Wilders win! Phygital Basketball has new champions

It was finals days at Phygital Basketball presented by Halyk Fund and the four teams competing in the last two matches delivered everything the competition had promised since it began six days ago.

Wilders might have been declared winners – rightfully – but there were no losers here as both the final and the battle for third place produced perhaps the two most exciting matches of the entire competition.

Going into the final, LIGA PRO TEAM were many people’s favorites to take the title and defend the crown they won at Games of the Future Abu Dhabi 2025. They had looked unbeatable throughout the tournament, never dropping a match and seemed on course to make it two in a row.

But Wilders had other ideas. They struck first in the digital stage, clinching it by 19-16 and giving themselves an advantage for the physical stage.

Not that they needed it. Although every possession was fiercely – some would say aggressively – contested, and every rebound fought over, Wilders actually took it 17-10. However, LIGA PRO TEAM battled so hard and intensely it always felt like they might turn the game around at any point.

When the buzzer sounded, however, there was no doubt. Wilders had ended LIGA PRO TEAM's reign, completing a remarkable tournament run and lifting the Games of the Future Astana 2026 Phygital Basketball presented by Halyk Fund trophy with a commanding 36-26 victory. They also share the US$100,000 first prize.

"We've been playing together for more than five years, so our chemistry comes naturally, but bringing in a coach this season made a real difference. He gave us a fresh perspective, helped us improve the small details and played a big part in the preparation that led us to this title." – Sergey Kozlov from Wilders.

Earlier in the day, Triada and Dangerous faced off in a battle for third place. If that match was supposed to ease the crowd into the evening, nobody had told the players.

From the opening tip, the two sides traded blows in a digital stage that remained too close to call until the final seconds, when Triada edged ahead 19-18.

Dangerous wasted no time responding on court, opening the scoring inside the first 30 seconds before showing once again why they had been one of the tournament's most... well, dangerous teams. Their confidence from beyond the arc produced back-to-back two-pointers that had the Astana crowd on their feet.

Triada answered with relentless pace and clever movement, gradually erasing the deficit before another frantic finish saw the scoreboard read 34-32 with less than 90 seconds remaining.

At just 10 seconds left, a single point separated the teams. A late foul sent Dangerous to the free-throw line, where they calmly converted both attempts to secure a 39-36 victory and the US$35,000 third-place prize.

"We're proud to finish third. The digital stage was a new experience for me, but thanks to my coaches and teammates I was able to adapt quickly. I love the combination of gaming and basketball. I think it’s a format that suits me and Bogdan very well. I'm especially proud of him for playing through a serious back injury. That shows the character of this team." – Marko Koljevic from Dangerous.

The games go on

Attention now turns to the next wave of disciplines, with the Qazaqstan Sports Complex welcoming Phygital Football UFL presented by Samruk-Kazyna and, later this week, Phygital Fighting presented by Kazzinc. Meanwhile, the Beeline Arena swaps PUBG action for Phygital Shooter CS2 presented by Yandex Go.

Fans can also look forward to the conclusion of MOBA PC Dota 2 presented by CenterCredit, the debut of Phygital Dancing presented by Solidcore Resources, and the crowning of champions in MOBA Mobile MLBB presented by Freedom, as the Games of the Future Astana 2026 builds towards its grand finale on 9 August.

And it can all be watched on Phygital+, the official Games of the Future streaming platform.