At the start of the Esports World Cup 2025, we will see a clash between Team Spirit and HEROIC — two teams moving in very different directions. Spirit come into the tournament in brilliant form after winning two consecutive trophies, while HEROIC are still searching for stability following a series of disappointing results.
Current Form of the Teams
HEROIC
HEROIC approach the match with inconsistent results. Over the past three months, the team has played 50 maps, winning only 24. July and August were also unsuccessful: at IEM Cologne 2025 the team finished 13–16th, while at BLAST Bounty Season 2 they placed 9–16th. In their last five matches, HEROIC won only twice (against Passion UA and Complexity), suffering defeats to Aurora, NiP, and Spirit. This highlights serious form issues heading into the tournament.
Spirit
Spirit are in phenomenal shape. In the last three months, the team has won 27 out of 33 maps played. In just the past month, they lifted two trophies — IEM Cologne 2025 and BLAST Bounty Season 2. In their last five matches, Spirit defeated The MongolZ, MOUZ, Virtus.pro, G2, and Passion UA, without dropping a single series. Such consistency makes them the clear favorite in the upcoming clash.
Map Pool
HEROIC
The first ban for HEROIC will most likely be Inferno, which they usually avoid. When it comes to picking, Mirage looks like the most logical choice, as the team has a strong 78% win rate there. Ancient could also be an option, but with only a 40% win rate, it’s risky. Dust2 is unlikely to be picked due to a six-loss streak. In the second ban phase, HEROIC will probably remove Overpass, preventing Spirit from using one of their strongest maps.
Spirit
Spirit also tend to ban Inferno, so it is very unlikely we will see this map in the series. Their most logical pick would be Ancient, where they boast an impressive 89% win rate, or Nuke, where they are also solid with 67%. In the second ban phase, Spirit could remove Dust2 to further limit HEROIC’s options.
Decider
Taking bans and picks into account, the most likely decider is Train, a map where both teams show decent results (Spirit — 100%, HEROIC — 60%).
Head-to-Head
In the past six months, Spirit and HEROIC have met only once — at IEM Cologne 2025. Spirit won that encounter convincingly with a 2:0 score, giving them an additional psychological edge heading into this match.
Match Prediction
Considering the current form of both teams, Spirit’s advantages in the map pool, and their most recent head-to-head victory, the Russian squad clearly stand as favorites. HEROIC, despite their traditionally strong Mirage, are currently unstable and lack reliable trump cards against such an in-form opponent in a best-of-three.
The most likely scenario is a 2:0 victory for Spirit, as they simply have more arguments for success both individually and tactically.
