fnatic delivered the first major upset of the Esports World Cup 2026 Open Qualifier playoffs, beating HEROIC 2-0 and eliminating one of the highest-ranked teams in the bracket.
The result continues an impressive run for fnatic following the arrivals of Volodymyr “mazay” Iorhachov and Artem “cairne” Mushynskyi in place of Viktor “Br4tkO” Kondratets. Since the start of July, the refreshed lineup has won 12 series and lost only one.
Nikita “jackasmo” Skyba was the standout player in the series. The Ukrainian rifler finished Inferno with a 34-13 score in regulation, giving fnatic the firepower they needed to keep HEROIC from finding a way back into the match.
HEROIC struggled to match fnatic’s pace and direct attacking style. After the defeat, Christoffer “Chr1zN” Storgaard admitted that his team had been overwhelmed and outplayed in comments to HLTV.
“They play very aggressive, very direct, and I feel like we basically just got outplayed. It’s not good enough, but to be honest, that’s the truth,” Chr1zN said.
fnatic have one qualifier match left
fnatic are now one win away from reaching the Esports World Cup main event. Their next match is scheduled for August 9 at 17:00 against the winner of K27 and EYEBALLERS.
A meeting with EYEBALLERS would also create a reunion storyline, putting former fnatic players Freddy “KRIMZ” Johansson and Jesper “JW” Wecksell against their old organization.
Will fnatic finish the qualifier run with another win? Share your thoughts in the comments, and follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram, Steam, and Telegram.
