Day three of EWC has wrapped up, with the first two of eight playoff spots claimed, and the first two of eight group stage eliminations sealed through action in Group A and Group B.

Here's an overview of the action.

Group A

100 Thieves 100 Thieves North America Rank #1 Cryocells Matthew Panganiban Asuna Peter Mazuryk vora Jordan Pulwer Timotino Timothée Lavigne Dupont bang Sean Bezerra claimed the first playoff spot out of Group A, shutting down what looked to be yet another comeback effort from the sharp BBL Esports BBL Esports Europe Rank #2 Crewen Ali Eren Sargin Lar0k Yusuf Kaan Kanber Loita Utku Kart Rosé Eren Erzan lovers rock Umut Pekdoğan . In BBL's opening match of the group, the team dropped the first map in heartbreaking fashion, then won the final two maps dominantly. Against 100T, BBL once again dropped its Lotus in overtime, losing its map pick, and stole 100T's Split 13-3.

Lotus raised eyebrows for the 100T faithful, with Asuna playing Vyse in a solo Waylay comp for the side with Cryocells on Viper. On Haven, both teams had mirror comps, with a Phoenix-Neon double Duelist comp supported by Cypher, Sova, and Omen.

The teams could not be separated by a knife's edge in the first half, with a 6-6 halftime score keeping things level. 100T won the pistol to open action on its defense half, but a BBL thrifty quickly stole momentum away. As the half went on, 100T icons Cryo and bang went nuclear, picking up 10 and 15 kills in the half alone to help their side find an edge and win 13-9.

The winning moment for 100 Thieves.

In the first elimination match of EWC, EDward Gaming EDward Gaming China Rank #1 ZmjjKK Zheng Yongkang (郑永康) nobody Wang Senxu (王森旭) CHICHOO Wan Shunzhi (万顺治) Smoggy Zhang Zhao (张钊) Jieni7 Zhang Juntai (张君泰) downed Rex Regum Qeon Rex Regum Qeon Asia-Pacific Rank #6 Monyet Cahya Nugraha xffero David Monangin Xan Xan Ng Jemkin Maksim Batorov Kushy Bryan Carlos Setiawan crazyguy Ngô Công Anh , ending yet another disappointing showing on the world stage for the Pacific side. After falling in two maps to 100T in its opening series, RRQ entered its series against EDG needing significant work to do if it wanted to leave Paris in strong standing.

In looking for a fast start, RRQ picked Ascent, once again rolling with its Sage-Veto double Sentinel comp, but falling flat. Outside of Jemkin , it seemed as though nobody could get going for RRQ. While four attack rounds were claimed, one was as much as the team could do on defense, falling 13-5 to EDG's KAY/O-Sova double Initiator comp.

EDG picked Breeze, the map that RRQ lost 13-5 the day before, and was met with some surprise. A move from double-Duelist with Jemkin on Jett and Xan on Neon was abandoned, with Xan continuing on the agent in a single Duelist look with Jemkin on Chamber. Additionally, a shuffling of roles saw Initiator player Kushy on Viper and IGL crazyguy on Sova.

In the early goings, it looked like quick work. EDG had a 6-3 lead on attack, but RRQ clawed things back to level the halftime score. On RRQ's attack, the teams traded punches before EDG went on a run of four straight rounds to reach series point. Despite some late heroics, match point was converted two rounds later, with EDG winning 13-11. The series ended with RRQ failing to get the bomb down in time, resulting in a rather disappointing collapse in an 0-2 showing at the event.

100T will move on to the playoffs, while RRQ bows out with no maps to its name. To claim Group A's final playoff spot, BBL and EDG will face off for the second time this event.

Group B

In Group B, Team Vitality Team Vitality Europe Rank #3 Jamppi Elias Olkkonen PROFEK Dawid Święć Derke Nikita Niko Sirmitev Chronicle Timofey Khromov Sayonara Ștefan Mîtcu downed NRG NRG North America Rank #3 keiko Georgio Sanassy brawk Brock Somerhalder mada Adam Pampuch skuba Logan Jenkins Ethan Ethan Arnold in a clash of titans to claim the group's first playoff spot, while Karmine Corp Karmine Corp Europe Rank #12 dos9 Zhumagali Dastan LewN Burak Alkan Avez Hazem Khaled SUYGETSU Dmitry Ilyushin N4RRATE Marshall Massey staved off Paper Rex Paper Rex Asia-Pacific Rank #1 invy Adrian Jiggs Reyes Jinggg Wang Jing Jie f0rsakeN Jason Susanto d4v41 Khalish Rusyaidee something Ilya Petrov in the upset of the event so far to send the Pacific giants packing.

Vitality and NRG's match began on Vitality's pick of Ascent, with eyebrows raising from agent select. The American side had in-game leader Ethan on Neon, while keiko was on Chamber, skuba was on Omen, and mada was on Phoenix to complete the double-Duelist comp. To start play, NRG seemed to gut-punch Vitality. A 7-0 start for the side saw the team threaten to steal Vitality's map pick, but the European squad still managed four before ending its attack side.

On defense, Vitality worked from down behind to force overtime, where a test of who could outdo who began. Three exchanges of overtime ensued, but no round was more spectacular than Sayonara and PROFEK 's 2v5 retake.

A thing of magic gets Vitality a crucial overtime round.

NRG won comfortably on its pick of Lotus thanks to an 8-4 defense side, which was followed by an attack side that was just good enough to get the job done 13-8. On Breeze, there was more tense Valorant to be played.

Both teams ran the same Harbor-Viper comp with KAY/O and Sova, but it was Vitality who found the edge after 23 rounds. An early run of five straight rounds on attack proved to be crucial for the squad, which ended the first half with just six rounds to its name. On defense, neither team could pull away from the other, with Vitality's run of three rounds the straw that broke the camel's back, leading to the Europeans sealing things 13-10.

In Group B's other series, Paper Rex opened action by stealing Karmine Corp's Sunset. Sunset, historically a good map for the dinos, saw PRX seem to experiment with a comp that had Waylay as the lone Duelist and Harbor-Viper as the Controller pair. Meanwhile, KC had its own spin on double Controller, with Omen and Viper. Both teams had blistering attack sides to start things off, with KC getting out to a 7-5 lead after trailing 5-3 early on. After losing the second-half pistol, PRX pulled off a five-pistol thrifty to kick off a run of six straight rounds and, eventually, closed out the map 13-11.

PRX's pick of Fracture, another strong map for the side, appeared to be more difficult on this day for the Pacific side. Its double-Initiator comp managed just four rounds on attack to KC's double-Duelist, and while performance level did not drop in the second half, KC did just enough to keep PRX at bay, winning 13-9.

On Lotus, KC's double-Controller clashed with PRX's double-Duelist, and the better of the two teams was seen very early on. KC opened action with a 5-0 run out of the gates, entering halftime up 9-3. While PRX won the pistol to open its own attack side, KC gave them a taste of their own medicine, sealing an eco round win with five pistols to steal three straight rounds and reach series point. Three PRX rounds later, KC found itself victorious, winning 13-7.

Vitality rolls onwards to the playoffs, while Paper Rex bows out as a surprising early exit. NRG and Karmine Corp, meanwhile, will fight it out for the final playoff spot in Group B.

Up next

EWC 2026 will continue with the following matches: