MAD Lions barely made it to the LoL World Championship 2024 and were not very convincing through the play-ins either. Considering everything they have shown, Europe’s third seed should struggle against one of the tournament favourites.

Bilibili Gaming are among the leading candidates to lift the Summoner’s Cup. And while the LoL Worlds patch will introduce some uncertainty, especially early into the main stage, you must have an excellent reason to go against one of the hottest LoL esports teams.

BLG should win without any issues, but their handicap lines are a little too severe. Knowing both sides are fairly bloody, taking over 27.5 total kills is an appealing option.

T1 placed fourth in the LoL Champions Korea (LCK) 2024 Summer regular season, third in the playoffs, and barely made it past KT Roster in the LCK 2024 Regional Finals. Top Esports were not convincing in the last split either, with bronze medals from Group Ascend and the LPL 2024 Summer Playoffs.

On form, it is easy to understand why neither team is among the tournament favourites. However, it is much easier to trust TES, who have looked incredible against any team who failed to stop them early.

Lee “Faker” Sang-hyeok and co. can wake up at any moment to defend their throne, but T1’s early game has not been the best, which could be a problem.

Gen.G have played incredibly well throughout the 2024 season and enter Worlds as one of the title favourites. Weibo Gaming, like usual, are very potent but inconsistent underdogs who can beat anyone on their day.

Gen.G are the better, more stable, and more reliable team, yet this does not justify their tag as $1.19 favourites. The long break and volatility of a new patch could shake things up a bit, so in a series between two elite squads, it is hard to pass on the outsiders to at least keep it close.

A smaller play on Weibo Gaming to win is worth a look as well.

Fnatic and Dplus KIA are not expected to compete for the Summoner’s Cup, but they can play at a very high level. This is more obvious with Dplus KIA, who have produced excellent games domestically; the problem is they have not done this consistently.

Fnatic collapsed at the Mid-Season Invitational and the Esports World Cup 2024 mainly due to the lack of experience of their bottom lane, namely ADC Oh “Noah” Hyeon-taek. This could again be a problem at LoL World Championship 2024, but after two international events, some improvement is expected.

Dplus KIA have a higher ceiling, but they are not consistent in reaching it. Fnatic, at $3.36 with the best LoL betting sites, are worth a look.

Even as $3.54 underdogs, Team Liquid might still be overrated. While the LoL Championship Series (LCS) second seed performed reasonably well at the Esports World Cup 2024, the gap between the LCS and LPL is significant enough to fade them.

LNG Esports might not be one of the main candidates to win the tournament, but they are very efficient in trashing weaker teams — as seen in their run through the LPL 2024 Summer. Expect a one-sided series.

Hanwha Life Esports exceeded expectations in the LCK 2024 Summer, yet most of that is thanks to Dplus KIA’s and T1’s struggles. Their LCK trophy aside, HLE are still the same counter-punching team, which will be a problem at LoL Worlds 2024.

PSG Talon had a rough run through the play-in stage; however, that does not take away from how stacked and experienced this lineup is. The added games in the play-ins also allowed PSG to warm up ahead of their first proper test of the tournament.

Even though Hanwha Life Esports are LCK’s top seed, $1.06 is an absurd price for a squad with a flawed playstyle.

Matches pitting minor and major regions against one another tend to be priced heavily in favour of the latter. However, it is hard to justify saying the LCS is much stronger than the Vietnam Championship Series (VCS).

GAM Esports have not been adequately tested in their league, so it is hard to say how high they can fly. But the same can be said for FlyQuest, who only had to deal with one formidable opponent domestically.

The North American squad should be priced as favourites, but not at this number. The value is with the underdogs.

G2 Esports were anything but great in the final split of the season; however, they shifted into a higher gear when it mattered and won both the LoL EMEA Championship (LEC) 2024 Summer Playoffs and the Season Finals.

PaiN Gaming looked very good in the first stage of the tournament, but they only had to defeat Vikings Esports and Movistar R7. Suffice it to say the Brazilians have not been properly tested yet.

