PGL Astana 2025: MongolZ & Spirit advance to playoffs

Team Spirit and The MongolZ have punched their ticket to the PGL Astana playoffs following three straight wins in the Swiss Stage.

eSports Betting News

by Ciaran Jackman

May 12, 2025 0

PGL Astana 2025 continues to deliver shocks and standout stories, with The MongolZ and Team Spirit storming into the playoffs, while M80 and GamerLegion bow out after disappointing campaigns.

After entering the Counter-Strike 2 event as the two favourites with the best esports betting sites, Team Spirit and The MongolZ have dominated their rivals en route to securing their playoff spots with three straight wins.

MongolZ Upset NaVi to Finish 3-0

The MongolZ are proving to be more than just crowd favourites in Kazakhstan — they are serious contenders. The rising Asian force completed a flawless 3-0 run in the Swiss stage by defeating Natus Vincere without dropping a map.

Despite a promising 7-1 lead on Inferno for NaVi, largely thanks to some sharp AWPing from Ihor “w0nderful” Zhdanov, the CIS CS2 giants capitulated in the second half. Crucial missteps, including the loss of a 4v2, handed The MongolZ a comeback 13-11 win.

That momentum carried into Mirage, where The MongolZ raced to a 7-2 start.

NaVi struggled to establish control, hampered by uncharacteristic mistakes from w0nderful and Mihai “iM” Ivan. Though w0nderful and Valeriy “b1t” Vakhovskiy fought back late, The MongolZ held firm in the clutch, closing out the series 13-11 to seal their spot in playoffs.

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Spirit Cruise Past Astralis

Team Spirit reaffirmed their tournament favourite status with a commanding win over Astralis, dominating both Dust2 and Ancient to book their playoff berth.

Astralis briefly showed life on Dust2, opening with a 6-2 lead thanks to multi-kill rounds from Nicolai “device” Reedtz and a rare impactful showing from Rasmus “HooXi” Nielsen.

But once Spirit found their rhythm, the Danes folded. Danil “donk” Kryshkovets, the 2024 player of the year, overwhelmed Astralis on the counter-terrorist side, supported by clutch plays from Myroslav “zont1x” Plakhotia, as Spirit stormed to a 13-7 victory.

Ancient followed a similar script. Astralis opened with a slick pistol round but failed to convert their momentum.

Spirit’s defensive hold, anchored by zont1x and Dmitry “sh1ro” Sokolov, stifled Astralis’ efforts. Two moments of brilliance from Jakob “jabbi” Nygaard gave hope, but Spirit recovered from disadvantaged positions to close the map 13-8, sending Astralis to the lower bracket.

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G2 Survive, M80 Sent Packing

G2 Esports avoided an early exit with a 2-1 win over M80 in the elimination bracket, bouncing back from a poor start to keep their PGL Astana hopes alive.

M80, who previously fell to NaVi and Virtus.pro, had a real chance to turn the tide against G2.

A narrow loss on Dust2 — despite a strong terrorist-side recovery and a lead deep into the half — proved costly. G2 clawed back the opener by converting a pivotal 3v2 afterplant, turning the tide of the match.

Elias “s1n” Stein starred in M80’s Ancient win, locking down the counter-terrorist side to force a decider. However, G2 took firm control on Inferno, capitalising on M80’s lack of composure in the clutch to secure the series and eliminate the North Americans.

M80’s head coach Rory “dephh” Jackson voiced his frustration post-match, calling the campaign a “horror show” and promising the team would bounce back ahead of the upcoming BLAST.tv Austin Major.

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HOTU Eliminate GamerLegion in One-Sided Clash

The Russo-Kazakhstani squad HOTU extended their stay in Astana with a dominant 2-0 victory over GamerLegion, who were knocked out in straight maps after a rough showing.

Ancient was where the damage was done early, with HOTU repeatedly breaking GamerLegion’s economy through Desert Eagle buys. A lack of composure and failure to convert favourable positions cost the European side dearly.

Mirage offered little respite. GamerLegion were completely outclassed, and the firepower gap became painfully obvious. Henrich “sl3nd” Hevesi struggled throughout the series, compounding GamerLegion’s woes.

Despite a rocky road through the group, HOTU are trending upward and showing they can compete at this level. While questions remain about their tactical depth, their raw aim and resilience have kept them in the hunt.

Meanwhile, in the 1-1 pool, Aurora Gaming defeated Ninjas in Pyjamas, ODDIK dominated paiN Gaming, FURIA Esports moved past MIBR in a heated regional clash, and Virtus.pro made light work of BIG.

Heading into Tuesday’s matches, three more squads will book their spots in the playoffs, and another three will be sent packing from Astana.