The IEM Katowice 2025 Play-In is here, and we have eight opening matches to enjoy as teams fight for their spot in the Spodek Arena later in the tournament. We’re taking a look at all of the opening matches at IEM Katowice 2025, giving you our predictions on how it will go down on the server.
3DMAX vs. FlyQuest
Credit: Viola Schuldner | © ESL
The opening game of IEM Katowice 2025 is 3DMAX vs. FlyQuest. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have the makings of a real classic, but maybe we’re totally wrong. Neither team has given a massive reason to be excited about this one.
On the balance of things, we’re giving the edge to 3DMAX in the IEM Katowice opening match. While regali is a fine pickup for FlyQuest, there’s still a little more individual quality for the French team here. Don’t be surprised to see this one go the distance, though.
Our prediction: 3DMAX 2:1 FlyQuest
paiN Gaming vs. Virtus.pro
Credit: Helena Kristiansson | © ESL
For a while now, it has felt like paiN Gaming are the “best of the rest.” Whenever they face a top team, they lose, but they consistently beat the teams they should be beating, never really falling to an upset. Meanwhile, VP have two young talents coming into the fray in ICY and FL4MUS, which can offer some unpredictable results, both positive and negative. On paper, Virtus.pro should be stronger, but Counter-Strike isn’t played on paper.
paiN Gaming vs. Virtus.pro is our choice for the first upset of IEM Katowice 2025. While it should go three maps, we think that paiN have just enough firepower to get over the line here, especially if they can get young rifler snow awake on the server.
Our prediction: paiN Gaming 2:1 Virtus.pro
Astralis vs. MIBR
Credit: Igor Bezborodov | © ESL
A movable force vs. a stoppable object. Whoever is the least bad in Astralis vs. MIBR emerges victorious – it’s that simple. Let’s be honest, neither team has particularly impressed of late, but it’s this curiosity that should actually make it a solid game to watch.
Of the two teams, we’ve got to go with Astralis here. They’ve got the dev1ce X-factor, and the Lucaozy signing for MIBR is yet to pay dividends, a few months on.
Our prediction: Astralis 2:1 MIBR
SAW vs. GamerLegion
Credit: Perfect World
On paper, it’s hard to describe how underwhelming the new SAW roster is. Losing arrozdoce and ewjerks to Ninjas in Pyjamas in the offseason CS2 roster changes was massive, and their replacements have done very little to inspire confidence so far, despite the small sample size. On GamerLegion’s side, we think they’ve made some shrewd moves that will pay off over time.
We should see hints of this in SAW vs. GamerLegion. Overall, we’re predicting a clean sweep for the latter here, in what should be a swift contest.
Our prediction: SAW 0:2 GamerLegion
Imperial fe vs. FURIA
Credit: Helena Kristiansson | © ESL
At BLAST Bounty Season 1, Imperial fe became history-makers as they pushed NAVI on their Tier 1 LAN debut. NAVI gave them a lot of respect, and they responded by posting 15 rounds across two maps – a respectable scoreline given the expectations. It was a big step for female CS, and they’re taking another in this match against FURIA at IEM Katowice 2025.
While we’d love to see Imperial fe win out here, we don’t see it. We reckon FURIA won’t drop a map here, but from Imperial fe’s point of view, keeping the scoreline respectable in another series would be a big step towards proving you’ve got the quality to be here long-term. We’re rooting for you, Imperial fe.
Our prediction: Imperial fe 0:2 FURIA
Wildcard vs. BIG
Credit: Perfect World
While not two of the best CS2 teams in the world, Wildcard vs. BIG makes for a very interesting matchup. They’re pretty evenly matched in terms of quality – Wildcard have the tactical edge with stanislaw at the helm, but individually, BIG have the fragging talent.
It should be an interesting affair. Expect plenty of back and forth, probably another three-map series. We’re putting down BIG as winners here, but it’s not a confident pick by any means – this one feels like it could go either way, based on the form of both teams.
Our prediction: Wildcard 1:2 BIG
Team Liquid vs. Heroic
Credit: Igor Bezborodov | © ESL
Team Liquid vs. Heroic is probably the highest-quality matchup of the IEM Katowice 2025 Play-In. Two teams that we know have a high ceiling if the conditions are right.
We expect this one to be an explosive affair. Heroic need to see something massive out of tN1R if they’re going to see this one through, while Liquid will look to NertZ (in his first match against his former team) for success. Based on the fact that Team Liquid have the synergy of playing together for longer, we expect they’ll edge out what will surely be a tough series.
Our prediction: Team Liquid 2:1 Heroic
Complexity vs. Eternal Fire
Credit: Stephanie Lindgren | © BLAST
In Complexity’s recent debut, we were surprised by the quality of NA additions cxzi and nicx. They looked right at home in Tier 1. But here, they’re facing an Eternal Fire on the back of a Grand Final loss at BLAST Bounty, a tournament where EF played some stunning Counter-Strike at times.
Sorry, Complexity. You’re better than we thought, but Eternal Fire are just better. As long as XANTARES is online, we don’t see a route to victory in the IEM Katowice 2025 opener for the North American side.
Our prediction: Complexity 0:2 Eternal Fire