G2 Esports are known to play with their food, but rarely on the international stage. They’re the superior team by all metrics, and it should show on Thursday.

Esports betting tips

Four teams have been eliminated, and 16 remain on the road to glory.

Even in the play-in stage, one major region has already fallen short of expectations.

100 Thieves, from North America, suffered a disappointing defeat to PSG Talon in the lower bracket final, marking an early exit from LoL Worlds 2024.

With the Swiss Stage now set, exciting first-round matchups are on the horizon.

#Words2024 Swiss Stage round 1 match order:@BilibiliGaming @MADLionsKOI @TOP_Esports_ @T1LoL@GenG @WeiboGamingLoL @FNATIC @DplusKIA @TeamLiquidLoL @LNG_Esports @HLEofficial @psgtalonlol @FlyQuest @GAMesportsVN @G2League @paiNGamingBR https://t.co/i0oHBJbfpe

— LoL Esports (@lolesports) September 29, 2024

T1 will start their title defence against Top Esports, while European fans have reason for cautious optimism: G2 Esports faces paiN Gaming, and Fnatic goes head-to-head with Dplus KIA.

On the other hand, MAD Lions fans may feel a pang of anxiety as their team has drawn LPL Summer champions, Bilibili Gaming, in the first round.

In an interview, Supa from MAD Lions expressed a desire to face a North American team for revenge, but it seems that match will have to wait.

GAM Esports, fresh off a strong play-in stage performance, will now face FlyQuest, while PSG Talon must take on the LCK Summer winners, Hanwha Life Esports.

Meanwhile, Team Liquid is set to face LNG Esports, and Weibo Gaming is lined up against Gen.G, the dominant second seed from the LCK.

This year��s World Championship will take place across Berlin, Paris, and London, with the Swiss Stage held in two parts: October 3-7 and October 10-13.

The opening day will feature best-of-one round one matchups, followed by 1-0 and 0-1 matchups on October 4.

From then on, the decisive best-of-three matches will determine who moves on to the knockout stage and who goes home.

The play-in stage has already concluded, with eight teams competing for four qualification spots.

These four teams will now join the twelve already qualified teams in the Swiss Stage, where many consider the ��real�� Worlds to begin.

The 16 teams are divided into four pools, with Pool 1 teams facing Pool 4, and Pool 2 taking on Pool 3.

Importantly, no teams will face opponents from their own region in the first round.

After that, matchups will pair teams with the same record regardless of region, and rematches will be prohibited.

To qualify for the knockout stage, a team must win three matches, while three losses mean elimination from Worlds 2024.

The Swiss Stage format will feature best-of-one matches until the qualification and elimination series, which will be best of three.

Fans can catch all the Swiss Stage action on the official LoL Esports channels on Twitch and YouTube.

The final eight teams that survive this gruelling stage will advance to the knockout stage, bringing them one step closer to the Summoner��s Cup.

Thursday’s Swiss Stage matches

• Hanwha Life Esports ($1.06) vs PSG Talon ($8.00) @ 2pm CET
• FlyQuest ($1.36) vs GAM Esports ($3.00) @ 3pm CET
• G2 Esports ($1.16) vs paiN Gaming ($4.50) @ 4pm CET
• Bilibili Gaming ($1.08) vs MAD Lions KOI ($7.00) @ 5pm CET
• Top Esports ($2.00) vs T1 ($1.72) @ 6pm CET
• Team Liquid ($3.00) vs LNG Esports ($1.36) @ 7pm CET
• Fnatic ($3.75) vs Dplus KIA ($1.25) @ 8pm CET
• Gen.G ($1.20) vs Weibo Gaming ($4.33) @ 9pm CET

More esports news

MAD Lions KOI head to their fifth straight World Championship having run third in the LEC Season Finals, where they fell to G2 Esports in the lower-bracket final. MAD started the 2024 season well with a runner-up finish in the winter split before running sixth and eighth in the spring and summer splits, respectively.

