GamerLegion, G2, Falcons and FaZe Advance to EWC 2026 Playoffs

The second matchday of the Esports World Cup 2026 group stage for Counter-Strike 2 has concluded in Paris. Teams played six more matches, determining the first playoff participants, while two squads were eliminated from the tournament.

In Group A, GamerLegion defeated JiJieHao and secured a place in the next stage. G2 achieved the same result after beating BIG. JiJieHao and BIG will continue their run in the lower bracket.

Two elimination matches were also played in parallel. Team Spirit recovered from a poor start to the tournament by defeating Luminosity, keeping their chances of advancing from the group alive. Aurora also stayed in contention after a win over M80. For Luminosity and M80, these losses marked the end of their run at Esports World Cup 2026.

In Group B, Falcons and FaZe secured their playoff spots. Falcons defeated Astralis, while FaZe came out on top against Legacy. Both losing teams dropped to the lower bracket and will get one more chance to continue their run at the championship.

All matches on the second day were played in a best-of-three format.

As a result, GamerLegion, G2, Falcons, and FaZe became the first teams from Groups A and B to guarantee their places in the playoffs.

IEM Beijing 2026 Invites Announced

Esports World Cup 2026 is taking place in Paris from August 12 to 23. The tournament features 32 teams competing for a total prize pool of $2 million.