Written by Stuart Brooks

As with a variety of different sports, teams arriving to a game or tournament is only half the battle. Many teams or indivduals practice for weeks, months or even years to prepare for a tournament (i.e the Olympics).

The CPL is no different as teams from all over the world team up together and practice with each other to perfect their respective strategies. The term “bootcamp” has become used evermore in today's counter-strike community. Teams with corporate backing travel around the world bootcamping with each other before big tournaments.

Boot camp : a training camp for military recruits.

For all the teams that don't have the corporate backing like SK, mibr, 4K, and Team3D, winning qualifiers are a way of life for many of these teams. CPL held numerous qualifiers all over the world to bring teams to compete at the Summer CPL.

Belgrade CPL Qualifier won by the Russian time m5team m5 fought back from the loser bracket beating SSV Lehnitz two times in the finals to earn their spot at the CPL. Could we see some Russian magic from m5 like we did from virtus.pro at ESWC?

The Japanese CPL Qualifier was won by 4 Dimensions (4D) as they showed dominance throughout the entire event going undefeated. 4D looked impressive at the Lethal Gamer's pre-CPL tournament as they poised in 2v4 and 1v3 situations, coming up in the clutch to win important rounds.

The UK CPL Qualifier was won by the French team GoodGame who has been around the top of the French CS scene for a long time. With wins over WOLF, Ocrana.ATI and 4Kings they secured their spot at Summer CPL. GoodGame won in exciting overtime fashion, barely beating 4Kings on de_nuke. GG has attended a few CPL's and international events and looks to be a lock for a top12 placing with the way they played at the CPL Qualifier.

The two North American Qualifiers were oddly enough won by the two teams dueling it out for the CAL-Invite championship, Rival and zEx, which should prove very exciting to watch. Rival is probably the hottest team in North America right now, but zEx shouldn't be underestimated as they have come a long way from the mid-season moveup they once were.

The Brazilian CPL Qualifier was won by none other than Made in Brazil. After a surprising performance at ESWC, mibr will want to get back on top of their game and show that ESWC was a fluke. With a good seed from a top5 placing at Winter CPL, mibr should go a long way this Summer.

Canada's Qualifier was won by Evil Geniuses as they made their first step to proving that friendship can get you a long way. EG went undefeated throughout the tournament, only having ECO in the finals come close to beating them. Many people expect great things from this team as they have been lurking around the top for a long time now.

Reigning Chile CPL champs, Punto cL, claimed victory once again for themselves, getting the autoberth. Punto had a very nice run at Winter CPL, placing 9-12th. Quite an accomplishment for a relatively new team to international competition. They really are a step above every team in Chile as they continue to prove they are among the world's best.

Team DiN is the first team ever out of Peru to attend a CPL. With this berth, they hold the hope of the Peruvian counter-strike community. They have come close to beating other top teams in South America, so these guys are no slouch and shouldn't be underestimated. They could place top16 if they get the right seeding.

The final CPL Qualifier took place in Spain as we saw the Finnish team D-Skyline take on the swedish team Gamers.nu. After a well fought battle, gnu was victorious claiming a spot at CPL. GNU is sponsored by the website gamers.nu and has become a force in the European community. With some great all around players, they need to be watched very closely.

With all of the qualifiers being played already, CPL gives out a few autoberths to top finishing teams from the previous CPL. SK, NoA, and mouz all received autoberths to the tournament.

SK is the reigning champion at CPL and has chosen to bootcamp with some of the best teams in the world for preparation. The german squad mousesports has been bootcamping with SK for a little more than a week to work in their new played r4id from Ocrana.ATI.

Made in Brazil and NoA have also teamed up and bootcamped with each other in California before each team leaves for CPL. This could prove beneficial for each other as each is favored to go very deep into the tournament. The recent move to a 5 man lineup for mibr still hasn't shown if it was for the best yet. NoA has to prove that their finish at ESWC was simply bad luck and not a sign of things to come.

Teams from all over the world have started to make their way towards the Gaylord Texan Resort for the Summer CPL. All of these teams have started to pave their road to the CPL, but how will they all end? Stay tuned for all of the action starting on July 28th.