Vikings Esports have exploded onto the Vietnamese League of Legends scene, recording back-to-back second-place finishes in the spring and summer splits this season. Vikings ended the regular season of the summer split with only one loss to their name and entered the playoffs as the top seed, ahead of GAM Esports.

Both of these squads enjoyed playing high-kill series throughout their regional splits, so with $1.83 on offer with top esports betting sites for 59.5 total kills, it looks like a great play.

PSG Talon will once again seek to run through the play-in stage at LoL Worlds as they return for their fourth appearance in the last five years. PSG have dominated the PCS in 2024, winning each of the summer and spring playoffs throughout the year, only losing two maps across those runs.

PaiN Gaming will attend their second LoL World Championship and their first since 2015, following a dominant campaign in the CBLOL Split 2. Considering that South American teams have struggled at Worlds in recent years, it appears as though paiN will be up against it from their opening series.

PSG Talon have a wealth of experience on the biggest stage, and they shouldn’t have too much trouble winning this series with a 2-0 scoreline.

Esports betting tips

BIG and GamerLegion last met during Thunderpick World Championship 2024: European Series #1 in April, when BIG won in two maps. But that was before roster changes on both sides, so that result should not hold much weight.

According to the Counter-Strike betting sites, this is BIG’s game to lose, but neither squad has posted great results of late. BIG exited Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2024 with a 1-2 record and two losses against SAW and Team Falcons.

In contrast, GamerLegion’s last significant competitive endeavour ended with a last-place finish at BLAST Premier Fall Groups 2024. Since then, they have picked up a few wins, albeit mainly against second-division squads such as Zero Tenacity, SINNERS Esports, and 1win.

That would indicate Erik “ztr” Gustafsson and co. are in good form, but since they have not beaten any good teams lately, we should give this game to BIG.

Cloud9 have not achieved much since reaching the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024 playoffs in March. They did enough to finish top two at Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2024: European Open Qualifier #2 last weekend, but that came after exiting the BetBoom Dacha Belgrade 2024 #2: European Qualifier in fifth-eighth place earlier this month.

PaiN Gaming have clawed their way to No.16 in the world standings by finishing top eight at IEM Cologne 2024 last week. The Brazilians have looked competitive at the top level for a while, and even though they’ve not beaten any elite teams, that doesn’t mean they will struggle on Friday.

Cloud9’s recent form makes it fair to question whether they should be considered a good team. And while they have enough talent to do better, we must first see it to believe it.

Esports betting tips

Both teams secured their spots in the Group B lower bracket final after decisive 2-0 victories in the Counter-Strike 2 event.

FaZe dominated Falcons and Liquid bested Complexity, setting up a high-stakes clash later in the day for a place in the playoffs.

Liquid’s choice to play Ancient, a map they had only recently added to their map pool, proved risky yet effective.

Despite Roland “?ultimate?” Tomkowiak having a quiet start, Liquid’s riflers, including Keith “?NAF?” Markovic and Russel “?Twistzz?” Van Dulken, stepped up to secure a close win on the first map.

Mareks “?YEKINDAR?” Ga?inskis made key plays on the counter-terrorist side, helping Liquid maintain their momentum.

The second map, Anubis, saw Liquid dominate with strong counter-terrorist tactics and a resurgent ultimate, who delivered an ace to regain his confidence.

Liquid won six straight rounds in the second half to quickly wrap up the series with a 13-5 win.

FaZe entered their match against Falcons as heavy favorites with esports betting sites, and they lived up to expectations.

Dust2 began with an 8-0 streak, with H?vard “?rain?” Nygaard dismantling the Falcons’ offense.

Although Falcons managed to force overtime, FaZe’s superior firepower and strategic adjustments secured a 16-13 win.

The second map, Ancient, saw a back-and-forth battle, but FaZe’s momentum from a crucial pistol round propelled them to victory, sealing their spot in the lower bracket final.

The rematch between FaZe and Liquid was nothing short of epic.

WHAT. A. GAME.

AN INSANE COMEBACK FROM @FaZeClan SENDS THEM TO THE #IEM COLOGNE PLAYOFFS OVER @TeamLiquidCS!!

