The first tournament of the 2026 BLAST Premier series, BLAST Bounty Winter 2026, will bring together 32 teams in a unique competition format. Teams are divided into five seed groups, and for each victory within a group, a cash reward is assigned—the higher the seed, the bigger the prize. Fifty percent of the reward goes to the winner, while the remaining fifty percent moves to the next round. In each matchup, lower-seeded teams pick their opponents first, adding an extra layer of strategy. The final rounds will be held at BLAST Arena Studios in Attard, Malta, with the total prize pool to be announced later, along with participation points. In this setting, FURIA and 9INE are set to face each other, promising an interesting clash between a top-tier aggressive team and a rising Tier-2 squad.
How the bookies view it: FURIA favored
FURIA clearly comes in as the strong favorite for this matchup. The current odds reflect a major gap between the teams, with FURIA at 1.03 and 9INE at 11.62 to win the series. If you expect FURIA to take the match in a clean sweep, the odds are 1.26 for a 2:0 result, while betting on 9INE to win at least one map offers a higher return at 3.75. These numbers underline the bookmakers’ confidence in FURIA’s dominance, but there is still value in considering potential upsets or map-specific performance, especially in longer series.
FURIA form. What result can be expected from FURIA
Our betting tips and CS2 picks for the FURIA vs 9INE matchup begin with analyzing FURIA form. FURIA is a well-known esports team with numerous victories under its belt. The team is known for sudden bursts of excellent play when no one can predict it. Despite inconsistent results this year, FURIA still ranks among the world’s top 20 teams.
- FURIA roster: FalleN, yuurih, KSCERATO, YEKINDAR, molodoy.
FURIA has a rich history, consistently participating in top-level CS:GO tournaments and now in CS2. At the same time, the team has been relatively unstable — they could show great performances in one part of the season, fully justifying all CS2 predictions, and then fail to reach even the top 16.
In 2025, the team finally reached a better level of play. At the start of the season, FURIA performed moderately at IEM Katowice 2025 and ESL Pro League Season 21, placing top 16 and top 14 respectively.
However, the team then showed great progress, finishing 4th at PGL Astana 2025, 5th–8th at BLAST.tv Austin Major 2025, and 5th–6th at Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2025.
FURIA also performed well at BLAST Open Fall 2025, successfully passing the closed qualifiers and reaching the top 4 in the main event.
At FISSURE Playground #2 FURIA confirmed their good form. The team played 3-1 in the Swiss Stage, in the playoffs doubled victories over Astralis and Falcons 2-0, in the grand final defeated The MongolZ 3-2 and became the tournament champions.
At ESL Pro League Season 22, FURIA started with an unexpected 0–2 loss to HOTU, but in the next match rehabilitated with a 2–0 victory against Fluxo. In the following match, FURIA played against Legacy; the match was very close, but the team lost 0–2. The team once again recovered from the loss with a 2–0 win over M80, bringing their score to 2–2. In the decisive match, the team defeated B8 2–1.
In Stage 2, FURIA played more confidently, earning 3 wins and 1 loss. In the first playoff match, they faced the strongest opponent, Vitality — FURIA lost and were eliminated from the tournament, finishing 5th–8th.
The Thunderpick World Championship 2025 turned out to be a very successful tournament for the team. In the Group Stage, they played with a 2–0 record, and in the playoffs continued their winning streak, becoming the champions of the tournament.
At the highest level team also performed at IEM Chengdu 2025. FURIA placed 2nd in their Group Stage group, and in the playoffs secured victories over Mongolz, Team Falcons, and Vitality, ultimately becoming the champions of the tournament.
The team also played at BLAST Rivals Fall 2025, where they once again claimed the championship title.
At the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, FURIA placed 5th–8th after losing to Natus Vincere.
FURIA Map Pool
The Brazilian team FURIA has been showing strong results in Counter-Strike 2 over the past three months. They have been unbeatable on Dust2, winning 100% of their matches there, while Ancient is always their first ban. On Overpass, their first pick, they win 90% of the time, and Nuke is also a strong map with an 85.7% win rate. Mirage, Inferno, and Train are less dominant but still solid, with win rates between 66.7% and 71.4%. Overall, FURIA clearly knows their best maps and plays them very well, while avoiding those where they might struggle.
