by in
The IEM Cologne play-in stage has been full of intense matchups, with Team Liquid, Complexity, and SAW securing their spots in the group stage after thrilling victories.
Liquid demonstrated their resilience and depth by overcoming FURIA 2-1 in a dramatic reverse-sweep, where the new and improved Counter-Strike 2 roster continued their upward spiral.
A reverse sweep sees @TeamLiquidCS best @FURIA 2-1 in their advancement match 💪
Anubis 8-13
Nuke 13-11
Mirage 13-7 pic.twitter.com/8Jp8rE9YUP— Intel® Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 8, 2024
After dropping their Anubis pick, Liquid found themselves in trouble but bounced back on Nuke.
Key performances from Russel “Twistzz” Van Dulken and Roland “ultimate” Tomkowiak helped Liquid turn the tide.
The decider on Mirage saw Liquid dominate, with Justin “jks” Savage and Keith “NAF” Markovic anchoring both ends of the map, allowing Mareks “YEKINDAR” Gaļinskis and ultimate to roam freely.
Liquid’s strong map pool and adaptability carried them to victory, with a final win securing their spot in the top-16.
It went to DOUBLE OT but @ComplexityCS still defeat @eternalfiregg 2-0 in order to advance at #IEM Cologne 2024 without dropping a map in Stage 1 👊
13-9 Vertigo
19-17 Dust 2 pic.twitter.com/BCEKQbOL1q— Intel® Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 8, 2024
Complexity also punched their ticket to the group stage with a hard-fought 2-0 victory over Eternal Fire.
After a rough start on Vertigo, Complexity managed a comeback, fueled by a 1vs3 pistol clutch and stellar terrorist-side play from Jonathan “EliGE” Jablonowski.
The battle on Dust2 was even more intense, with Complexity and Eternal Fire trading rounds in a messy but entertaining match.
Michael “Grim” Wince’s 1vs2 ace clutch was pivotal, and despite some shaky moments, Johnny “JT” Theodosiou’s clutch in double overtime secured the win.
And it's @sawggofficial who best @BIGCLANgg over the 3 map series to secure their spot in #IEM Cologne Stage 2!
7-13 Anubis
13-5 Ancient
13-11 Inferno pic.twitter.com/AylbhdCrFk— Intel® Extreme Masters (@IEM) August 8, 2024
SAW became the first team to advance to the group stage from the play-in.
The Portuguese squad triumphed over BIG in a three-map series that culminated in a nail-biting Inferno decider.
After trading each other’s map picks, SAW came back from a deficit on Inferno, with João “story” Vieira’s 1vs2 clutch in the final round sealing the victory.
The win was a significant milestone for veterans Ricardo “roman” Oliveira and Christopher “MUTiRiS” Fernandes, who credited their younger teammates for the success.
While those three teams have qualified for the main event at IEM Cologne, FlyQuest, 3DMAX and ALTERNATE aTTaX were eliminated from the play-in stage on Thursday after suffering their second loss.
Friday will be the final day of the play-in stage, and the remaining 10 squads will battle it out for the last five places in the main event.
Friday’s IEM Cologne play-in matches
- 9z Team (-227.27) vs MIBR (+162) @ 1:30pm CEST
- Imperial (+150) vs paiN Gaming (-200) @ 1:30pm CEST
- BIG (+125) vs Falcons (-175.44) @ 3:45pm CEST
- FURIA (-120.48) vs Heroic (-120.48) @ 3:45pm CEST
- The Mongolz (-163.93) vs Eternal Fire (+120) @ 6:45pm CEST
- Winner of Imperial/paiN Gaming vs Loser of MIBR/9z Team @ 6:45pm CEST
