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We turn our attention to PGL Masters Bucharest 2025, one of the major offline CS2 tournaments of the year. The event features 12 top-ranked Valve teams along with 4 regional qualifier winners, all competing for a total prize pool of $1,250,000, with $625,000 going directly to the players.
Today’s spotlight is on the matchup between HEROIC and Aurora Gaming. The second match of the tournament saw Aurora Gaming take an early 2–0 lead, but HEROIC are looking to assert their experience and tactical depth to turn things around. Fans can expect a high-intensity clash as both teams fight to secure their position in the group stage and set the tone for their playoff ambitions.
Let’s see which team will take control and make a statement at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025.
How The Bookie View It: Aurora Gaming in Favour
Ahead of the upcoming clash at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025 between Aurora Gaming and HEROIC, the bookmakers have set their odds, indicating a clear favourite. Aurora Gaming is listed at 1.41 for a victory, while HEROIC sits at 2.86. This sets the stage for a tense and competitive match as both teams fight to secure an important win and strengthen their position in the tournament.
Aurora Gaming form. What result can be expected from Aurora Gaming
Aurora Gaming in 2025 has quickly established itself as one of the leading teams on the European CS2 scene, showing stability, strategic discipline, and the ability to adapt to high-pressure situations. A major development occurred in April, when the organization replaced its previous roster with the Turkish squad Eternal Fire, aiming to strengthen the team and secure better sponsorship conditions. The new lineup is led by the experienced captain MAJ3R, with star riflers XANTARES, Wicadia, sharpshooter woxic, and support player jottAAA.
- Aurora Gaming’s 2025 roster: MAJ3R, XANTARES, woxic, Wicadia, jottAAA
The coaching staff includes Fabre, whose analytical approach has helped improve communication, tactical coordination, and map control. The team has quickly integrated these changes, showing strong synergy and consistent individual performances, which are reflected in their results on the international stage.
Since the roster change, Aurora Gaming has delivered notable results across multiple tournaments. They started the season with a 5th–6th place finish at Intel Extreme Masters Dallas 2025, followed by a challenging 12th–14th at BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025. At Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2025, the team placed 9th–12th, before showing stronger performances at the BLAST Bounty Fall 2025: Closed Qualifier (2–0 record) and 5th–8th at BLAST Bounty Fall 2025, demonstrating improving synergy and tactical execution.
August saw Aurora continue to impress, finishing 2nd at the Esports World Cup 2025, earning $230,000, while in September they placed 5th–8th at FISSURE Playground #2. October brought further progress with 9th–11th at ESL Pro League Season 22 and 4th at the Thunderpick World Championship 2025, highlighting consistent teamwork, map control, and clutch potential.
Throughout the season, MAJ3R has provided leadership and strategic vision, while XANTARES and Wicadia consistently deliver fragging power. woxic excels in taking key duels, and jottAAA offers reliable support and map control. This combination has allowed Aurora to implement diverse tactical approaches and adapt efficiently to different styles of opponents.
Aurora Gaming capped this period with a landmark victory at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025, convincingly defeating Fnatic 2–0, confirming their status as one of Europe’s most formidable CS2 teams. In the second match of the tournament, Aurora Gaming defeated Team Liquid 2–1, managing a comeback despite losing the first map.
Aurora Gaming Map Pool
Aurora Gaming has shown notable strengths across different maps over the past three months. Their best performances have come on Train, where they boast an impressive 80.0% win rate, demonstrating strong coordination and control in mid-to-late rounds. On Inferno and Overpass, the team has maintained solid results with 62.5% victories on each, reflecting their ability to execute tactical strategies effectively. Their results on Mirage (46.2%) and Dust2 (45.5%) are more mixed, while Nuke has proven to be the team’s least comfortable map at 41.7%, suggesting room for improvement in adapting to complex rotations and utility usage. Overall, these statistics highlight Aurora’s map preferences and their potential to dominate in matches where their strengths align with the map pool.
HEROIC form. What result can be expected from HEROIC
Heroic in 2025 went through a year of transformation, rebuilding their identity and adapting to the challenges of the evolving CS2 scene. After a period of roster instability, the organization focused on forming a young and ambitious lineup capable of developing a new playstyle built around teamwork, aggression, and flexibility. The addition of new talents gave Heroic a chance to restart their journey and once again establish themselves as a competitive European team.
- Heroic’s 2025 roster: LNZ, nilo, yxngstxr, xfl0ud, Alkaren
The coaching staff, led by Tobias “TOBIZ” Theo, emphasized tactical structure and improved communication within the team. TOBIZ’s analytical approach and focus on discipline allowed Heroic to refine their coordination and adapt their play on multiple maps. Despite the challenges of building synergy among new players, Heroic gradually began to show flashes of their former strength through improved execution and teamwork.
