Nobody in the Lanxess Arena expected the story to start this way. Three rounds. That was FURIA’s return from the opening half on Dust2, a map 9z had picked and then proceeded to own so completely that the Brazilians looked less like tournament favourites and more like a team wondering how they got here.
Two hours later they were semifinalists.
FURIA vs 9z at the IEM Cologne Major: How the Comeback Happened
FURIA beat 9z 2-1 to reach the IEM Cologne Major 2026 semifinals, losing Dust2 8-13 before answering with 13-9 on Mirage and 13-6 on Overpass. It is FURIA’s first Major playoff win after quarterfinal exits in Austin and Budapest, and it arrives in the tournament many believe will be Gabriel “FalleN” Toledo’s last in Cologne.
The clutch that changed the series
Yuri “yuurih” Santos was the reason FURIA lived. His 1v3 on Dust2 gave them a route back that the scoreline had almost closed, and he opened Mirage with a 1v4 that should not have been survivable. Maximiliano “max” Gonzalez had answered with a 1v2 to shut Dust2, so this was never one-sided theatre. It was two teams trading knife-edge rounds until one blinked.
9z did not blink on Mirage immediately. They ran to 6-2. Then Danil “molodoy” Golubenko landed a 1v3, FURIA levelled, and the map turned.
Overpass was never a contest
The decider was clean. Starting CT, FURIA took nine of ten rounds and walked into the break at 9-3. 9z grabbed the second pistol, briefly. It changed nothing. 13-6, series over, and a Latin American fairytale that had already run further than anyone predicted ended where fairytales usually do.
What comes next
FURIA face Aurora in the semifinal, a bracket that guarantees a first-time organisation in a Major final. For FalleN, chasing a third Major trophy a decade after his first in this same city, the arithmetic is brutally simple. Two wins.
For 9z, the exit stings less than it should. They matched their best Major result and beat teams they had no business beating. The ceiling was not the final four this time. It may not stay that way.
More CS2 Major coverage is in our Counter-Strike section.
