Thunderpick reveals World Championship matchups

Thunderpick’s 2026 World Championship will take place in Malta from Oct. 14-18, with $1 million at stake. Ninjas in Pyjamas will replace Virtus.pro after visa issues affected Aleksandr “AquaRS” Kovalev and Dias “F0R3VER” Kutubay stepped away from the active roster for health reasons.

Virtus.pro qualified through the closed qualifier. Under the tournament rules, a withdrawn team is replaced by the next eligible squad in the Valve Regional Standings. Withdrawals made within 20 days of the event must be replaced by a team from the host region. Europe is the host region for the Malta event, making Ninjas in Pyjamas the replacement team.

The tournament will use two best-of-three GSL groups. The top four teams will advance to a single-elimination playoff bracket, which will include a third-place match before the best-of-five grand final.

Falcons, the highest-seeded team, will face Ninjas in Pyjamas in Group A at 11 a.m. on Oct. 14. The group also includes 9z and Aurora, who will play at 8:30 a.m.

Group B will open with Legacy against PARIVISION at 1:30 p.m. FURIA will then play BETBOOM at 4 p.m. Andrei “arT” Piovezan is scheduled to return to Legacy’s lineup after missing ESL Pro League for health reasons.

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