13-9 Inferno
13-16 Nuke
16-13 Mirage pic.twitter.com/aghGQtSmPs

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 13, 2024

FaZe had narrowly defeated Liquid in their group opener, but this time, the stakes were even higher, with a spot in the playoffs on the line.

Liquid picked Inferno instead of Mirage, hoping for a better outcome, but FaZe’s David “?frozen?” ?er��ansky dominated the B-site, helping FaZe secure a 13-9 win.

Nuke was more competitive, with Liquid pushing the game into overtime before FaZe’s defence, led by frozen, halted several of their advances.

Liquid eventually broke through the strong defences, securing the map with a 16-13 scoreline to send the series to a deciding map.

The decider on Mirage seemed destined for a Liquid victory as they stormed to an 11-1 lead, leaving FaZe on the brink of elimination.

However, in one of the greatest comebacks in CS2 history, FaZe clawed their way back from a 3-12 deficit.

A flawless defence from ?rain? and Robin “?ropz?” Kool shut down Liquid’s attacks, forcing the match into overtime.

FaZe completed their miraculous comeback, winning nine consecutive rounds to secure a spot in the playoffs.

.@G2CSGO show no mercy again as they dominate @paiNGamingBR on their way to the #IEM Cologne 2024 Playoffs

13-6 Nuke
13-1 Mirage pic.twitter.com/uMqdJ09qLe

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 13, 2024

In Group A, G2 Esports made a statement by crushing paiN Gaming 2-0 (13-6, 13-1) in a one-sided series, securing their playoff spot.

Nikola “?NiKo?” Kova? and new addition Mario “?malbsMd?” Samayoa led the charge, with G2 delivering a string of dominant victories through the lower bracket.

Natus Vincere, after a sluggish start against SAW, found their form on Ancient and Inferno, securing a 2-1 (9-13, 13-2, 13-6) win and a direct path to the semi-finals.

Meanwhile, Team Vitality overcame MOUZ 2-0 (13-6, 16-13) in a tough upper bracket final, avoiding a quarter-final matchup against the in-form G2.

Friday’s IEM Cologne playoff fixtures

• SAW ($3.00) vs FaZe Clan ($1.35) @ 3:45pm CEST
• MOUZ ($2.35) vs G2 Esports ($1.55) @ 7pm CEST

More esports news

Team Vitality and MOUZ locked in their playoff spots for the Counter-Strike 2 tournament with wins over FaZe Clan and Complexity in their respective upper bracket semi-finals in Group B.

Vitality and FaZe played out a hard-fought three-map series, with the former taking the series 2-1 (8-13, 16-12, 13-9), even though their star player, Mathieu “ZywOo” Herbaut, had little influence on the clash.

FaZe picked Inferno for the first map, and with strong performances from key players like Robin “ropz” Kool and H?vard “rain” Nygaard, they took an early lead in the series with a 13-8 victory.

Although Vitality was forced into overtime on their map pick of Dust2, Shahar “flameZ” Shushan stepped up and carried the world number four to a 16-12 win, forcing a decider on Anubis.

The squads couldn’t be separated at halftime, locked at 6-6, before heading into the final half of the match.

However, Vitality, led by flameZ again, would win seven of the final 10 rounds on their terrorist side to close out the map and series, 13-9.

It's a reverse sweep from @TeamVitality to best @FaZeClan and secure themselves a spot in the #IEM Cologne Playoffs

8-13 Inferno
16-12 Dust 2
13-9 Anubis pic.twitter.com/ZveNmSxktV

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 12, 2024

On the other side of the bracket, MOUZ took care of Complexity 2-0 (13-9, 13-11), with Jimi “Jimpphat” Salo, Ludvig “Brollan” Brolin, and ��d��m “torzsi” Torzs��s dominating for the world number three.

Torzsi, who led the way on Vertigo, recorded a server-high rating (1.39) and kills (19) to power MOUZ to a 13-9 win on Complexity’s map pick.

