Falcons came into TWC 2026 as the overall favorites to lift the trophy and secure the lion’s share of a 1.15 million dollar USD prize pool. The Grand Finals of the Thunderpick World Championship 2026 would be absent Saudi’s Superteam, after an upset loss to BB Team.
Another Titan Felled
BBTeam came in with humble expectations but have picked up upset win after upset win. They opened the Group Stage with a loss to their fellow finalists, FURIA, but have picked up nothing but wins since then. 2-1 over PARIVISION to keep the dream alive, then again against Legacy, helping cut down the number of Brazillian Teams from 3 down to just 1.
Boombl4 has lead the charge as a consistent force within the team, and some highlight rounds from zorte flipped important momentum swings in their favor. With a slot in the playoffs booked, most would expect that the tournament favorites – Team Falcons, would be bringing an end to their run in a more than respectable Top 4 finish.
The first map going 13-5 to Falcons and a strong run through Dust II seemed to nail that enivitability home, but some important rounds stemmed the bleeding. Slowly the rounds crept up and the first to 12 was the Russian squad. OT ended in 3 with BBT being one of the few teams that have managed to take the map from this star-studded squad.
Be it burnout, the pressure of expectations, or a young team taking the unexpected runway and taking flight, BB wrestled Mirage away from Team Falcons, going even in the first half 6-6. They would concede the pistol, but that would be the last round that NiKo and Karrigan’s squad would take, being flipped in the eco round and beginning a snowball that would stop for no-one. One more huge win for the squad, and a rematch with the team that beat them to open up their time here.
Heavy is the crown
While they may not have been on the strongest form coming into the event, the FURIA team have very much made Malta their stomping ground. In front of a crowd that weren’t shy to make their allegiances known, the defending Thunderpick World Championship Champions breezed through Aurora Gaming. The boys in green’s only losses would only come from Brazilian teams, losing initially to 9z, and having their 2nd and permanent loss on the back of the strongest team from the region.
They’re taking each match game by game, but all eyes will be on FURIA, more so than normal, without their expected rivals sitting across them on Finals Day.