ESL Pro League Season 23 Stage 2 – MOUZ and Spirit in control, FaZe and FURIA in trouble

We’re two days into the action at ESL Pro League Season 23 Stage 2, and the Swiss group bracket is starting to take shape. Some big names are already in dire trouble after just two matches, while others have ensured that they’re in a very healthy spot to secure Playoffs over the next few days. Let’s recap the action so far.

MOUZ and Spirit close to progressing to ESL Pro League Playoffs

There’s little in the way of surprises in terms of teams on the verge of progressing to the Playoffs of ESL Pro League Season 23. MOUZ and Spirit are two of the 2:0 teams, having beaten Astralis and B8 in the 1:0 bracket respectively.

Despite dropping a map to Astralis, MOUZ were very impressive in their matchup. They fell short on a tight Ancient, but restricted Astralis to just four rounds total over the next two maps to complete a strong reverse sweep. Online CS always has random elements, but they ensured their fate was always in their own hands by dominating on Mirage (13:1) and Overpass (13:3), despite Jabbi posting an impressive 1.40 rating on the other side of the server.

Spirit had to take the same route as MOUZ, falling behind a map early to B8 after a rare off showing from donk. He quickly arrived onto the server for maps two and three, but it was sh1ro who led the way for the series with a massive 60-kill haul. Although Spirit were far from convincing at times, they have put themselves in the driving seat to secure the EPL S23 Playoffs. That’s all that matters for a team that hasn’t seen a Grand Final in some time now.

The other two 2:0 teams are The MongolZ and G2, who took down Aurora and NAVI to set themselves up for success in Stage 2.

FaZe and FURIA on the verge

Of the four teams to fall to the 0:2 bracket in ESL Pro League Season 23 Stage 2, FURIA and FaZe are the biggest names. Their events haven’t been going to plan so far, but it could have dire consequences for FaZe, more so than FURIA.

FaZe’s loss to G2 on day one of Stage 2 was no embarrassment, even if they didn’t exactly make it look competitive. But being taken down by paiN Gaming, who have looked thoroughly unimpressive for a while now, is less forgivable. They look like a team at the end of the road, and if they keep losing, their place at the IEM Cologne Major 2026 is in dire jeopardy. They seriously need to get some wins on the board, and they need them fast. But in truth, they look indistinguishable from a SemperFi or an NRG – that’s the level they’re operating at right now. Even that may be harsh to those two teams.

With the news that FalleN would miss the EPL S23 Playoffs if FURIA get there, this event has always felt like a bit of a write-off for the team. The good news is that it’s looking like they won’t be playing with their coach after all, after losing to both B8 and 3DMAX while only winning a single map along the way. It’s not exactly panic stations for FURIA, but they look a far cry from the team that has contended for so many championships in recent months. Is it down to the randomness of online Counter-Strike? Perhaps. Still, their loss to 3DMAX in particular did not look pretty, and conceding 50 kills to misutaaa across two maps is rough going, no matter how you spin it. There may be more life for FURIA yet at ESL Pro League Season 23, but they need to wake up to avoid the dreaded 0:3 bombing out.

At the end of day two of ESL Pro League Season 23 Stage 2, the Swiss group bracket is as follows:

2:0

• The MongolZ
• G2
• MOUZ
• Spirit

1:1

• Aurora
• NAVI
• Astralis
• paiN Gaming
• Legacy
• FUT
• 3DMAX
• B8

0:2

• FaZe
• Monte
• HEROIC
• FURIA