Astralis Beat Nemiga to Win Stake Ranked Episode 4, Ending LAN Trophy Drought

Astralis have finally returned to the top of a LAN podium.

The Danish-majority squad defeated Nemiga 3-1 in the grand final of Stake Ranked Episode 4 on October 4, 2026, completing a five-match lower-bracket recovery in Barcelona and securing the organization's first official LAN tournament title since the BLAST Pro Series Global Final in December 2019.

Victor "Staehr" Staehr led the way in the final with a 1.41 series rating, while Jakob "jabbi" Nygaard and Gytis "ryu" Glušauskas also delivered major contributions. The victory also pushed Astralis back into HLTV's top 10 for the first time since June.

 

Quick Summary

Detail	Information
Tournament	Stake Ranked Episode 4
Champion	Astralis
Runner-up	Nemiga
Grand final	Astralis 3-1 Nemiga
Date	October 4, 2026
Location	Barcelona, Spain
Format	LAN
Prize pool	$100,000
Final MVP-level performer	Staehr — 1.41 rating
Astralis tournament leader	Staehr — 1.27 rating
Historical significance	Astralis' first official LAN title since December 2019
Next listed Astralis event	Stake Pulse Beat III, October 12-17

Stake Ranked Episode 4 ran from October 1-4 with eight teams and a $100,000 prize pool. The playoffs used a double-elimination format, with a best-of-five grand final.

 

What Happened: Astralis Complete the Lower-Bracket Run

Astralis' championship was anything but straightforward.

Their tournament began with a 2-1 defeat to Alliance, immediately sending Rasmus "HooXi" Nielsen and company into the lower bracket. From that point onward, there was no room for another series loss.

Astralis responded by defeating FaZe 2-1 and BIG 2-1 before producing a cleaner 2-0 victory against fnatic. They then survived another elimination series against Luminosity, winning 2-1 to earn their place in the grand final.

That meant Astralis entered the title match having already played a demanding elimination run.

Nemiga had taken a different route and arrived in the final with an opportunity to add another LAN championship after winning MPKBK CIS LAN Season 7 in September.

Astralis ultimately proved too strong.

 

Astralis vs. Nemiga Grand Final: Map-by-Map

Astralis opened the best-of-five by dominating Mirage 13-6.

jabbi was the standout performer on the opening map, recording a 2.30 rating as Astralis established control of the series.

Nemiga responded on Ancient. A strong CT side allowed them to take the map 13-10 and level the final at 1-1.

That was their final map victory.

Astralis dominated Nuke 13-5 behind a huge performance from Staehr, who recorded a 2.02 rating on the map. The Danes then closed the tournament on Cache, winning 13-7, with Staehr adding an ace clutch during the decisive map.

Grand Final Results

Map	Nemiga	Astralis	Winner
Mirage	6	13	Astralis
Ancient	13	10	Nemiga
Nuke	5	13	Astralis
Cache	7	13	Astralis
Series	1	3	Astralis

 

Staehr Leads Astralis to the Trophy

Staehr was the defining player of the final.

The 22-year-old finished the series with 66 kills against 49 deaths, 89.1 ADR, 78.8% KAST and a 1.41 Rating 3.0. He was also Astralis' highest-rated player across the tournament, finishing Stake Ranked Episode 4 with a 1.27 rating.

The final was not a one-player performance, however.

jabbi finished just behind Staehr at 1.37 while producing 97.3 ADR. ryu recorded a 1.26 rating, and phzy finished at 1.09. HooXi rounded out the lineup with a 0.95 rating.

Astralis Grand Final Performance

Player	K-D	ADR	KAST	Rating 3.0
Staehr	66-49	89.1	78.8%	1.41
jabbi	65-46	97.3	85.0%	1.37
ryu	68-50	88.4	78.8%	1.26
phzy	59-45	73.0	73.8%	1.09
HooXi	50-45	63.6	73.8%	0.95

The distribution is significant. Astralis did not need one player to carry every map: jabbi took over Mirage, Staehr dominated Nuke, and several members produced positive series numbers.

