Six of the best CS2 teams are still in with a chance of lifting the inagural IEM Kraków trophy this weekend.
With Vitality and Spirit awaiting in the semi-finals, here is our quarter-finals preview.
Here’s how the bracket shapes up. Credit: © ESL
The IEM Kraków playoff bracket consists of two quarter-finals, two semi-finals, the Grand Final, and the third place decider.
All the games will be played in a best-of-three fromat, apart from the Grand Final, which will be a best-of-five match.
On Friday, FURIA will take on Aurora, with the winner facing Spirit in the semis. Later that day, G2 and MOUZ will butt heads, with Vitality awaiting the winner.
Which ever teams fall short in their respective semi-finals, will meet in the third place decider match before the Grand Final on Sunday.
YEKINDAR usually shines for FURIA in the playoffs. Credit: Luc Bouchon | © BLAST
A few months ago this would have been a definite victory for FURIA, but it’s not as clear cut anymore.
FURIA haven’t been as convincing at the beginning of the year as they were in the second half of 2025, slugging out results against teams they should be beating without too many issues.
However, the Brazilian organization still got the job done in the lower bracket. Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo was happy with his team’s resilience and performance level in the groups.
As for Aurora, they took some impressive victories on their way to the playoffs in Kraków. The Turkish superteam bested GamerLegion, paiN, Falcons, and MOUZ.
Despite their last two matches going FURIA’s way, Aurora have a realistic chance of beating them, espescially with Anubis back in the pool.
This should be a barn burner of a quarter-final game.
Score prediction:
Odds:
Odds courtesy of Stake. Odds are subject to change.
Can MOUZ finally break through at an elite event? Credit: © PGL
The second quarter-final sees G2 take on MOUZ in an international team battle. Actually, both teams are very similar in strucutre.
Neither team has an all out superstar on their roster, instead relying on team chemistry, effective strategies, and well-rounded role players to win.
G2 made playoffs by advancing all the way from Stage 1, beating Passion UA, Liquid, The MongolZ, and FUT along the way.
Each member of the team had their bright spots, but the sniper Alvaro “SunPayus” Garcia was the most consistent G2 player in Stage 2, capable of matching the best CS2 players.
MOUZ looked shaky at times, especially in their loss against Aurora. However, their epic victory against Falcons in the do-or-die match was electric.
The game against Falcons felt like a playoff game, so coming out on top should give the MOUZ players tons of confidence coming into the arena games.
Much like the FURIA vs. Aurora game, this could go either way. Although MOUZ have a slight edge over their opponents.
Score prediction:
Odds:
Odds courtesy of Stake. CS2 odds are subject to change.
Feature image credit: © ESL
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