IEM Krakow 2026 Quarter-Finals Preview: Can favorites FURIA and MOUZ meet expectations?

The IEM Krakow 2026 Quarter-Finals are set to get underway, with two major matchups gracing the Tauron Arena tomorrow. FURIA vs. Aurora is up first, pitting one of the 2025’s best teams against one of the arguable underachievers of last year. This is followed by G2 vs. MOUZ, two teams looking to prove their trophy-winning credentials by picking up an elite event win. We’re taking a look at these matchups, to see who will meet Vitality and Spirit in the Semi-Finals of IEM Krakow.

FURIA vs. Aurora

Considering both of these teams’ opposite fortunes at the end of 2025, most would simply be looking at FURIA vs. Aurora as a pretty easy FURIA victory.

But FURIA’s cold start to 2026 makes the outcome of this series far from a foregone conclusion. Throughout their IEM Krakow 2026 run, they have failed to beat a single team without dropping a single map. They’ve had to go life and death with The MongolZ, NAVI, and Astralis to reach the Playoffs, while also losing to FUT.

Meanwhile, things have clicked a little better for Aurora. Impressive wins over Falcons and MOUZ have already shown the potential of the soulfly roster move, and a single loss to Vitality does little to put a dampener on that. Unless FURIA have worked plenty of things out between Stage 2 and the IEM Krakow Playoffs, I think we could be in for an upset here.

Our prediction: FURIA 1:2 Aurora

G2 vs. MOUZ

G2 vs. MOUZ is another matchup with a clear favorite in the IEM Krakow 2026 Quarter-Finals. On paper, MOUZ should have everything they need to take this one home.

After skipping BLAST Bounty in favor of more preparation, MOUZ have looked solid throughout IEM Krakow. Wins over NRG, FaZe, and Falcons, all without dropping a map, with a single loss to Aurora right in there. Overall, though, it looks like an improved MOUZ over the team we saw towards the tail end of 2025.

Meanwhile, G2 themselves have looked a lot better to start this year, too. This has been partly driven by the improved individual form of huNter- and malbsMd, with the team just missing out on an automatic Semi-Finals berth to Team Spirit. They pushed them to the brink, though. There’s also the Stage 1 factor in play here – G2 have had to play right from the start of this event, giving them more time to feel comfortable in their surroundings. The Playoffs stage in front of a crowd is a different beast, but this is hardly somewhere MOUZ feel comfortable, either.

While I think MOUZ will take this IEM Krakow 2026 Quarter-Final, I think G2 will push them every step of the way.

Our prediction: G2 1:2 MOUZ