We’re moving into Day 2 of Stage 2 at IEM Kraków 2026, and the group stage already starts to take shape. Our Stage 2 Day 1 predictions played out mostly as expected, except for that one curveball – FURIA getting blown out by FUT Esports.

With the bracket now split into Upper and Lower path, Day 2 already brings pressure to some teams.

Here are our predictions for Day 2 matches.

Group A – Day 2

FUT Esports vs G2 Esports (Upper Bracket Semifinal)

FUT earned my respect with their win against FURIA, but this matchup against G2 might be a bit different for them. G2 play looser, more flexible style than FURIA, and they looked much better at punishing every overcommit against MongolZ on Day 1.

FUT’s approach worked because FURIA kind of leaned into their strengths; G2 are more comfortable pulling games into awkward mid-rounds. FUT can absolutely take a map if they get their comfort map picks (Mirage, Nuke, Ancient) – after all, they have the better form ranking. The thing is, G2 are doing very well on FUT’s comfort map picks too, and over  a full best-of-three, G2’s ability to adapt between maps should matter more. This one feels like a series where G2 grow into, rather than dominate from the start.

Prediction: G2 Esports 2-1.

Natus Vincere vs Team Spirit (Upper Bracket Semifinal)

This is one of the biggest (and closest) matches of the day, and it should come down to tomorrow’s player performances and small details, rather than clear gaps. Spirit are still fighting to find their form after bringing back magixx and zont1x into the lineup, with magixx on the IGL duties, and they haven’t looked as dominating as they did when Spirit was at their pick with those two.

NAVI, meanwhile, after their short break from LANs look steady and disciplined, but they’re known to struggle to turn close games into wins against top opposition. If this series goes the distance (which feels likely), Spirit’s ability to edge tight maps can be the deciding factor in this matchup.

Prediction: Team Spirit 2-1.

FURIA vs The MongolZ (Lower Bracket Quarterfinal)

Neither of them looked convincing on Day 1, which makes this a dangerous lower-bracket matchup. The MongolZ struggled hard to gain any control against G2, while FURIA’s loss to FUT shows that they’re still not in their best form (molodoy is the only one that puts up some numbers).

The reason I still lean toward FURIA is resilience: historically, they’re better at rebounding after a bad series. The head-to-head stats is neck-and-neck (FURIA won the last 3 series they played against eachother, including a grand final at FISSURE Playground 2), MongolZ’s recent games were shaky at best, and not convincing enough for me to put them as the winner here.

Prediction: FURIA 2-1.

PARIVISION vs Astralis (Lower Bracket Quarterfinal)

Astralis are looking much more competitive than expected with ryu and phzy settling in, and they’ve kept games closer than the scorelines suggest. But PARIVISION defeated Astralis 2-0 earlier this year at BLAST Bounty Winter 2026, dropping only 8 rounds on Ancient, and bulldozed their way through Dust2, 13-1. That stat isn’t just a one-off – it shows PARIVISION’s ability to outplay Astralis in both open and structured maps.

Astralis are looking a lot sharper lately, but against an in-form PARIVISION squad, that looks too confident and unpredictable in how they approach mid-rounds and controlling the pace – that’s a tough match.

Expect Astralis to keep maps close, but PARIVISION’s recent form makes them a favorite here.

Prediction: PARIVISION 2-1.

Group B – Day 2

MOUZ vs NRG (Upper Bracket Quarterfinal)

Even though MOUZ come into this series without having played an official match since the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, the gap between these teams is still significant. MOUZ operate at a much higher level, both in terms of structure and consistency, and they’re far better at closing maps once they get advantage.

NRG have already proved they can compete if it gets messy. But against a team like MOUZ, who have strong defaults and rarely hands out free rounds, you might not even get a chance to make it messy.

Unless every player on MOUZ has an off-day, this one should be an easy pick.

Prediction: MOUZ 2-0.

Team Falcons vs Aurora Gaming (Upper Bracket Quarterfinal)

If we see these teams’ head-to-head, Aurora has the lead with 9-3, but most of those wins are in the pre m0NESY and kyousuke era. Although their last matchup went Aurora’s way, winning 2-0 at the Esports World Cup 2025 semifinals, recent form favors Falcons a lot more than Aurora.

With soulfly still being a new piece in Aurora’s core, they haven’t logged many matches together yet, and that lack of chemistry can cost them a lot against a top3 team like Falcons. Falcons on the other hand, have proven to be flexible in their map pool and comfortable translating small advantages into full maps. And now with kyousouke back in the roster, it only makes it worse for Aurora’s odds in this one.

Aurora have the individual talent to make this competitive, and they can put up a fight on their stronger map picks, but Falcons’ experience and map pool depth should be enough to win this series.

Prediction: Falcons 2-0.