD and Ksharp as North American nominees for 2026 CS Hall of Fame

HLTV has confirmed ten nominees for the 2026 Hall of Fame class, and North American Counter-Strike veteran Rambo features alongside two fellow Americans on the shortlist, according to Dust2.us.

HLTV's announcement names the full ballot: NEO, dupreeh, elemeNt, SpawN, XeqtR, fRoD, kennyS, Ksharp and Rambo among those under consideration, with four of the ten set to be formally inducted.

The inductees will join the sport's existing Hall of Fame roster at the HLTV Awards in Belgrade on 9 January 2027, HLTV reported. The inaugural 2024 class was entirely Swedish, featuring Potti, HeatoN, f0rest and GeT_RiGhT, while the 2025 class brought in markeloff, olofmeister and cogu.

Rambo built his reputation as one of the most dependable players of early 2000s North American Counter-Strike, prized for his LAN consistency and strategic reading of the game, according to HLTV. He was a central figure for the X3 and Team 3D rosters that competed at the top level during the first half of that decade, winning two CPL titles and two World Cyber Games gold medals.

After stepping away from playing, Rambo moved into coaching, taking charge of MVP, compLexity and Cloud9 at various points, HLTV noted.

He is joined on the American contingent by fRoD, who HLTV credits as the player who took over as the sport's leading AWP talent from Ksharp, with his standout performance anchoring Complexity's ESWC 2005 title win. fRoD remained competitive for years afterward, including a spell following his return from the CGS.

Ksharp himself is also nominated, recognised by HLTV as the first true North American star of the pre-CS:GO era, known for his aggressive AWP play and reflexes. He was a key piece of the same X3 and Team 3D era as Rambo, helping the sides secure back-to-back WCG gold medals, a WCG silver and two CPL titles.

Elsewhere on the ballot, NEO appears for the first time after HLTV's repeal of the so-called 'NEO rule', having been voted Player of the Decade for the 2000s by HLTV users and later becoming a two-time MVP and Major champion in the CS:GO era. Dupreeh, eligible for the Hall of Fame for the first time last year, returns to the ballot in his second year of eligibility, with HLTV pointing to his 32 notable event victories, five of them Majors, and his status as the only player to have attended all 19 CS:GO Majors.

HLTV also highlighted elemeNt as the first player in the sport's history to have his contract bought out, SpawN as one of the most mechanically gifted and popular players of the Ninjas in Pyjamas and SK era, kennyS for his influence on Valve's AWP changes during his peak years, and XeqtR as a formative tactical mind in the pre-CS:GO era who played alongside fellow nominees HeatoN and Potti.

The final Class of 2026 selections will be revealed ahead of the January ceremony in Belgrade.