Aurora Gaming, Parivision and NAVI qualify for PGL Cluj-Napoca 2026 playoffs

Aurora Gaming, Parivision and NAVI have booked their places in the PGL Cluj-Napoca 2026 playoffs following a thrilling final day of Group Stage action. 

The three teams successfully navigated their way past Astralis, FUT Esports, and G2 Esports to compete for the trophy at the BT Arena.

After making it to the IEM Krakow 2026 playoffs, Aurora Gaming headed into its deciding match against Astralis looking to earn another shot at competing for the lion’s share of the $625,000 (~£461,634) prize pool. On the other side of the stage, Astralis hoped to secure a chance to compete in the arena after narrowly missing out in Krakow.

Aurora Gaming began the best-of-three on the front foot, displaying superior defence on Astralis’ pick of Overpass to end the opening half with a 9-3 lead. Astralis began the second half with a pistol-round win, followed by two more defensive holds, but the all-Turkish roster broke through to win the map 13-7. 

Astralis answered back in the opening half of Dust II, taking a sizable 10-2 lead into the second half. Four eliminations from Özgür ‘woxic⁠’ Eker began the comeback for Aurora Gaming, while Caner ‘soulfly’ Kesici’s strong hold of the B site kept the team in contention of overturning the deficit.

Aurora Gaming continued to hold off any kind of Astralis attack, overturning the eight-round deficit to complete the comeback with a 13-11 scoreline and score a 2-0 sweep.

Throughout PGL Cluj-Napoca 2026, FUT Esports has caught the attention of Counter-Strike fans as the international roster looks to cement its place among the first-person shooter title’s biggest names. Standing in the way of its first playoff appearance was BLAST Bounty Season 1 champion Parivision, a team looking to continue its strong start to 2026.

After 24 rounds on Dust II, nothing could separate the two sides thanks to a late defensive resurgence from the pair of Dzhami ‘Jame’ Ali and Andrey ‘BELCHONOKK’ Yasinskiy. The Parivision defence continued to hold firm in overtime, with the Russian roster striking first with a hard-fought 19-17 win to move a step closer to the BT Arena. 

Mirage kicked off with FUT Esports bouncing back after its Dust II defeat with ten clinical defensive rounds to end the first half with a 10-2 advantage. Ivan ‘zweih’ Gogin found form with the rifle in hand, scoring 20 eliminations to lead Pavision’s resurgence in the second half. Two late attacking rounds sealed a 13-10 win for FUT Esports, levelling the series and forcing an Ancient decider.

FUT Esports began Ancient with the early upper hand, taking a two-round lead into the second half. Despite the team’s best efforts, Parivision demonstrated its class with a standout performance from BELCHONOKK, spearheading the team to a hard-fought 13-10 win and a 2-1 series victory.

Following defeats to MOUZ and The MongolZ, NAVI looked to keep its playoff hopes alive, while G2 Esports headed into the fifth and final round with the aim of overturning two early losses. 

G2 Esports opened Dust II with the early momentum, taking a 7-5 lead in the first half, leaving NAVI with work to do in the second half. The second half saw G2 Esports’ defence collapse thanks to Mihai ‘iM’ Ivan and Valerii ‘b1t’ Vakhovskyi topping the scoreboard with 104 and 85 ADR, respectively. NAVI scored eight attacking rounds without any reply from G2 Esports, taking Dust II 13-7 for the early series lead. 

Ancient began with the G2 Esports defence holding off any kind of NAVI offence, racing to a 9-3 lead at halftime. NAVI’s resilience in the second half proved the difference, closing the six-round deficit to level the game as G2 scrambled to find a response. The BLAST Open London winner couldn’t solve NAVI’s defensive puzzle, as the team secured a 13-9 win to earn the final playoff place. 

Following the conclusion of the Group Stage, the eight-team playoff field is set. Below is a list of the teams that have qualified: 

The PGL Cluj-Napoca 2026 playoffs take place from February 20th to 22nd, as the remaining teams battle for victory alongside all-important VRS points.