Team Spirit Starts BLAST Open Porto 2026 with Victory Over DENDELE CS

Team Spirit, currently ranked first in the world according to the VRS standings, began their BLAST Open Porto 2026 campaign with a win over DENDELE CS on Ancient map in the upper-bracket quarterfinals on August 26, 2026.

The result was not surprising given the significant gap of 32 places between the two teams in global rankings. Spirit chose Ancient as their preferred map and secured victory, advancing further in the double-elimination bracket while DENDELE CS dropped to the lower bracket where the margin for error is limited.

Team Spirit's active roster, including magixx, tN1R, sh1ro, donk, and zont1x, is formidable both on paper and in-game. The match started at around 07:55 EDT, early enough that most of Spirit's European fanbase was still sipping their first coffee when the result came through.

BLAST Open Porto 2026 operates a double-elimination format across 16 teams, meaning DENDELE CS is not yet eliminated from the competition. The event carries a $1.1M prize pool, providing a strong financial incentive for teams to push through the lower bracket rather than withdrawing.