MOUZ picked Nuke, and even though it was much closer than the opening map, Brollan (1.54 rating) and Jimpphat (1.47 rating) led the way in a hard-fought 13-11 victory.

MOUZ will face Vitality in the Group B upper bracket final, with the winner locking in a semi-final spot and the loser having to settle for a quarter-final berth.

It's a not so simple 2-0 for @mousesports as they close out the series vs @ComplexityCS after a bit of back and forth.

13-9 Vertigo
13-11 Nuke pic.twitter.com/3pdL1WsgGc

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 12, 2024

Earlier in the day, FURIA and Virtus.pro were eliminated from the IEM Cologne after suffering their second defeat of the group stage.

FURIA’s second straight 0-2 loss, this time against Team Liquid, ended their disappointing campaign in Cologne, while VP was knocked out by Falcons in a back-and-forth three-map series.

Finally, The Mongolz and Astralis had their runs ended by paiN Gaming and G2 Esports, respectively, in the lower bracket of Group A.

G2 continued their IEM Cologne resurgence with a 2-1 (13-1, 13-10, 13-3) victory, where the world number four dominated their Danish opponents on two of the three maps.

The Mongolz suffered a similar fate to their upper bracket loss on Sunday, as they claimed the opening map before losing the next two, going down 1-2 (13-16, 13-10, 13-8) against paiN.

The final day of the group stage will take place on Wednesday, with the final two teams locking in their spots to compete in the LANXESS Arena.

Wednesday’s IEM Cologne fixtures

• Falcons ($2.75) vs FaZe Clan ($1.40) @ 1:30pm CEST
• Team Liquid ($1.44) vs Complexity ($2.62) @ 1:30pm CEST
• G2 Esports ($1.16) vs paiN Gaming ($4.50) @ 3:45pm CEST
• Natus Vincere ($1.20) vs SAW ($4.33) @ 3:45pm CEST
• MOUZ ($2.00) vs Team Vitality ($1.72) @ 6:45pm CEST
• Winner of FaZe Clan/Falcons vs Winner of Complexity/Team Liquid @ 6:45pm CEST

More esports news

The world number two entered IEM Cologne 2024 as the $3.50 favourite with esports betting sites, but after falling to The Mongolz in the opening round, Spirit were faced with a daunting task against G2 in the lower bracket to remain in the tournament.

G2, who were also upset by a play-in stage qualifier, had their IEM Cologne title defence dealt an early blow after suffering a 0-2 loss against SAW.

The do-or-die series began on Spirit’s map pick of Nuke, and it was Nemanja ‘huNter-‘ Kova? who started off hot for G2, recording five kills in the first two rounds to set the tone.

The Kova? cousins, Nikola ‘NiKo’ Kova? and huNter-, dominated for G2 in the first half, propelling the squad to a 9-3 halftime lead.

Three first-half rounds would be the only round wins that Spirit claimed, as G2 quickly wrapped up the map 13-3.

Only Danil ‘donk’ Kryshkovets cracked double-digit kills (10), while Myroslav ‘zont1x’ Plakhotia struggled with four kills and 37.9 ADR on Nuke.

Following a lacklustre performance on their map, Spirit was tasked with playing G2’s pick of Mirage.

However, G2 started Mirage with four straight rounds on the terrorist side before Spirit won their first, thanks to three kills from zont1x.

Unfortunately for Spirit, G2 continued their dominance and finished the half with a massive 11-1 lead before closing out the series with a 13-1 demolition.

.@G2CSGO absolutely DOMINATE @Team__Spirit in the lower bracket of Group A, eliminating the Katowice champions in the process!

13-3 Nuke
13-1 Mirage pic.twitter.com/Fo5lFZABef

— ESL Counter-Strike (@ESLCS) August 11, 2024

Spirit has been sent packing from IEM Cologne following an embarrassing performance, which saw them win just four rounds in the clash with G2.

9z Team joined Spirit in last place after they were eliminated from Cologne by paiN Gaming in a back-and-forth three-map series, with paiN completing the reverse sweep after losing the first map.

