ESL has unveiled the brackets for both stages of IEM Cologne 2025 — one of the year’s premier tournaments, taking place from July 23 to August 3. A total of 24 teams will compete for a prize pool of $1.25 million.
It All Starts Here
The competition kicks off with the Play-In Stage, where 16 teams will face off in a double-elimination bracket. The top eight teams will advance to the Group Stage, joining eight elite squads that received direct invites based on ESL’s ranking.
In the Group Stage, 16 teams will be split into two groups of eight, with matches also played in a double-elimination format. Group winners will move directly to the semi-finals, while the second- and third-placed teams will advance to the quarter-finals. The playoffs will be a single-elimination bracket, with all matches up to the final played as BO3 and the grand final as BO5.
Debuts, Returns, and the Fight for Survival
The Play-In Stage will feature notable roster moves: Justin “jks” Savage will debut for FlyQuest, while Kacper “xKacpersky” Gabara will make his first appearance with Ninjas in Pyjamas. Meanwhile, Helvijs “broky” Saukants returns to FaZe after a period on the bench.
Opening Matchups — IEM Cologne 2025 Play-In Stage:
- FaZe vs BIG
- Team Liquid vs paiN
- 3DMAX vs MIBR
- Ninjas in Pyjamas vs HEROIC
- GamerLegion vs Complexity
- TYLOO vs Virtus.pro
- Astralis vs B8
- FlyQuest vs FURIA
The top eight teams from this phase will move on to the Group Stage, where they’ll be joined by the ESL ranking leaders. The current group setup is as follows:
Group A
- Vitality vs TBD
- TBD vs G2
- Falcons vs TBD
- TBD vs The MongolZ
Group B
- MOUZ vs TBD
- TBD vs Natus Vincere
- Aurora vs TBD
- TBD vs Spirit
The tournament will take place from July 23 to August 3 at the iconic LANXESS arena in Cologne, Germany. The total prize pool amounts to $1.25 million.