 

Astralis Roster at Stake Ranked Episode 4

Astralis' 2026 international lineup features HooXi, jabbi, Staehr, phzy and ryu.

 

 

Player	Country	Status
Rasmus "HooXi" Nielsen	Denmark	Active
Love "phzy" Smidebrant	Sweden	Active
Jakob "jabbi" Nygaard	Denmark	Active
Victor "Staehr" Staehr	Denmark	Active
Gytis "ryu" Glušauskas	Lithuania	Active
Filip "NEO" Kubski	Poland	Coach

This was the lineup listed by HLTV for Astralis during the tournament.

 

Astralis' Road to the Stake Ranked Episode 4 Title

The lower-bracket route makes the championship more notable than the final score alone suggests.

Date	Stage / Context	Opponent	Result
Oct. 1	Opening match	Alliance	Lost 1-2
Oct. 2	Lower bracket	FaZe	Won 2-1
Oct. 3	Lower bracket	BIG	Won 2-1
Oct. 3	Lower bracket	fnatic	Won 2-0
Oct. 4	Consolidation final	Luminosity	Won 2-1
Oct. 4	Grand final	Nemiga	Won 3-1

After the opening defeat, Astralis won five consecutive elimination series to become champions.

 

Background: Why This Astralis Trophy Is Different

Astralis' previous official LAN tournament victory came at the BLAST Pro Series Global Final in Bahrain in December 2019.

 

The historical context is the biggest story surrounding the result.

Astralis last won an official LAN tournament at the BLAST Pro Series Global Final in Bahrain in December 2019. That championship belonged to the organization's legendary era rather than its current lineup.

There is one important qualification.

Astralis won Copenhagen Gaming Week in January 2024, but HLTV classifies that tournament as a showmatch event rather than an equivalent official LAN championship. For that reason, Stake Ranked Episode 4 represents the organization's first official LAN tournament victory since 2019.

The distinction matters for historical accuracy: saying Astralis had won nothing offline since 2019 would be misleading, while describing Barcelona as their first official LAN title since the BLAST Pro Series Global Final accurately reflects the available record.

 

Why the Astralis Victory Matters

For an organization historically associated with championship expectations, ending an almost seven-year official LAN title drought carries obvious symbolic weight.

More importantly for the current lineup, Barcelona provides evidence that this Astralis roster can survive tournament pressure rather than simply produce isolated upset wins.

The manner of victory matters here.

Astralis lost their opener and then had to eliminate FaZe, BIG and fnatic before beating Luminosity and Nemiga on the final day. Winning five consecutive series with tournament elimination at stake is a stronger competitive signal than an uncomplicated short bracket would have provided.

It still should not automatically be interpreted as proof that Astralis are ready to challenge consistently for the biggest trophies in Counter-Strike. Stake Ranked Episode 4 featured eight teams and a $100,000 prize pool, rather than the deeper field found at a Major or premier international event.

The result is nevertheless a meaningful step.

 

Tactical and Player Impact

The final highlighted one particularly encouraging feature: Astralis generated decisive performances from different parts of the lineup.

jabbi's 2.30-rated Mirage gave Astralis immediate control of the final. Staehr then became the central figure later in the series, including his 2.02-rated Nuke and decisive contribution on Cache.

Earlier in the tournament, other members had already shown similar peaks. Against fnatic, phzy recorded a 2.50 rating on Dust2 with a 31-9 K-D and 142.3 ADR, while ryu posted a 2.08 rating on Ancient.

That does not by itself establish a permanent tactical trend, but it does show that Astralis' Barcelona run was supported by multiple high-impact individual performances rather than one player carrying every elimination match.

For HooXi and coach NEO, the next challenge is turning those peaks into repeatable performances against stronger fields.

 

Ranking and VRS Impact

The tournament had consequences beyond the trophy.

