MOUZ are the champions of PGL Cluj-Napoca 2025! They defeated Falcons in the grand final with a 3-1 scoreline, securing the $400,000 prize. This was their first event with Lotan "Spinx" Giladi as a new player and Ludvig "Brollan" Brolin as the new in-game leader. Despite a tough start in the Swiss stage, where they had to win their last match to qualify, MOUZ showed great strength in the playoffs.
Group Stage Surprises and Disappointments
Some teams underperformed in the group stage. Virtus.pro failed to reach the playoffs, even though they had done well at IEM Katowice 2025. 3DMAX also struggled, losing their decisive match to SAW, a team that was already planning roster changes after the event.
Another disappointing team was MIBR. After a poor showing, their captain André "drop" Abreu left the roster. This means the team will have a new lineup for the next tournaments. Imperial Female, FlyQuest, and Complexity also had weak performances, finishing at the bottom. For other teams it could go better, but someone has to take the last spots.
Playoff Matches
The playoffs had some surprising results. MOUZ won against paiN Gaming, a team that made its first-ever big tournament playoffs. However, paiN looked nervous, and only their captain Rodrigo "biguzera" Bittencourt performed well.
One of the biggest upsets was Astralis beating The MongolZ 2-0. Many considered The MongolZ one of the favorites, but Astralis dominated them. The Asian team need to find consistency as the result is disappointing considering the semifinal of IEM Katowice 2025.
Falcons also surprised many by defeating Eternal Fire 2-1. The Turkish team had a strong start to 2025, but they couldn’t stop Nikola "NiKo" Kovač and his squad on the final map, Nuke.
FaZe Clan had no trouble against SAW, who were already planning roster changes. This event helped SAW gain Valve ranking points, which could secure them better invitations in the future.
Semifinals
The first semifinal was MOUZ vs. Astralis. Astralis had a great start on Inferno but lost their 12-4 lead and eventually fell 16-14. After dominating Nuke, they collapsed on Ancient, giving MOUZ a spot in the final. Spinx played an incredible game, showing why MOUZ signed him.
Astralis Secure Third Place
This tournament included a third-place decider, where Astralis beat FaZe after an intense Mirage map, which went 28-24 in FaZe’s favor. However, Astralis came back on Inferno and Ancient to take the series 2-1. Nicolai "dev1ce" Reedtz, Jakob "jabbi" Nygaard, and Victor "Staehr" Staehr were the key players for Astralis, while Jonathan "EliGE" Jablonowski played well for FaZe, but broky struggled.
Grand Final: MOUZ vs. Falcons
The final started with MOUZ destroying Falcons on Dust2. However, NiKo and René "TeSeS" Madsen led Falcons to a dominant Mirage win. In the last two maps, MOUZ kept their cool, winning Nuke and Ancient in close matches to claim the PGL Cluj-Napoca 2025 title. This is their first big trophy in almost a year and a perfect start for their new roster.
Prize Distribution
1st Place – MOUZ – $400,000
2nd Place – Team Falcons – $187,500
3rd Place – Astralis – $150,000
4th Place – FaZe Clan – $87,500
5th-8th Place – $62,500 each – SAW, Eternal Fire, paiN Gaming, The MongolZ
9th-11th Place – $31,250 each – 3DMAX, BIG, Virtus.pro
12th-14th Place – $18,750 each – Complexity, Wildcard, MIBR
15th-16th Place – $12,500 each – FlyQuest, Imperial Female
What’s Next?
The next big tournament is ESL Pro League Season 21, running from March 1 to March 16 in Stockholm. This tournament has a $1,000,000 prize pool and will feature top teams fighting for another prestigious title.
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