9INE form. What result can be expected from 9INE
As of January 2026, the Polish team 9INE continues to compete in international Counter-Strike 2 tournaments, holding roughly 33th place in the global Valve rankings and regularly participating in European leagues and qualifiers. The current main roster includes raalz, bnox, cej0t, kraghen, and shield, who represent the team in both online competitions and LAN events.
- 9INE roster: raalz, bnox, cej0t, kraghen, shield (loan).
The second half of 2025 and early 2026 have been a busy and uneven period for 9INE, as they took part in tournaments ranging from C-Tier to A-Tier. Their most notable recent achievement was reaching the grand final of FRAG Miami 2 2026, where the team fought hard on the LAN stage but ultimately lost 1:3, securing second place and earning $2,000. During late 2025, 9INE consistently performed in the mid to upper brackets of B-Tier tournaments, reaching the top 3/4 in the CCT Season 3 European Series #12 and claiming 4th place at Perfect World CS Challenge Series #2, showing they could challenge for playoff spots. There were also some setbacks, including early exits at Galaxy Battle Phase 5 and DreamHack Knockout Stockholm, where the team failed to progress beyond the initial rounds.
Autumn 2025 proved to be the team’s most productive period in terms of results. They won the Birch Cup 2025, taking first place on LAN and earning $8,000, and also reached the final of FRAG Blocktober 2025, narrowly losing 2:3. At the same time, 9INE regularly advanced to the later stages of the ESL Challenger League Season 50, often finishing in the top 4, demonstrating their competitiveness on the European scene. Even at higher-level A-Tier events such as StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2025, they secured a top-8 finish, gaining both prize money and valuable experience against stronger opponents.
Overall, these results depict 9INE as a solid Tier-2 team capable of contesting B-Tier trophies and occasionally challenging higher-ranked opponents, while still seeking consistent performances on major stages. Although they are not yet among the top 30 global teams, 9INE shows a stable presence on the competitive scene and aims to improve their results further in 2026.
9INE Map Pool
The Polish team 9INE has carved out a solid reputation in Counter-Strike 2, with clear map strategies that shape their competitive play. Over the past three months, Mirage has consistently been their perma-ban, a map they refuse to play themselves, likely due to opponents’ strengths or tactical disadvantages on it. On the maps they do play, 9INE performs strongest on Dust2 with a 72.7% win rate and Overpass at 66.7%, while Inferno (55.6%) and Train (44.4%) show more mixed results. Nuke (37.5%) and Ancient (36.4% as first pick) remain their least successful maps.
9INE VS FURIA: Head-to-Head History
FURIA and 9INE have not faced each other in any official matches before, so this will be their first-ever encounter.
Match prediction: 9INE VS FURIA – BLAST Bounty 2026 Season 1
Looking at the current form, map pool, and overall strength of both teams, FURIA enters this matchup as a clear favorite against 9INE. The Brazilian squad has consistently shown dominance on their best maps, with Dust2 at a perfect 100% win rate, Overpass at 90%, and Nuke at 85.7%, while effectively banning Ancient and avoiding weaker maps. In contrast, 9INE, a solid Tier-2 team, has more inconsistent results and struggles on several maps, with Mirage permanently banned and lower win rates on Nuke, Train, and Ancient. Considering that this is their first-ever head-to-head meeting, there is little historical precedent to suggest that 9INE could upset a top-20 squad like FURIA. Given these factors, the most realistic outcome is a straightforward 2:0 victory for FURIA, with the Brazilian team likely controlling the pace of the match, leveraging their map strengths, and minimizing any opportunities for 9INE to gain momentum. While upsets are always possible in CS2, the combination of experience, map control, and individual firepower strongly favors FURIA in this clash.
Prediction: FURIA 2:0 9INE.
#39
Wildcard
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