FISSURE Playground #2: A Closer Look Before It All Kicks Off

Belgrade’s about to get loud. FISSURE Playground #2 kicks off September 12th, 2025, at the Belgrade Arena, with 16 teams battling it out for glory, valve ranking points, and bragging rights.

Prize pool: $500,000.

Format: Swiss stage from Sept 12-17, then playoffs from the 19th to 21st.

Swiss matches are best-of-three and the playoff bracket moves to single-elimination.

Who’s in the Hunt

FISSURE Playground 2 participants — Image credit: FISSURE

Some of the top-tier squads are here. MongolZ, Falcons, Aurora Gaming, G2 Esports, FaZe Clan, FURIA – all the usual suspects. Plus Astralis, Team Liquid, GamerLegion, TYLOO, Legacy, Virtus.pro, HEROIC, 3DMAX, Lynn Vision, and paiN Gaming. A stacked field, even though names like Spirit, MOUZ, Na’Vi and Vitality are taking a break this time.

Current Form & Early Favorites

The MongolZ win the CS2 Esports World Cup — Image credit: Adela Sznajder / EWC

The MongolZ are coming off a dominant stretch – they’re fresh from winning Esports World Cup 2025. They’ve skipped a couple of tournaments, but when they show up, they bring heat. Everyone’s watching them closely.
Team Falcons return to the limelight after sitting out some events (including BLAST Open London). They finished 3rd in Riyadh, looked strong-but there are still some questions about their weaker games and whether their mid-rounds can hold up.
G2 Esports are riding a wave of momentum after London. Their recent performances have been better: stronger map control, smarter utility usage, fewer blown leads.

Other teams like FaZe and Aurora are dark-horse threats. They surely got the firepower, but need to avoid tilt and bad starts.

Can G2 Keep the BLAST Spark?

G2 - Winners of the BLAST Open London 2025 — Image credit: Stephanie Lindgren / BLAST.tv

There’s something in their recent matches that suggests yes. G2’s roster changes seem to be settling in, and the new core looks more disciplined. Hunter- has proven himself as an IGL (besides fragging), the raw firepower of malbsMd/HeavyGod/MATYS trio is looking scary, and SunPayus brought the stable AWP presence they desperately needed since m0NESY’s departure.

The risk is the Swiss start, but if they keep economy clean and avoid the mid-round stalls that used to bite them, a playoff run is absolutely on the table. What might trip them up: slow starts, sloppy map vetoes, or underestimating opponents. Swiss format gives you cushion early, but losses add up fast.

G2 won the BLAST Open Fall 2025, but can they keep the momentum rolling?

Quick Gut Call

If I had to pick: MongolZ are the ones to beat. They bring consistency, recent success, and the confidence that comes with winning big. But G2 is my dark horse-if their fire doesn’t burn out early, they might steal this. Falcons could upset, but it’s going to be tight. Whoever adapts fastest in Belgrade’s FISSURE Playgrounds 2 will have the edge.

Here’s to a tournament full of surprise clutch rounds, map swings, and maybe someone unexpected making a run.