This article is part of our DraftKings CS:GO series.
Games (EDT)
- 7:00 a.m: Spirit (SPI) vs. Virtus.pro (VP)
- 10:30 a.m: G2 Esports (G2) vs. Team Vitality (VIT)
- 2:00 p.m: Astralis (A) vs. FaZe Clan (FaZe)
Spirit vs. Virtus.pro
The first match of the day is a semi-final featuring Spirit, who were dominant throughout the group stage, against a Virtus.pro side that has struggled well off their usual level in the Road to Rio. Spirit come into the semi-final off a 5-0 group stage run, with an absurd plus-64 round difference, seeing them sit at the top of both groups. This match could prove to be one of the most interesting of the day; on paper, Virtus.pro have the edge in firepower, but their form, including a 2-1 victory over Nemiga in the quarter-final, leaves a lot to be desired. Spirit on the other hand, have only lost one map across the entire tournament, and will look to keep that run going in the playoffs. If Virtus.pro want to secure a grand final berth they will look towards stars Jame and buster, both of whom have been quiet lately. Spirit will look to mir and chopper to continue their excellent form, with mir second in the tournament, featuring a 1.39 rating, Chopper third with a 1.30 rating. Overall, this match should be tightly contested, with VP looking for a return to top form.
- SPI Players to Target: mir ($12,900 Captain, $8,600 Flex), chopper ($11,700 Captain, $7,800 Flex)
- VP Players to Target: buster ($10,800 Captain, $7,200 Flex), qikert ($10,500 Captain, $7,000
Games (EDT)
- 7:00 a.m: Spirit (SPI) vs. Virtus.pro (VP)
- 10:30 a.m: G2 Esports (G2) vs. Team Vitality (VIT)
- 2:00 p.m: Astralis (A) vs. FaZe Clan (FaZe)
Spirit vs. Virtus.pro
The first match of the day is a semi-final featuring Spirit, who were dominant throughout the group stage, against a Virtus.pro side that has struggled well off their usual level in the Road to Rio. Spirit come into the semi-final off a 5-0 group stage run, with an absurd plus-64 round difference, seeing them sit at the top of both groups. This match could prove to be one of the most interesting of the day; on paper, Virtus.pro have the edge in firepower, but their form, including a 2-1 victory over Nemiga in the quarter-final, leaves a lot to be desired. Spirit on the other hand, have only lost one map across the entire tournament, and will look to keep that run going in the playoffs. If Virtus.pro want to secure a grand final berth they will look towards stars Jame and buster, both of whom have been quiet lately. Spirit will look to mir and chopper to continue their excellent form, with mir second in the tournament, featuring a 1.39 rating, Chopper third with a 1.30 rating. Overall, this match should be tightly contested, with VP looking for a return to top form.
- SPI Players to Target: mir ($12,900 Captain, $8,600 Flex), chopper ($11,700 Captain, $7,800 Flex)
- VP Players to Target: buster ($10,800 Captain, $7,200 Flex), qikert ($10,500 Captain, $7,000 Flex)
G2 Esports vs. Team Vitality
The second match of the day leaves the CIS region and head's to the European RtR, featuring the lower bracket final, between G2 Esports and Team Vitality. The predominantly French affair sees two of the most in form AWPers in the world go head to head as kennyS takes on ZywOo. The stat's edge the way of the up-and-coming ZywOo, as he leads kennyS with a 1.22 rating to 1.15, as well as a 0.06 more kills per round, and nearly 8.0 more ADR. While the match will come down to more than just the AWPers, both teams will be looking to build around their stars. If shox can continue his excellent rifling performance, Vitality should have the firepower to match a strong duo of huNter- and nexa on G2's side. G2 come into the match following an incredibly close 2-1 victory over Heretics on Thursday, winning Map's 1 and 3 16-14 to take the series. This match could offer excellent value if G2 can show why their international core is one of the most feared in CS:GO, with huNter- and nexa in particular picking up a lot of the slack mid-round.
- G2 Players to Target: nexa ($10,500 Captain, $7,000 Flex), jaCkz ($8,400 Captain, $5,600 Flex)
- VIT Players to Target: ZywOo ($15,600 Captain, $10,400 Flex), shox ($10,200 Captain, $6,800 Flex)
Astralis vs. FaZe Clan
The final match of the slate is the RtR Europe upper bracket final, with Astralis facing off against a red-hot FaZe Clan, who ran through the group stage with a perfect 7-0. Astralis, who recently returned to their perch at the top of the world rankings, are looking to continue a strong Road to Rio run, with Fnatic and mousesports both eliminated, the path to the title seems clear for the Danes. Astralis will look to device, who is having an exceptional tournament, with a 1.21 rating, narrowly edging out NiKo's 1.19 so far for the tournament. FaZe Clan have shown exceptional depth so far as well, with coldzera and broky following close behind NiKo, with 1.18 and 1.17 ratings, respectively. While this match features exceptional star power, the closely-contested nature of the match could see those stars struggle to express their full talent. If FaZe Clan want to upset the World no. 1's they will need another exceptional performance from broky, and olofmeister and rain to return to the form that saw them join this star-studded roster. Astralis on the other hand will look to magisk and Xyp9x to support their star AWPer in device, as he matches up against the young talent of broky.
- A Players to Target: device ($12,300 Captain, $9,000 Flex), Xyp9x ($11,400 Captain, $7,600 Flex)
- FaZe Players to Target: broky ($10,200 Captain, $6,800 Flex), coldzera ($9,300 Captain, $6,200 Flex)