The first major success of the season came in April, when Heroic won CCT Season 2 Global Finals, dominating their opponents with a 2–0 score and earning $75,000. Soon after, in May, the team claimed another trophy at MESA Nomadic Masters Spring 2025, defeating their rivals 3–1 in the grand final and taking home $135,000. These back-to-back victories marked a strong start for the new roster, showing that Heroic’s rebuilding strategy was paying off. The momentum carried into Intel Extreme Masters Dallas 2025, where the team placed 7–8th after a close 1–2 series loss, collecting $7,000.
However, the summer months proved to be more turbulent. At BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, Heroic struggled to find consistency, finishing 17–19th with a 0–2 record and earning $10,000. Similar difficulties followed at FISSURE Playground #1, where they finished 13–16th (1–2, $5,000), and Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2025, again taking 13–16th place (0–2, $10,000). Despite these setbacks, the team maintained a steady level of performance and focused on improving individual play and tactical cohesion. The players demonstrated the ability to compete against stronger opponents, even if the results did not yet reflect their full potential.
In August, Heroic returned to form during the CS Asia Championships 2025: European Open Qualifier, finishing 1–4th with a strong 2–1 series win and advancing to the main event. They also took part in the BLAST Bounty Fall 2025: Closed Qualifier, ending 9–16th with a 0–2 record and earning $2,500, before competing in the Esports World Cup 2025, where they finished 5–8th and collected $40,000. The latter tournament was particularly significant, as it showed Heroic’s ability to perform under pressure against international competition, demonstrating resilience and improved decision-making in late rounds.
The autumn part of the season was marked by both challenges and growth. At FISSURE Playground #2, Heroic placed 15–16th (1–2, $2,500), struggling with consistency, while at ESL Pro League Season 22, the team finished 20–22nd, earning $4,500. These results highlighted ongoing adaptation issues within the roster, but they also reinforced the team’s determination to stabilize their form. The turning point came in October at the CS Asia Championships 2025, where Heroic delivered one of their best performances of the year, finishing 4th and earning $40,000. Despite a 0–2 loss in the semifinals, the team displayed improved coordination, stronger map control, and well-executed mid-round tactics, signaling real progress.
Overall, Heroic in 2025 demonstrated that rebuilding does not mean regression—it’s a phase of rediscovery and adaptation. The team started the year with strong tournament wins, went through a difficult summer, and ended the season on a positive note with consistent top-eight finishes and a renewed sense of direction. With over $360,000 earned in prize money across the year, Heroic proved they can still compete at a high level. If the team continues refining its structure and maintaining player development, Heroic could re-enter the global top 10 in 2026, once again becoming a name associated with discipline, resilience, and smart, structured Counter-Strike.
At this tournament, Heroic won their first match against Ninjas in Pyjamas. The match was fairly straightforward, ending with a 2:0 score. The first map, Nuke, finished 13:7, and the second map, Dust2, ended 13:10. The second match also ended in a victory for HEROIC, who defeated BB Team 2–0.
HEROIC Map Pool
Over the past three months, Heroic has shown exceptional performance on Overpass, winning 80% of their matches, making it their strongest map. Their results on Inferno are balanced, with a 50% win rate when it’s their first ban. Dust2 sits at 46.2%, and Nuke at 37.5%. Ancient, when picked first, also brings a 37.5% win rate, while Mirage has been less favorable at 33.3%. Train has been the team’s weakest map recently, with no wins recorded in the last three months.
Head-to-Head: Heroic vs Aurora Gaming
Over the past year, the teams have faced each other four times, with Aurora Gaming winning three matches and Heroic taking one. The total map score in these encounters stands at 7–3 in favor of Aurora Gaming, with the most recent match played on April 11, 2023, at BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023, where Aurora Gaming won 2–0. However, it is important to note that all these matches featured completely different team rosters, so this information does not provide an accurate insight into what to expect in the upcoming clash. Considering the current form and statistics, Aurora Gaming appears to be the favorite, but Heroic remains a strong opponent capable of pulling off a surprise.
Match Prediction: Heroic vs Aurora Gaming
The upcoming match between Heroic and Aurora Gaming at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025 looks extremely challenging for the Danish squad. Heroic enters the game with some momentum from previous victories, but against Aurora Gaming they face a team that is stronger, more consistent, and in better form this season.
Bookmakers see Aurora Gaming as the clear favorite, and the reality of the matchup reinforces this view. Heroic will struggle to take control of the maps, and even winning a single map could prove very difficult. Their previous results at this tournament were partly fortunate, as they faced less experienced opponents, which allowed them to advance further than expected.
Aurora Gaming, on the other hand, demonstrates strong coordination, strategic depth, and the ability to punish any mistakes. Given the current form and differences in skill and consistency, Heroic’s chances of winning the match are very slim. While the exact score is hard to predict and could be risky to bet on, the safest option is to back Aurora Gaming for the victory.
Prediction: Aurora Gaming win.
