Astralis Defeat NIP and Advance to EWC 2026 Playoffs

Astralis secured a place in the Esports World Cup 2026 playoffs for Counter-Strike 2 after defeating Ninjas in Pyjamas 2:1 in the Group B lower bracket. The series ended with scores of 13:3 on Nuke, 10:13 on Inferno, and 13:7 on Cache.

On the first map, Astralis were in almost complete control. The team confidently won opening duels and rarely allowed their opponent to save weapons after lost rounds. By halftime, NIP had only three rounds. After the side switch, a key moment came from Viktor “Staehr” Staehr, who won a 1v4 clutch to help Astralis fully lock down their advantage and close Nuke 13:3.

On Inferno, Ninjas in Pyjamas managed to change the course of the series. The team took a 7:2 lead and survived Astralis’ attempt to come back into the game. Kacper “xKacpersky” Gabara delivered several key entry frags, and NIP brought the map to a 13:10 victory.

The deciding map was Cache. Astralis once again started strongly and quickly moved ahead 6:1. NIP reduced the gap by the end of the first half, but after the side switch, the Danish side regained control. A triple kill from Jakob “jabbi” Nygaard in the pistol round helped Astralis build a comfortable lead and close the map 13:7.

After the match, Rasmus “HooXi” Nielsen said the team is capable of going much further if it can maintain its current level of play.

NAVI, FURIA, Spirit and Aurora Advance to EWC 2026 Playoffs

Astralis earned the penultimate playoff spot at EWC 2026, while NIP’s tournament run came to an end.