Vitality wins StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2026
It feels like a while ago when Team Vitality lifted their last Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) trophy. While many might think their era of complete dominance is over, which might be the case, Dan “apEX” Madesclaire’s men showcased fantastic form at StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2026 to take home the gold.
Over the weekend of 17 to 20 September, eight teams duked it out in a double-elimination bracket for their share of the $500,000 prize pool in Barcelona, Spain. That’s roughly R8.1 million, in case you were wondering.
The all-Turkish side of Aurora Gaming took charge in the upper bracket, beating NAVI 2-0, NRG 2-0, and Team Vitality 2-1 to earn a spot in the Grand Final.
Team Vitality first took out Magic and FURIA with 2-0 scores before losing to Aurora Gaming, thereby dropping to the Lower Bracket. In the Lower Bracket, they smashed FURIA 2-0 to set up a rematch with Aurora Gaming.
In the best-of-five Grand Final, Team Vitality drew first blood on Anubis with a 13-4 win. Aurora Gaming bounced back on Inferno with a 13-11 win, tying up the series. However, apEX seemed like he had enough, and led his team to very convincing wins on Mirage (13-4) and Cache (13-7) to close out the series 3-1, winning the tournament.
The legendary French AWPer, Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, was named the MVP of StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2026, boasting a 1.50 rating. Congratulations!
Final StarLadder StarSeries Fall 2026 results
Check out the neat little table below showcasing the results, final standings, and how much each team won.
| Placement | Team(s) | Player Share | Club Share | Total Prize |
| 1st | Vitality | $100,000 | $100,000 | $200,000 |
| 2nd | Aurora | $65,000 | $65,000 | $130,000 |
| 3rd | FURIA | $35,000 | $35,000 | $70,000 |
| 4th | MIBR | $20,000 | $20,000 | $40,000 |
| 5th–6th | MOUZ, NRG | $10,000 each | $10,000 each | $20,000 each |
| 7th–8th | magic, Natus Vincere | $5,000 each | $5,000 each | $10,000 each |
Stay tuned to Esports Central for lots more results reports, news, and viewers’ guides.
Header image via StarLadder.
