Sensational CS2 EWC 2026 Semifinals: Team Spirit Breaks Vitality Curse, NAVI and MOUZ Conquerors to Fight for Final
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22.08.2026 07:57
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2 min read
The Esports World Cup 2026 Counter-Strike 2 tournament has its semifinalists. FURIA Esports, FUT Esports, Legacy, and Team Spirit are one step away from the grand final and a shot at the lion’s share of the $2 million prize pool, and the quarterfinals delivered several major upsets.
Both semifinal matches will take place on August 22 in a Best-of-3 format (first to two wins), with the grand final scheduled for August 23 in a Best-of-5.
Quarterfinal takeaways
The quarterfinals delivered intense finishes and major upsets:
- Team Spirit vs. Team Vitality (2:1): The Dragons snapped a two-year, six-match losing streak against Vitality. After splitting Anubis (13:11) and an overtime thriller on Nuke (14:16), Spirit crushed their opponents on Mirage — 13:3. The series MVP was donk, who posted a 1.46 rating and 70 frags in the match.
- Legacy vs. Team Falcons (2:0): The tournament’s biggest surprise from Brazil, who had already knocked out NAVI in the first round, left no chance for the IEM Cologne Major 2026 champions. Sniper try finished the series with a 1.49 rating, closing out Mirage (13:7) and Dust2 (13:10).
- FUT Esports vs. MOUZ (2:0): The Turkish organization, featuring Ukrainian players Dmytro “dem0n” Myroshnychenko and Nikita “cmtry” Samolotov, beat MOUZ for the second time in a week — 16:13 on Dust2 and a dominant 13:5 on Ancient.
- FURIA Esports vs. G2 Esports (2:1): Led by YEKINDAR (1.45 rating), the squad convincingly dismantled G2 on the deciding Dust2 map, 13:4.
EWC 2026 semifinal matchups for August 22
Since the playoff bracket is single elimination, losing teams are immediately out of the tournament:
- FURIA Esports vs. FUT Esports (BO3): The world’s No. 3 team in the HLTV ranking takes on the tournament’s fearless underdogs.
- Legacy vs. Team Spirit (BO3): A test of resilience for the confident Brazilian squad against the tournament favorites.
The winners will clash for the championship trophy on Sunday, August 23.
