{"id":416328,"date":"2026-08-13T19:12:50","date_gmt":"2026-08-13T19:12:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/community.skin.club\/?p=416328"},"modified":"2026-08-13T19:12:50","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T19:12:50","slug":"falcons-advance-to-ewc-playoffs-as-astralis-drop-lower","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.skin.club\/en\/news\/falcons-advance-to-ewc-playoffs-as-astralis-drop-lower","title":{"rendered":"Falcons Advance to EWC Playoffs as Astralis Drop Lower"},"content":{"rendered":"

Falcons have secured a place in the Esports World Cup 2026 playoffs after beating Astralis 2-0. The team claimed wins on Ancient and Dust2 in the Group B upper-bracket semi-final.<\/p>\n

The result was crucial because the winner advanced directly to the playoff stage. Meanwhile, Astralis lost their upper-bracket path but remain alive in the tournament.<\/p>\n

Falcons Win Ancient and Dust2<\/h2>\n

The best-of-three began on Ancient, Astralis\u2019 map pick. However, Falcons took control and secured a 13-7 victory.<\/p>\n

Falcons built a 6-6 score in the first half. They then dominated the second half 7-1 to take the opening map.<\/p>\n

Dust2 was Falcons\u2019 selection, and the team completed the series with a 13-11 win. Falcons held a 6-6 score at halftime before taking seven rounds in the second half.<\/p>\n

Astralis won five rounds after the break and kept the map competitive. However, Falcons closed Dust2 before the series could reach Mirage, which was left as the decider.<\/p>\n

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Player statistics for the match \/\/ taken from HLTV<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n
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read more<\/p>\n

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\n \n \"FaZe\n <\/a>\n <\/figure>\n <\/div>\n \n
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\n \n FaZe Sweep Legacy to Reach Esports World Cup Playoffs <\/a>\n <\/h3>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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NiKo Named Match MVP<\/h2>\n

Nikola \u201cNiKo\u201d Kova\u010d led Falcons with an exceptional performance across both maps. He finished the series with 41 kills and 27 deaths, earning a 1.52 Rating.<\/p>\n

NiKo also recorded 104.4 ADR and an 81.8% KAST rating. His impact made him the top player of the match.<\/p>\n

Ilya \u201cm0NESY\u201d Osipov supported Falcons with a 1.47 rating. Maxim \u201ckyousuke\u201d Lukin added a 1.20 rating, while Ren\u00e9 \u201cTeSeS\u201d Madsen finished at 0.98.<\/p>\n