Spirit Dominate MOUZ to Claim Bronze at IEM Kraków 2026 Behind SH1RO’s Standout Performance

Tournament Overview — IEM Kraków 2026

The IEM Kraków 2026 event, held in Kraków, Poland, featured 16 of the world’s top CS2 teams battling for a $1.22M+ prize pool. The format included group stages transitioning into a single-elimination playoff bracket with a best-of-five final and a best-of-three third-place decider.

On the final day, while Vitality and FURIA fought for the championship, Spirit and MOUZ faced off for the bronze medal match.

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Bronze Medal Match: Spirit vs MOUZ — Match Recap

Final Result

Spirit 2–0 MOUZ

• Dust2: Spirit 13–8

• Mirage: Spirit 13–3

After narrowly being eliminated in the semis, Spirit entered the third-place match determined to finish strong. Known for their recent edge over MOUZ — having won their last five encounters across multiple events — Spirit extended that streak once more with a clinical performance.

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SH1RO Leads the Charge

Dmitry “sh1ro” Sokolov was the standout player for Spirit throughout the match:

• He top-fragged the series with an impressive 1.88 HLTV rating.

• On Dust2 (Spirit’s map pick), he posted 122 ADR, including a clutch triple kill on CT side.

• In the Mirage map, sh1ro continued to pressure the MOUZ defense with multiple pistol-round impact kills.

His performance anchored Spirit’s CT strength and helped build early leads on both maps.

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Other Key Contributors

While sh1ro’s form was the headline, teammates also played large roles:

• Andrey “tN1R” Tatarinovich acted as a second carry with strong fragging impact throughout the match.

• Danil “donk” Kryshkovets, Spirit’s 19-year-old rifler, supported the momentum with important utility and clutches on Mirage.

MOUZ struggled to find momentum on either map, managing only occasional rounds despite showing early resistance on Dust2.

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Spirit’s IEM Kraków Journey

Spirit’s podium finish capped off a challenging week in Kraków:

• In earlier rounds, sh1ro had already shined to help Spirit beat G2 2–1, securing a spot in the semifinals.

• MOUZ, on the other hand, reached the bronze match after defeating G2 in the playoffs, but could not sustain that form against Spirit.

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Summary

• Event: IEM Kraków 2026, Poland

• Match: Spirit vs MOUZ — Bronze Medal Decider

• Result: Spirit 2–0 MOUZ

• Scorelines: Dust2 (13–8), Mirage (13–3)

• Star Player: Dmitry “sh1ro” Sokolov (1.88 rating)

• Context: Extends Spirit’s head-to-head win streak over MOUZ to five

Spirit’s decisive showing for third place positions them positively moving into the next competitive leg of 2026.