The playoffs of BLAST Open Porto 2026 have reached the stage where every series now directly determines the tournament finalists. In such matches, it is especially important not only to win, but also to maintain control of the series from the first map to the final decisive round.
Tournament context
BLAST Open Porto 2026 holds its playoffs in a single elimination Bo3 format. In the Semi-finals, the winner receives a place in the Grand final, while the losing team immediately ends its run at the tournament.
In the first semi-final match, Spirit and Falcons faced each other — the first and second teams in the world ranking. Before the series, the opponents had a very close head-to-head history, but this time Spirit managed to close the match without a third map.
How the match unfolded — Spirit vs Falcons
Series score: 2:0 in favor of Spirit
- Nuke (Falcons’ pick) — 13:8
Falcons started the series with their own choice, but Spirit quickly seized control of the map. The team played the key rounds much more consistently, did not allow the opponent to convert their own pick, and opened the series with a confident victory. - Ancient (Spirit’s pick) — 13:11
On the second map, Falcons forced a much tighter fight and stayed in the game until the final rounds. However, Spirit played the decisive stretch better, did not allow the opponent to send the series to Dust2, and closed the match with a 2:0 score.
Player of the Match — Ilya “m0NESY” Osipov (Falcons)
- K–D: 39–29
- ADR: 88.8
- Rating 3.0: 1.28
Key contribution: despite Falcons’ loss, m0NESY showed the best individual result in the series and remained the main firepower of his team on both maps.
VRS results
- Spirit — +5 pt → 2027 pt
The victory brought Spirit a small but important increase in ranking points. The team kept first place in VRS and additionally strengthened its position before the Grand final. - Falcons — -26 pt → 1899 pt
The loss cost Falcons 26 ranking points and dropped the team from second to third place in VRS. Together with elimination from the tournament, this makes the semi-final result doubly unsuccessful for the roster.
What’s next?
Spirit advance to the Grand final of BLAST Open Porto 2026, where they will play for the championship title and the tournament’s main prize.
Falcons end their run at the Semi-finals stage. The team leaves the tournament after a 0:2 loss and will no longer have the opportunity to fight for a place in the final.
Match summary
Spirit played a very mature series and created the main advantage already on Nuke, where they managed to take the opponent’s map and immediately put Falcons in a difficult position. On Ancient, the fight was much tighter, but Spirit once again played the key closing stretch better.
The main difference was Spirit’s stability in decisive moments and their ability to close both maps without critical collapses. As a result, the team earned a 2:0 victory, +5 VRS points, and a place in the Grand final, while Falcons ended their run at BLAST Open Porto 2026.
