Two groups at Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2026 (IEM Rio 2026) feature pretty intriguing matchups. The tournament stage looks easy for the biggest favorites, Team Vitality. Home-country heroes, FURIA, face quite a challenge.
The Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) event IEM Rio 2026 begins with the group stage on April 13. Through two double-elimination brackets, the 16 participating teams battle for six playoff spots — and a chance to earn a good chunk of the $300,000 prize pool.
The best CS2 esports teams in the world are here! While the main clashes are set to happen in the playoffs, the IEM Rio 2026 Groups also give us perfect reasons to follow the tournament.
How to watch CS2 IEM Rio 2026: Group Stage stream
Two Group Stage matches happen at the same time, so IEM Rio 2026 has parallel streams to broadcast these CS2 esports battles to the world.
- Both streams are on ESL Counter-Strike YouTube.
- Stream A is on the main ESLCS Twitch.
- Stream B is on ESLCSb.
Schedule
Check out the detailed schedule of the IEM Rio 2026 group matches in the table below.
| Estimated start | Stream A | Stream B |
| 3 p.m. CEST / 9 a.m. ET, April 13 | Vitality vs RED Canids | Gentle Mates vs G2 Esports |
| 5:30 p.m. CEST / 11:30 a.m. ET, April 13 | Team Spirit vs Team Liquid | 3DMAX vs Team Falcons |
| 8 p.m. CEST / 2 p.m. ET, April 13 | FURIA vs Passion UA | B8 vs NAVI |
| 10:30 p.m. CEST / 4:30 p.m. ET, April 13 | Aurora Gaming vs HOTU | Legacy vs MOUZ |
Results at IEM Rio 2026, Group Stage
In this section, you’ll find matchups and results in two groups of the opening tournament phase at Intel Extreme Masters Rio 2026.
Group A
Group B
Five reasons to follow CS2 IEM Rio 2026
Arguably, the main intrigue of the entire tournament is Team Vitality battling for their fourth consecutive trophy. Will that happen or not is the question for the playoffs. Groups give us some other reasons to tune in to the matches — and if you feel like it, boost the excitement via a cautious use of CS2 esports betting.
Reason 1: FURIA play in Brazil, look to recover
FURIA have had a pretty bad series, not qualifying for the playoffs at EPL Season 23 and BLAST Open in Rotterdam.
This time, it’s the home-country boost for FURIA! Will they smash everyone on the way to the top brackets? Not only is their group stage path exciting to witness emotionally, but it also should reveal the team’s true competitive form.
Reason 2: Spirit and Falcons to overcome their struggles — but crash into Vitality
Team Falcons and Team Spirit are seeded into one bracket. Both have had rather disappointing results recently. Falcons couldn’t beat PARIVISION in crucial matches, and Spirit crumbled under the pressure without reaching the top placements.
Which of them can succeed in Rio? And also, can they show anything in the potential match versus Vitality?
Reason 3: NAVI on the rise, challenging FURIA again
NAVI players give their fans a positive reason to follow IEM Rio 2026. The team won ESL Pro League 2026 and was in the grand final at BLAST Open Spring. Can this successful series continue?
The potential Group B semifinal is exceptional: the NAVI vs FURIA matchup is legendary at this point. FURIA reverse-swept NAVI at the Thunderpick World Championship 2025. NAVI defeated FURIA in the quarterfinal of the Budapest Major.
Reason 4: How low can the downfall of MOUZ reach?
MOUZ got into the bracket with Legacy and Aurora. In their usual state, it would be a nice run for MOUZ, at least to the Group B final. However, the team was smashed in a couple of previous events, like losing to 9Z and finishing BLAST Open in the top 16.
Will IEM Rio 2026 be a rise of MOUZ to their previous glory, or will their downfall continue?
Reason 5: Hope for a breakthrough from underdogs
The prospect of underdog teams upsetting big opponents always adds some spicy intrigue to the early phases of CS2 esports tournaments.
Legacy have a chance to do so, as they improved their results recently. 3DMAX reached the PGL Bucharest 2026 semifinals, and they may do it in Rio again, at least via the lower brackets. Gentle Mates will test how disastrous the form of G2 is right now.
The champions of IEM Rio 2026 will be decided on April 19.
The next big CS2 esports event starts on April 29: BLAST Rivals Spring 2026 is only for the eight invited top teams.