The group stage of BLAST Open Rotterdam 2026 has come to an end. The tournament took place at the BLAST studio in Copenhagen, featuring a double-elimination format with two groups of eight teams. The top three teams from each group advanced to the playoffs, which will be held on March 27–29 at the Ahoy Arena in Rotterdam.
Group A: NAVI dominate, Aurora and Falcons impress
In Group A, Natus Vincere were the most consistent team. As the reigning champions, they cruised through the upper bracket without major issues: a 2:1 win over B8, 2:1 against Falcons, and a 2:0 victory over Aurora in the upper bracket final. The most notable opponent among them was Falcons. After winning ESL Pro League Season 23, they were often criticized for not facing true S-tier opposition, as many top teams had already been eliminated earlier in that event. This victory over Falcons serves as a strong indicator of NAVI’s return to the top of the competitive scene.
Aurora were the second big surprise. They started with a 2:1 win over FaZe Clan, who were clearly in poor form, then comfortably defeated FURIA 2:0 to secure second place. The team showed a level of performance that is not typically associated with them. While consistency is still a question mark for the Turkish squad, if they maintain this form, they could establish themselves as a solid S-tier contender.
Falcons finished third. Their run was complicated by visa issues, as rifler kyousuke missed the opening match against NRG due to delays. He was replaced by a stand-in from the academy roster, NucleonZ. Despite this, Falcons advanced, defeating TYLOO 2:1 and FURIA 2:1 in the lower bracket. Kyousuke joined later, but the team had to start the tournament at a disadvantage.
FaZe Clan were eliminated early without much resistance. A 1:2 loss to Aurora in their opening match followed by another 1:2 defeat to TYLOO ended their run in the group stage. This is a critical result for such a prestigious organization, as their chances of receiving an invite to the IEM Cologne Major 2026 are now significantly reduced.
Group B: Vitality flawless, The MongolZ shock everyone
Vitality had a perfect group stage, winning all three series 2:0 (against 9z, MongolZ, and PARIVISION). The French squad looks like the most stable team in the tournament and heads into the semifinals with the strongest momentum.
PARIVISION secured second place. They defeated NIP 2:1, then beat Spirit 2:0, and only fell short against Vitality in the upper bracket final with a 0:2 loss (March 23). The team is simply playing strong Counter-Strike, and their victory over Spirit showed that the race for the top CIS team is far from being dominated by just one contender.
The biggest surprise of the group was The MongolZ. The Mongolian team played without a coach. They opened with a convincing 2:0 win over MOUZ, which already sent a strong signal. They then defeated Liquid 2:0 and closed out their lower bracket run with another 2:0 victory over Spirit. MongolZ finished third and secured their spot in the quarterfinals.
Liquid, NIP, 9z, B8, NRG, and TYLOO were also eliminated. Some teams, like TYLOO, managed to take maps or even series off stronger opponents but failed to maintain consistency throughout the group stage.
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