Meanwhile, Natus Vincere (NaVi) and SAW secured their spots in the LANXESS Arena following their victories in the Group A upper bracket semi-finals.

NaVi proved too strong for Astralis and took the series 2-0 (13-4, 13-7).

SAW was pushed to their limits against The Mongolz, as they played all three maps and eventually claimed the series 2-1 (13-16, 13-7, 13-10).

The IEM Cologne group stage will continue on Monday, with two elimination matches scheduled to kick off the day.

Monday’s IEM Cologne group stage fixtures

• Team Liquid ($1.40) vs FURIA ($2.75) @ 1:30pm CEST
• Virtus.pro ($1.66) vs Falcons ($2.10) @ 1:30pm CEST
• Complexity ($3.00) vs MOUZ ($1.36) @ 3:45pm CEST
• FaZe Clan ($2.37) vs Team Vitality ($1.53) @ 3:45pm CEST
• Astralis ($2.37) vs G2 ($1.53) @ 6:45pm CEST
• The Mongolz ($1.53) vs paiN Gaming ($2.37) @ 6:45pm CEST

More esports news

In a series of thrilling Counter-Strike clashes, FURIA, 9z Team, Falcons, The MongolZ, and paiN Gaming emerged victorious, advancing to the next phase of the tournament.

FURIA secured their place in the group stage after a hard-fought 2-1 (13-11, 8-13, 13-11) win over Heroic in the lower bracket.

The Brazilian squad, led by Felipe “?skullz?” Medeiros, delivered a standout performance.

Skullz shone on Mirage with a 1.41 rating, playing a crucial role in a final-round 2v5 clutch alongside Kaike “?KSCERATO?” Cerato.

Though FURIA��s decision to pick Anubis backfired, they recovered on Nuke, where skullz’ pivotal plays on the terrorist side kept them in the game.

A clutch 1v3 attempt by Damjan “kyxsan” Stoilkovski was thwarted, and despite a brief scare at 12-10, FURIA closed out the match thanks to skullz’s triple kill in the final round.

.@FURIA outlast @heroicgg on the final map in order to advance at #IEM Cologne 2024

13-11 Mirage
8-13 Anubis
13-11 Nuke pic.twitter.com/MyjFDJHFbT

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 9, 2024

9z continued their impressive run by defeating regional rivals MIBR 2-0 (16-13, 13-2) to secure a group stage spot.

After a tight battle on Ancient, where 9z staged a comeback from a likely defeat, they dominated Nuke.

MIBR showed initial promise with a clever play in yard but were outplayed by 9z��s tactical prowess.

A near-heroic 1vs5 attempt by Raphael “?exit?” Lacerda was denied by Franco “?dgt?” Garcia, as 9z cruised to a 13-2 victory to close out the series.

A dominant performance from @9zTeam on their pick sees them beat @MIBR 2-0 in order to secure a seat in the next stage at #IEM Cologne

16-13 Ancient
13-2 Nuke pic.twitter.com/T8kdXZFX2S

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 9, 2024

Falcons overcame BIG 2-1 (13-7, 10-13, 13-10) in a three-map series to qualify for the group stage.

The win was a much-needed morale boost for Falcons, with Emil “?Magisk?” Reif praising ��lvaro “?SunPayus?” Garc��a��s standout performance.

BIG’s pick of Dust2 proved disastrous as they fell behind 2-10 in the first half.

Although they made a minor comeback, Falcons’ victory was never in doubt.

Mirage was more competitive, with BIG breaking their losing streak on the map thanks to a desert eagle 4k from Rigon “?rigoN?” Gashi.

However, Falcons closed out the series on Anubis, with SunPayus leading the charge on the counter-terrorist side.

.@SunPayuscs shines as @TeamFalconsGG take Anubis and win the series vs @BIGCLANgg 2-1 locking themselves into Stage 2 of #IEM Cologne!

13-7 Dust 2
10-13 Mirage
13-10 Anubis pic.twitter.com/JXmnPjjw3H

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 9, 2024

The MongolZ secured their group stage spot after a nail-biting 2-1 (4-13, 13-8, 16-14) victory over Eternal Fire.