HLTV reported that Astralis' Barcelona run moved the organization into the top 10 for the first time since June.

Stake Ranked Episode 4 was also a Valve Ranked event with a $100,000 VRS weight. Before the event, HLTV's invite projection gave Astralis a 95.2% projected chance of qualifying for the PGL Major Singapore 2026 if they reached the final, compared with 77.5% in the alternative scenario shown on the event page.

Because Valve ranking calculations and invitation projections can change as other tournament results enter the system, those figures should be treated as event-time projections rather than permanent qualification percentages.

 

What the Result Means for Nemiga

The 1-3 defeat should not erase Nemiga's broader tournament progress.

Reaching the grand final continued a productive period for the team after their MPKBK CIS LAN Season 7 victory and online NODWIN Clutch Series 12 title.

Following the Barcelona run, HLTV reported Nemiga at No. 15 in the world with a projected 68.1% chance of qualifying for the Singapore Major.

The final exposed a gap once Astralis found momentum, particularly on Nuke and Cache, but reaching another LAN final provides Nemiga with a valuable result in its own right.

 

Historical Comparison

The trophy connects two dramatically different periods of Astralis history.

The 2019 BLAST Pro Series Global Final was won during the era of the organization's iconic Danish lineup. The 2026 championship came with a completely different competitive structure: HooXi, phzy, jabbi, Staehr and ryu playing under NEO.

No member of the active five that won Stake Ranked Episode 4 was part of the championship lineup responsible for Astralis' previous official LAN title in December 2019.

That makes Barcelona less a continuation of the old dynasty than a milestone for a new version of the organization.

 

What Changes Now?

The current Astralis project combines the Danish core of HooXi, jabbi and Staehr with phzy and ryu.

 

First, Astralis leave Barcelona as champions rather than merely another rebuilding roster with potential.

Second, the result gives the current five tangible evidence that their lineup can recover from setbacks inside a tournament. Their opening loss to Alliance could have ended the run quickly; instead, they survived five consecutive elimination series.

Third, Astralis return to the HLTV top 10 after being outside it since June.

What does not change is the need for confirmation at larger events. One $100,000 championship cannot establish a new era by itself.

Barcelona gives Astralis momentum. Their next events will determine whether it becomes a trend.

 

What to Watch Next

HLTV currently lists Stake Pulse Beat III, scheduled for October 12-17, and Stake Ranked Episode 5, scheduled for October 27-30, among Astralis' upcoming events. At the time of verification, however, the Astralis team page did not list a confirmed upcoming individual match.

The main questions are therefore straightforward.

Can Staehr maintain the level that produced a tournament-high 1.27 rating in Barcelona? Can jabbi and ryu continue providing secondary star performances? Can Astralis reproduce their lower-bracket resilience against deeper international fields?

And most importantly, was Barcelona a breakthrough or a temporary peak?

 

FAQ

When did Astralis last win a LAN tournament before Stake Ranked Episode 4?

Astralis' previous official LAN tournament victory was the BLAST Pro Series Global Final in Bahrain in December 2019. The organization also won Copenhagen Gaming Week in January 2024, but that was a showmatch event.

Who did Astralis beat in the Stake Ranked Episode 4 final?

Astralis defeated Nemiga 3-1 in the best-of-five grand final on October 4, 2026.

What were the Astralis vs. Nemiga map scores?

Astralis won Mirage 13-6, Nemiga answered with a 13-10 victory on Ancient, and Astralis closed the final by winning Nuke 13-5 and Cache 13-7.

Who was Astralis' best player at Stake Ranked Episode 4?

Staehr finished the tournament with a team- and tournament-high 1.27 rating according to HLTV. He also led the grand final with a 1.41 Rating 3.0.

How did Astralis reach the grand final?

After losing 1-2 to Alliance in their opening match, Astralis defeated FaZe, BIG, fnatic and Luminosity before facing Nemiga. They then won the final 3-1, completing five consecutive series victories from the lower bracket.