IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Day 2 betting tips – Thursday, July 24

Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2025 will continue on Thursday, July 24, with Counter-Strike 2 squads set to battle for Stage 2 spots in the upper bracket while teams in the lower bracket play for their tournament lives. Below you will find our IEM Cologne betting preview and tips, with odds courtesy of the top bookmakers in United States.

• 

  Fast Payouts

COMPLEXITY vs TYLOO

Best Odds: COL +125 with BetOnline vs TYLOO -175.44 with BetOnline
When: July 24, 2025 | 13:30 CEST
Watch Live: Twitch

After claiming their first title at FISSURE Playground #1 last week, TYLOO were brought back down to earth after suffering a 0-2 defeat at the hands of Virtus.pro on day one in Germany.

Complexity suffered much the same fate in their opener, losing 0-2 against GamerLegion in a match where the North American outfit showed they are not yet at the level of the best CS2 teams.

Expect TYLOO to bounce back with a dominant victory and right the ship in Cologne.

GAMERLEGION vs VIRTUS.PRO

Best Odds: GL +110 with BetOnline vs VP -151.52 with SportsBetting
When: July 24, 2025 | 13:30 CEST
Watch Live: Twitch

GamerLegion and Virtus.pro will clash for the first Stage 2 spot at IEM Cologne, with both squads coming off strong performances on day one.

GL couldn’t have been more impressive against Complexity, who were admittedly far from their best. Following their early exit from FISSURE Playground, VP showed that their extra time to practice with new addition Ilya “Perfecto” Zalutskiy paid dividends in their 2-0 win over TYLOO.

It is hard to pick a winner, given how inconsistent this VP outfit is, so taking the overs in the total maps market is the right play.

3DMAX vs NINJAS IN PYJAMAS

Best Odds: 3DMAX +125 with BetOnline vs NiP -175.44 with BetOnline
When: July 24, 2025 | 16:00 CEST
Watch Live: Twitch

The up-and-coming Ninjas in Pyjamas roster continued to make waves with a comeback 2-1 win over HEROIC on the opening day, while 3DMAX took care of an unpredictable MIBR squad in two maps.

3DMAX and NiP have taken down their fair share of Tier 1 Counter-Strike rosters, but both have delivered mixed results against teams around their rank (15th-30th) in the Valve Regional Standings (VRS).

If both 3DMAX and NiP play to their full potential on Thursday, this could be the closest and most exciting series of the day.

B8 vs FLYQUEST

Best Odds: B8 -151.52 with BetOnline vs FLY +110 with SportsBetting
When: July 24, 2025 | 16:00 CEST
Watch Live: Twitch

B8 and FlyQuest will seek to break their respective losing streaks when they clash in an elimination match on Thursday.

B8, on a three-match losing streak, found Astralis too much of a challenge in the opening round, and FlyQuest, on a four-game skid, battled valiantly against FURIA Esports.

Both of these teams are iffy in best-of-three games; however, with FlyQuest riding the momentum of their strong showing against FURIA, we like the outsiders at the offered odds with esports betting sites.

FAZE CLAN vs TEAM LIQUID

Best Odds: FaZe -227.27 with BetOnline vs Liquid +162 with SportsBetting
When: July 24, 2025 | 18:30 CEST
Watch Live: Twitch

FaZe Clan and Team Liquid are two of the favourites to reach Stage 2, and both squads put recent mixed form behind them dominant 2-0 victories over BIG and paiN Gaming, respectively.

• 

  The bookies' bookie

With Helvijs “broky” Saukants back on the FaZe roster, the battle between him and Liquid AWPer Roland “ultimate” Tomkowiak will headline the series.

Even if this series only lasts two maps, expect a close back-and-forth tussle between two tactical and conservative outfits, which could lead to multiple overtimes.

MIBR vs HEROIC

Best Odds: MIBR +175 with BetOnline vs HEROIC -250 with BetOnline
When: July 24, 2025 | 18:30 CEST
Watch Live: Twitch

HEROIC enter this elimination match as heavy favourites with the top CS2 betting sites, and we don’t see it any differently.

MIBR were beaten convincingly by 3DMAX, with only Felipe “insani” Yuji recording a rating over 1.00, whereas HEROIC went down in a close contest against Ninjas in Pyjamas.

Even if insani pops off again, MIBR won’t be good enough to win a map against HEROIC.