Fantasy Price Focus Before the IEM Kraków Playoffs
As IEM Kraków 2026 enters the playoff stage, player pricing in HLTV Fantasy has become a hot topic of discussion in the community. One of the most striking points is that Team Spirit’s core player donk and Vitality’s star AWPer ZywOo have exactly the same price in the playoff stage.
This situation is uncommon in top-tier tournament Fantasy systems, as the two players represent two different types of dominant performance in current professional CS2:
donk: Known for his explosive power and high kill efficiency
ZywOo: Known for his consistency and all-around abilities
The identical pricing of the two players, to some extent, reflects the continuation of the “best player debate” in the professional scene over the past year.
IEM Kraków 2026 Tournament Background
IEM Kraków 2026 is a large-scale offline tournament held by ESL in Poland, with a total prize pool of $1 million. The competition is divided into three stages: Play-in, Group Stage, and Playoffs.
After the group stage, six teams advanced to the playoff stage, including:
Team Spirit
Vitality
G2
MOUZ
FURIA
Aurora
Tournament format:
Group winners advance directly to the semifinals.
The remaining four teams play in the quarterfinals.
The Grand Final is a BO5.
Based on overall performance, Spirit and Vitality are still considered the favorites to win the championship.
Donk: The Continued Dominance of a High-Impact Rifler
Since entering top-tier tournaments, donk has become one of the most dominant riflers in CS2. He frequently delivers high ratings and multi-kill rounds in crucial matches, providing powerful offensive firepower for Team Spirit. Community and statistical data widely agree that donk’s output in high-intensity matches is among the world’s best. For example, in major tournaments over the past season, he consistently maintained a match rating above 1.30, and maintained high kill efficiency during crucial playoff stages.
Spirit’s tactical system is also largely built around donk, allowing him to have more opportunities to shine in critical rounds.
ZywOo: A Symbol of Stability and Experience
In contrast, ZywOo’s value lies more in his consistent output and clutch ability. As the core player of Vitality, he has consistently maintained a high rating in top-tier tournaments and demonstrated strong adaptability in important matches.
In statistics across multiple seasons, ZywOo’s performance against strong teams and in the playoff stages has consistently remained at a world-class level, which is one of the reasons why he continues to be an MVP candidate.
In the IEM Kraków tournament, Vitality’s overall performance was stable, further increasing ZywOo’s value in the Fantasy system.
Why the Same Fantasy Price?
HLTV Fantasy prices are usually based on the following factors:
Recent tournament performance
Team’s chances of advancing
Difficulty of the playoff schedule
Historical consistency
The fact that donk and ZywOo have the same price indicates that their expected contribution values are similar in the model’s evaluation.
From a tactical perspective, this is also reasonable:
Spirit relies more on donk’s firepower
Vitality relies on ZywOo’s consistent performance
Different styles of “team cores” ultimately achieve a balance in Fantasy scoring.
The Biggest Highlight of the Playoffs
One of the biggest highlights of the IEM Kraków playoff stage is whether these two superstar players will meet in the finals.
Both Spirit and Vitality have performed very consistently in this tournament, and if both teams advance successfully, a top-tier showdown is likely to happen again.
This is not only a competition between teams but also a potentially important reference tournament for the discussion of the best player of the year.
Conclusion
The IEM Kraków 2026 Fantasy pricing provides an interesting perspective for viewers:
donk and ZywOo have become two of the most representative players in CS2 today. When two players appear on the playoff Fantasy roster at the same price, it not only reflects their similar competitive value but also the current landscape of the professional scene—
CS2 is in an era where “emerging talent” and “traditional dominant forces” coexist.
As the knockout stage unfolds, this competition between top players will continue, and the winner of IEM Kraków will likely once again influence the discussion surrounding the best player of the year.