All the best CS2 esports teams in the world gather in Chengdu, China, to battle in the last big offline tournament before the Budapest Major. The groups division promises exciting matchups super early.
The Intel Extreme Masters event in Chengdu (IEM Chengdu 2025) starts with the Group Stage from Nov. 3 to Nov. 5. The participants are battling through the double elimination brackets for six Playoffs spots.
The initial tournament stage mixes top and mid-level teams. We can expect some spectacular upsets and early clashes of the biggest favorites.
How to watch CS2 IEM Chengdu 2025 Groups: Stream
Tournament schedule at Intel Extreme Masters Chengdu 2025
The group stage at the IEM Chengdu 2025 is over. The table below shows the detailes results from the final round on Nov. 5.
| Vitality 2:0 Lynn Vision Gaming 13:2 on Dust II 13:5 on Nuke | G2 Esports 2:1 Virtus.pro 17:19 on Overpass 13:9 on Inferno 13:1 on Dust II |
| Team Spirit 2:1 HEROIC 11:13 on Overpass 16:13 on Dust II 13:6 on Ancient | The MongolZ 2:1 paiN Gaming 9:13 on Nuke 13:6 on Ancient 16:13 on Inferno |
| FURIA 1:2 MOUZ 2:13 on Inferno 13:11 on Overpass 16:14 on Train | Vitality 2:0 G2 (B lower final) 13:4 on Train 13:11 on Mirage |
| Spirit 1:2 The MongolZ (A lower final) 7:13 on Dust II 19:16 on Ancient 9:13 on Mirage | Astralis 0:2 Team Falcons 6:13 on Nuke 7:13 on Mirage |
Broadcast talent
All the people who bring excitement and analytics to the IEM Chengdu 2025 stream are highlighted in the image below.
Group Stage matchups and results
The full list of the IEM Chengdu 2025 participants has 16 teams. They are divided into two groups to battle in double-elimination brackets. The top 3 teams from each group advance to the Playoffs. The group winners secure spots in the semifinals. Second and third placements head to the quarterfinals.
Group A
- Round 1: An upset happened in the first round of Group A matches. With two overtimes, Astralis defeated NAVI: They took Nuke with a 16:13 and Inferno with a 16:12. Falcons destroyed their opponents, making it 3:13 on Map 2, Ancient. The MongolZ looked solid in their match against HEROIC.
- Astralis and Falcons guaranteed themselves an IEM Chengdu 2025 Playoffs spot from Group A. The MongolZ lost to Astralis while playing without their coach. Usukhbayar "910" Banzragch stepped up in his team, having more kills than all the teammates on Inferno. Astralis won mainly by playing as a well-coordinated team. Team Falcons defeated Spirit with a 2:0.
- HEROIC eliminate NAVI from the tournament. Even despite the expected shaky play from Natus Vincere, this downfall is surprising. piaN Gaming won over TyLoo and eliminated the only Chinese team from the tournament.
- Team Falcons defeated Astralis in Group A lower final. Both teams advance to the IEM Chengdu Playoffs, but Falcons join the final brackets in the semifinal.
- The MongolZ made it to the Playoffs as well. They had an excitingly close battle against Spirit and won with a 2:0.
Group B
- Round 1: Somewhat surprisingly, Team Vitality lost Map 1, Overpass, to Virtus.pro, but they recovered decently and delivered a 13:4 on Map 3, Mirage. FURIA dominated their match, having the biggest score gap in this round — a 13:2 on Overpass. MOUZ and G2 enjoyed their expected victories.
- MOUZ won over Vitality in the epic clash: it started with a dominating 13:3 on Train and an extremely close 22:19 on Inferno. FURIA defeated G2 to advance to the Playoffs as well.
- Virtus.pro eliminated FaZe. It took them all three maps, as FaZe won first but struggled after that.
- Vitality survived the lower brackets in Group B. They had no problems defeating Lynn Vision Gaming. In the final, G2 Esports gave a good fight in the second half on Mirage — especially, considering they were with the coach, Eetu "sAw" Saha, replacing Nemanja "huNter-" Kovač for this match.
- MOUZ defeated FURIA, so they advance directly to the semifinal at IEM Chengdu 2025. FURIA had a nice first half on Train, but they still lost in overtime.
Playoffs: Final brackets at IEM Chengdu 2025
The image below shows the matchups at the IEM Chengdu 2025 Playoffs.
Upset possibilities and big rivalries in CS2 esports
The Group Stage matchups at Intel Extreme Masters Chengdu 2025 have clear trends.
- Starting matches are between the top-seeded teams and underdogs.
- The following group semifinals will most likely be filled with huge battles between some of the strongest teams in CS2 esports.
Underdog power
While the potential for upsets remains unpredictable, several intriguing possibilities stand out — extending beyond the opening round.
- paiN Gaming: These players have a limited presence at big tournaments, and when they do play, paiN players make waves. The team reached the top 4 at the Austin Major. As for the most recent result, paiN Gaming were in the top 8 at PGL Masters Bucharest 2025.
- Astralis: In Round 1, the unstable performance of Astralis faced the same shakiness of NAVI. Natus Vincere fell victim to a reverse sweep from FURIA at Thunderpick World Championship 2025.
- 3DMAX: Their upset potential is also built upon the instability of the top opponents, G2 Esports. 3DMAX reached the top 8 at EPL Season 22, and they defeated G2 in the advancement match.
- FaZe Clan: Yes, it’s true. FaZe are generally considered underdogs now. They play against MOUZ in the first match. The hope for an upset comes from the EPL S22 victory of FaZe over Team Spirit. Also, it’s really happening: Jakub "jcobbb" Pietruszewski replaced Håvard "rain" Nygaard in FaZe’s roster.
Clashes of the favorites
Some potential matches at the Group Stage at IEM Chengdu 2025 can certainly be repeated in the Playoffs.
- Vitality and MOUZ can play in the group semifinal. It’s a long rivalry, with a record in favor of Vitality. After winning ESL Pro League Season 22, Team Vitality can bring their tournament-winning streak to the fray.
- Falcons were surprisingly good at EPL S22. They can face Spirit in the group semifinal, which is an exciting matchup considering the record of both teams.
- FURIA are among the tournament favorites as well. They won two relatively big tournaments recently: Thunderpick World Championship 2025 and FISSURE Playground #2.
The MongolZ enter IEM Chengdu 2025 with a replacement: Unudelger "controlez" Baasanjargal instead of benched Azbayar "Senzu" Munkhbold. The team has been experiencing a drop with their results recently, so it’s interesting to see if this move can help.
The Playoffs at Intel Extreme Masters Chengdu 2025 go on from Nov. 6 to Nov. 9.
