Imperial edge past M80 to reach Stage 3 of the Budapest Major

Imperial have booked their place in Stage 3 of the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025 after a tight 2–1 victory over M80, winning Mirage 13–11, dropping Dust2 2–13, and closing the decider on Train 13–11.

The result pushes the Brazilian squad to a 3–1 record in Stage 2, joining fellow Brazilian teams FURIA and paiN among the squads already qualified for the next phase.

Mirage breakthrough, Dust2 collapse, Train redemption

Imperial stunned M80 by snapping their opponents’ long Mirage win streak, converting a 9–3 CT half into a 13–11 victory thanks to late-round impact from Kaiky “noway” Santos.

M80 answered with a dominant 13–2 win on Dust2, powered by a 2.08-rated performance from Fritz “slaxz-” Dietrich.

The decider on Train remained close from start to finish until Imperial swung the economy with a crucial 3v5 clutch, before Marcelo “chelo” Cespedes secured the final round.

Player reactions: try calm, s1n frustrated but optimistic

Imperial AWPer Santino “try” Rigal credited the team’s success to their “no expectations” mindset, contrasting it with the pressure that contributed to their 0–3 collapse at the Shanghai Major in 2024.

M80 in-game leader Elias “s1n” Stein admitted the defeat was painful, calling it “our game” to win, but insisted the team is “not heartbroken” and still confident heading into their 2–2 decider against Passion UA.

Brazil’s resurgence and what comes next

Imperial’s run reflects a broader resurgence for Brazil at the Budapest Major. The team emerged as the only Brazilian squad to survive Stage 1, and now all three representatives—FURIA, paiN, and Imperial—stand in Stage 3.

Stage 3 is the final Swiss stage before the MVM Dome playoffs, where the top eight teams will advance to the Champions Stage in front of a 20,000-seat crowd.

Imperial are now one step away from returning to a Major arena—something that seemed far off after their disappointing finish in Shanghai.