The third-place match was the last opportunity for HEROIC and 100 Thieves to end the tournament on a positive note after their semi-final defeats. The series required quick adaptation: a poor start left no time to correct mistakes in the next round of the playoffs.
Tournament context
Stake Pulse Beat III takes place in Stockholm with playoffs played in a single elimination Bo3 format. A separate Tiebreaker determines third and fourth places: the winner earns bronze and $10,000, while the losing team finishes fourth with $6,000 in prize money.
HEROIC and 100 Thieves met in the third-place match. 100 Thieves started the series better and took their own Dust2, but after that, HEROIC completely turned the match around with victories on Inferno and Ancient.
How the match unfolded — HEROIC vs 100 Thieves
Series score: 2:1 in favor of HEROIC
- Dust2 (pick 100 Thieves) — 13:7 in favor of 100 Thieves
100 Thieves confidently converted their own map pick. The team built a comfortable advantage during the main part of Dust2 and did not allow HEROIC to get back into the game in the closing stages. - Inferno (pick HEROIC) — 13:9 in favor of HEROIC
On their own pick, HEROIC quickly leveled the series. The match remained competitive, but the Swedish-European roster played the key rounds more consistently and took the series to Ancient. - Ancient (decider) — 13:4 in favor of HEROIC
The decisive map was played with HEROIC holding a significant advantage. The team quickly seized the initiative, gave 100 Thieves almost no opportunity to develop their attacks, and confidently closed out the series.
Player of the Match — Ludvig “Brollan” Brolin (HEROIC)
- K–D: 48–35
- ADR: 87.1
- Rating 3.0: 1.27
Key contribution: Brollan was HEROIC’s most consistent player across all three maps. He finished the match with the highest rating on his team and helped the roster turn the series around after losing Dust2.
destroyed 100 Thieves (again) https://t.co/lxI9FGuOsw
— HEROIC (@heroicgg) October 17, 2026
VRS results
- HEROIC — +21 pt → 1551 pt
The victory earned HEROIC 21 ranking points and allowed the team to climb from 15th to 14th place in VRS. Along with the bronze medal, this marked a positive end to the playoffs for the roster. - 100 Thieves — -13 pt → 1468 pt
The defeat cost 100 Thieves 13 ranking points. The team dropped from 22nd to 24th place in VRS and finished the tournament outside the top three.
What’s next?
HEROIC finish Stake Pulse Beat III in third place. The team earn $10,000 in prize money for this result and end the tournament with a victory after losing to Ninjas in Pyjamas in the semi-finals.
100 Thieves finish fourth and receive $6,000. After losing to MIBR in the semi-finals, the team also failed to win their final series of the tournament.
Match summary
100 Thieves started the match better and confidently took Dust2, but HEROIC did not allow their opponents to build on that advantage. On Inferno, the team leveled the series, and on the decisive Ancient, they completely controlled the map and conceded only four rounds.
The key difference was HEROIC’s ability to adapt after the first map and Brollan’s consistent performance. As a result, HEROIC secured a 2:1 victory, earned +21 VRS points, and finished third at Stake Pulse Beat III, while 100 Thieves ended the tournament in fourth place.