The Mongolian team rebounded from a rough start on Anubis and capitalized on a shaky performance from Ismailcan “?XANTARES?” D?rtkarde? on Mirage.

Despite a strong counter-terrorist half from XANTARES on Nuke, The MongolZ’s aggressive plays, particularly from Garidmagnai “?bLitz?” Byambasuren, helped them secure the win in overtime.

Eternal Fire’s leader, Engin “?MAJ3R?” K��peli, took responsibility for the loss, citing strategic errors on the terrorist side of Nuke.

.@1mongolz have done it!

They take down @eternalfiregg 2-1 after a close fight in order to advance at #IEM Cologne 2024

4-13 Anubis
13-8 Mirage
16-14 Nuke pic.twitter.com/etTpH3xn5X

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 9, 2024

In a domestic derby, paiN defeated MIBR 2-1 (13-10, 4-13, 13-3) to clinch the final group stage spot.

The series began with a close contest on Mirage, with paiN edging out a 13-10 win thanks to a crucial play by Rodrigo “?biguzera?” Bittencourt.

MIBR bounced back on Anubis, dominating with a 13-4 victory.

However, paiN responded with a commanding performance on Vertigo, where a second-round forcebuy set the tone for their 13-3 victory.

The win secured paiN��s place in the group stage, while MIBR was eliminated from the tournament after back-to-back losses on the final day of the play-in stage.

These teams will now join the group stage of IEM Cologne, where they will face even tougher competition in their quest for the title.

The final spot in #IEM Cologne Stage 2 will go the way of @paiNGamingBR after taking down their country men in @MIBR 2-1

13-10 Mirage
4-13 Anubis
13-3 pic.twitter.com/sB6p4bVucD

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 9, 2024

IEM Cologne groups

Group A

• Natus Vincere
• paiN Gaming
• Astralis
• 9z Team
• G2 Esports
• SAW
• Team Spirit
• The Mongolz

Group B

• MOUZ
• Falcons
• Virtus.pro
• Complexity
• FaZe Clan
• Team Liquid
• Team Vitality
• FURIA

More esports news

The first day produced some upset results, with The Mongolz and Heroic going down as the esports betting sites’ favourite in their opening best-of-three series.

The Mongolz are on the brink of elimination at IEM Cologne after a 1-2 loss to SAW, faltering on defence.

BIG, on the other hand, managed a comeback victory over FlyQuest after initially blowing a 9-3 lead.

These two winners will face off for a spot in the main event of the tournament.

SAW, energised and well-prepared under new head coach Danny “?BERRY?” Kr��ger, overcame a slow start on Anubis.

They trailed 4-8 on the counter-terrorist side but rallied in the second half, exploiting The MongolZ’s weak B bomb site.

Despite a comeback from The Mongolz forcing overtime, SAW secured a 16-13 win.

After The Mongolz won on Ancient, SAW dominated Dust2, with key contributions from Jo?o ‘story’ Vieira, Michel ‘ewjerkz’ Pinto, and Rafael ‘arrozdoce’ Wing, to win 13-5.

.@BIGCLANgg put a stop to the @FlyQuestCS comeback at the last hour! The German squad opens their #IEM Cologne 2024 campaign with a victory

14-16 Ancient
13-10 Inferno
13-11 Vertigo pic.twitter.com/B9DTOIWTD7

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 7, 2024

BIG’s match against FlyQuest was similarly dramatic.

After trading 9-3 terrorist halves and forcing overtime, FlyQuest took the lead.

BIG responded by winning on Inferno and dominating Vertigo with a 10-0 start.

FlyQuest attempted a comeback, but BIG held on for a 13-11 victory.

MIBR, under new in-game leader Andr�� “?drop?” Abreu, defeated Heroic 2-1.

Heroic struggled on the defensive side, losing 7-13 on Mirage and Anubis after a strong start on Ancient.

MIBR’s Felipe “?insani?” Yuji and AWPer Rafael “?saffee?” Costa were standout performers.

