The semifinal of BLAST Rivals Season 2 brings together two teams that have become symbols of the new Brazilian CS2 revolution in 2025. FURIA — the region’s primary title contender, reigning IEM Chengdu champions, and current world #1 in the Valve Regional Standings. paiN — the dark horse of the season, revived by new young talent and once again threatening the world’s top 10 after incredible group-stage comebacks.
Current Form and Context
FURIA arrive at the semifinals in incredible shape. After defeating Vitality earlier in the tournament, the team is now on a five-series winning streak. At this stage, FURIA look like a squad that no longer wins through raw aim alone — this is a team that has found complete harmony between pace, discipline, and mid-round adaptation. KSCERATO is again performing at a top-5-in-the-world level, YEKINDAR adds consistency in opening duels, molodoy is becoming one of the most dangerous entry riflers in the region, and FalleN acts as the calm conductor, ensuring the team never loses control even in the toughest rounds.
paiN, meanwhile, have reached the semifinals by a much different route — through battles, comebacks, and nerves. After difficult matches against TYLOO and The MongolZ, the team once again showed traits of “old-school paiN”: very aggressive CT setups, constant attempts to seize initiative, and huge trust in individual playmaking. nqz has reached his best form in six months, biguzera once again looks like the locomotive of the team structure, and young snow is slowly becoming a key factor in crucial duels.
But the major difference between the teams lies in stability. FURIA look like a finished, polished product — one that only improved throughout the year. paiN are a team capable of turning off any favorite, but also collapsing from a simple fake.
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Road of the Teams at the Tournament
- FURIA
The Brazilian giants confidently closed their group stage, barely giving opponents any room to breathe. Wins over paiN and Vitality showcased their incredible depth — even when opponents found trades or reached even scenarios, FURIA continued to control rounds through FalleN’s micro-calling and consistent trading from yuurih and molodoy.
- paiN
The team went through a streaky but defining path. They handled the pressure against Passion UA, then delivered one of the best series of the tournament against TYLOO. After a 1–2 loss to FURIA, they bounced back with a crucial lower-bracket victory, proving that in clutch moments this lineup can reach its peak.
Head-to-head — FURIA Lead, but It’s No Longer One-Sided
Despite FURIA winning 7 of the last 12 maps against paiN, this matchup has never been a complete blowout — and hasn’t been for a long time. paiN frequently find ways to steal a map through unconventional rounds, high tempo, and their ability to strike exactly when the opponent shows weakness.
Throughout 2025, FURIA have looked one step ahead thanks to their deeper map pool and stronger late-round structure, yet paiN repeatedly broke FURIA’s rhythm in the opening stages of maps.
This makes the beginning of the series extremely important.
Map Pool and Veto Analysis (last 3 months)
Win rates (3 months):
- Dust2: FURIA 55% | paiN 57%
- Mirage: FURIA 67% | paiN 50%
- Inferno: FURIA 68% | paiN 56%
- Nuke: FURIA 73% | paiN 64%
- Train: FURIA 75% | paiN —
- Overpass: FURIA 81% | paiN 50%
- Ancient: FURIA — | paiN 17%
Likely vetoes:
- FURIA will remove Ancient, a map they don’t play at all and where paiN — despite poor win rate — look more comfortable tempo-wise.
- paiN will ban Overpass, where FURIA hold one of the highest utility-efficiency ratings in the world.
Possible picks:
- FURIA: Nuke / Inferno — maps where their CT structures and mid-round aggression shine.
- paiN: Dust2 or Mirage — maps that allow them to push early tempo and create chaos.
Likely decider: Mirage — one of the most balanced maps for both teams in 2025.
Key Duels
- KSCERATO vs nqz
A duel that may define the series’ control line. FURIA’s anchor is a stability machine, while nqz is an explosive, flexible AWPer capable of dismantling any structure with a risky peek.
- molodoy vs snow
A clash of young firepower. molodoy is one of the world’s best entry creators; snow is a player who can flip a round in a single moment. The question is: who handles LAN pressure better?
- FalleN vs biguzera
A battle of micro-calling, rotations, and utility usage. FalleN leads through structure; biguzera leads through initiative and adaptation. Their duel will shape the rhythm of each map.
VRS Forecast — Huge Gap in the Value of a Victory
FURIA (#1, 1994 pt):
- +3 pt for a win — keeps world #1
- –26 pt for a loss — risky fall but still top tier
paiN (#15, 1592 pt):
- +58 pt for a win — jump to top-13, best organizational result in two years
- –3 pt for a loss — position remains unchanged
For paiN, this match is a chance to break into elite territory. For FURIA — a battle to preserve their throne.
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Prediction
paiN have already proven they can upset structured teams. But against FURIA, their late-round instability and weak 5v4 conversion may become fatal. FURIA currently have the stronger fundamentals, deeper map pool, more reliable firepower, and better discipline. Their form is simply championship-level. paiN will have their moments, and likely take a map — but sustaining pressure across a whole Bo3 against this version of FURIA looks unlikely.
Expected result: FURIA 2–1 paiN — a competitive series, but with the favorites advancing to the grand final.
