There are few bigger and more memorable events in the annual Counter-Strike 2 calendar than the traditional trip to the Cathedral of Counter-Strike in the summer. Every year, we can expect a voyage to Cologne for a major Intel Extreme Masters event where the best teams around the world compete for a trophy and a big wedge of prize money. For 2025, IEM Cologne will conclude very soon, with the annual event set to wrap up on Sunday. With that being the case, we now know the playoffs bracket and the six teams still left in contention.
The playoffs are structured in such a way that there are no second chances now. Every game is a knockout match, and the bracket has been arranged in a manner where the quarter-finals are locked in, as are two of the semi-finals squads. Yep, because of performance at IEM Cologne, both Team Vitality and Team Spirit get to miss the quarter-finals and instead are now only two match wins from being crowned a champion.
As for the quarters, they are arranged as follows:
- Mouz vs. Furia
- The MongolZ vs. Natus Vincere
The winner of the first match will face Team Vitality and the winner of the second will take on Team Spirit. The quarters will be played on August 1, the semis on August 2, and the grand finale on August 3, with the winner taking home $400,000 in prize money.