.@MIBR take down @heroicgg 2-1 in their opening game of #IEM Cologne 2024

10-13 Ancient
13-7 Mirage
13-7 Anubis pic.twitter.com/GtNPlIX1xR

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 7, 2024

The next phase will see 3DMAX face Heroic in an elimination match, and 9z Team take on MIBR for a group stage spot.

9z easily defeated 3DMAX 13-3 and 13-4, showcasing star player Franco “?dgt?” Garcia and captain Maximiliano “?max?” Gonzalez.

Eternal Fire is close to securing a spot in the main event after a 2-1 win over Falcons.

The match saw standout performances from Ismailcan “?XANTARES?” D?rtkarde? on Vertigo and ?zg��r “?woxic?” Eker on Dust2, despite some sloppy play from both teams.

Team Liquid and FURIA won their opening matches, defeating paiN Gaming and Imperial, respectively.

Liquid, coming off strong performances at BLAST Premier Fall Groups, overcame paiN with solid terrorist-side efforts on Anubis and Inferno.

FURIA’s Brazilian derby against Imperial saw them recover from a disastrous start on Dust2 to win the series 2-1, highlighted by a 13-0 thrashing on Inferno.

Day one of #IEM Cologne 2024 and we've seen it all.

A back and forth affair that goes 3 maps until @FURIA decided to end it with a 13-0 against @imperialesports

3-13 Dust 2
13-11 Nuke
13-0 Inferno pic.twitter.com/Os0naPYZyI

— Intel? Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 7, 2024

Thursday’s IEM Cologne play-in fixtures

• SAW ($1.80) vs BIG ($1.90) @ 1:30pm CEST
• The Mongolz ($1.40) vs FlyQuest ($2.75) @ 1:30pm CEST
• 3DMAX ($2.25) vs Heroic ($1.57) @ 3:45pm CEST
• FURIA ($2.62) vs Team Liquid ($1.44) @ 3:45pm CEST
• ALTERNATE aTTaX ($7.00) vs Falcons ($1.08) @ 6:45pm CEST
• Complexity ($2.10) vs Eternal Fire ($1.66) @ 6:45pm CEST

More esports news

FlyQuest and BIG have enough talent on their rosters to qualify for the IEM Cologne 2024 main event. However, it is tough to pick a winner between these two, and betting on the total maps market looks to be the safest play.

The Mongolz broke into the top 10 on the ESL world rankings for the first time, but they have since dropped to 11th. The Mongolian squad is ranked 18 spots higher than SAW and shouldn’t have much trouble beating the Portuguese roster.

Heroic will have to play at IEM Cologne with Volodymyr “Woro2k” Veletnjuk as a stand-in, which should make this clash against MIBR closer than first expected. Neither team enters this event in great form, so taking the underdog at the match line is the play.

9z Team surprised everyone when they finished in third-fourth place at IEM Dallas 2024, where they defeated the likes of Liquid, Vitality and MOUZ. 3DMAX have had little time to prepare for their IEM Cologne campaign after being added as a replacement for BetBoom Team on Monday. At $1.80 with top esports bookmakers, 9z represent great value.

These teams are separated by 84 spots in the ESL world rankings, so it is no surprise that Complexity are $1.06 favourites. There is no value in head-to-head or match-line betting with esports betting sites, so the round-line market is the value option.

Falcons have yet to win an S-Tier tournament since their inception into Counter-Strike; however, recent results suggest they are improving steadily. Eternal Fire enter this series as favourites, but given the improvement of this Falcons squad, the underdogs can spring a surprise.

FURIA are heavy favourites to beat Imperial, as they are 16 spots higher in the ESL world rankings. Following a strong performance at the Esports World Cup, it is hard to bet against this new and improved FURIA outfit.

Team Liquid have looked better under the leadership of Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken, defeating Natus Vincere twice en route to qualifying for the BLAST Premier Fall Final. PaiN Gaming have been competing against South American teams in qualifiers and A-Tier events, so it is hard to see them beating Liquid in this series.

Esports betting tips