ESL/ Patrick StrackIEM Cologne 2024 is one of the last big Counter-Strike 2 tournaments before the Perfect World Shanghai Major, and Team Vitality have finally secured their first major trophy of 2024 at the event.
The $1 million prize pool event ran through August and was marketed as the “Cathedral of Counter-Strike” by ESL as the organizer promoted the decades-old tournament via iconic moments from past events.
That makes it all the more suiting that ZywOo took the MVP award at the event as Team Vitality brought home the IEM Cologne trophy.
Dexerto spoke with Zywoo, as well as Team Vitality’s founders, about their plans with ZywOo, and they expressed their desire to hold onto the player for the next decade. Considering his performance at IEM Cologne, that seems to be the right decision.
Here’s a full recap of the event’s schedule, standings, and how to catch up on prior matches.
How to watch
You can watch the action from the ESL Counter-Strike Twitch and YouTube channels to catch up on the VoDs. CS2 streamers like ohnePixel were also be co-streaming the event, and you can watch the VoDs through their channels as well.
Format & Bracket
IEM Cologne had a slightly different format than the tournaments before it. The event didn’t feature best-of-one matches, as even games in the Play-in stage were best-of-three series.
Stage 1 of the tournament, the Play-in stage, featured 16 teams in a double-elimination bracket vying for eight spots in Stage 2.
Stage 2 featured a double elimination group stage, with two groups of eight teams with invited squads taking on teams from Stage 1. The event culminated in a Playoff Stage where the top three teams from each group face off in a single elimination bracket to crown the champion.
Related
IEM Cologne 2024 Match Schedule
You can find the full tournament schedule and results below.
Playoffs (August 16-17)
Day 8: August 16
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterfinals | MOUZ 2-0 G2 | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Quarterfinals | SAW 2-1 FaZe | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
Day 9: August 17
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Semifinals | NAVI 2-0 MOUZ | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Semifinals | Vitality 2-0 SAW | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
Day 8: August 18
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Finals | NAVI 1-2 Vitality | 8:00 AM | 11:00 AM | 4:00 PM |
Stage 1 (August 7-9)
Day 1: August 7
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Bracket R1 | FlyQuest 1-2 BIG | 1:30 AM | 4:30 AM | 9:30 AM |
| Upper Bracket R1 | The MongolZ 1-2 SAW | 1:30 AM | 4:30 AM | 9:30 AM |
| Upper Bracket R1 | HEROIC 1-2 MIBR | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Upper Bracket R1 | 3DMAX 0-2 9z | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Upper Bracket R1 | Eternal Fire 2-1 Falcons | 7:30 AM | 10:30 AM | 3:30 PM |
| Upper Bracket R1 | paiN 0-2 Liquid | 7:30 AM | 10:30 AM | 3:30 PM |
| Upper Bracket R1 | FURIA 2-1 Imperial | 10:30 AM | 1:30 PM | 6:30 PM |
| Upper Bracket R1 | Complexity 2-0 aTTaX | 10:30 AM | 1:30 PM | 6:30 PM |
Day 2: August 8
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Bracket R2 | FlyQuest 0-2 MongolZ | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Upper Bracket R2 | BIG 1-2 SAW | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Lower Bracket R1 | HEROIC 2-1 3DMAX | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Upper Bracket R2 | FURIA 1-2 Team Liquid | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Lower Bracket R1 | aTTaX 0-2 Falcons | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
| Upper Bracket R2 | Complexity 2-0 Eternal Fire | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
Day 3: August 9
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Upper Bracket R2 | MIBR 0-2 9z | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Lower Bracket R1 | Imperial 1-2 paiN | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Lower Bracket R2 | BIG 1-2 Falcons | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Lower Bracket R2 | FURIA 2-1 Heroic | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Lower Bracket R2 | Eternal Fire 1-2 MongolZ | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
| Lower Bracket R2 | paiN 2-1 MIBR | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
Stage 2 (August 10-13)
Day 4: August 10
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group B R1 | Virtus.pro 1-2 Complexity | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group B R1 | FaZe 2-0 Team Liquid | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group A R1 | NAVI 2-0 paiN | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group A R1 | Astralis 2-0 9z | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group A R1 | G2 0-2 SAW | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
| Group A R1 | Team Spirit 0-2 MongolZ | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
Day 5: August 11
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group B R1 | MOUZ 2-1 Falcons | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group B R1 | Vitality 2-0 FURIA | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group A Upper R2 | SAW 2-1 MongolZ | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group A Lower R1 | G2 2-0 Team Spirit | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group A Upper R2 | Astralis 0-2 NAVI | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
| Group A Lower R1 | 9z 1-2 paiN | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
Day 6: August 12
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group B Upper R2 | MOUZ 2-0 Complexity | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group B Upper R2 | FaZe 1-2 Vitality | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group B Lower R1 | Team Falcons 2-1 Virtus.pro | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group B Lower R1 | Team Liquid 2-0 FURIA | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group A Lower R2 | MongolZ 1-2 paiN | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
| Group A Lower R2 | Astralis 1-2 G2 | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
Day 7: August 13
| STAGE | MATCH | PT | ET | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group B Lower R2 | FaZe 2-0 Falcons | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group B Lower R2 | Team Liquid 2-0 Complexity | 4:30 AM | 7:30 AM | 12:30 PM |
| Group A Upper Final | NAVI 2-1 SAW | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group A Lower Final | paiN 0-2 G2 | 6:45 AM | 9:45 AM | 2:45 PM |
| Group B Lower Final | FaZe 2-1 Liquid | 9:45 AM | 12:45 PM | 5:45 PM |
IEM Cologne 2024 Teams and Players
The teams and players who qualified for Stage 2 of the tournament were invited thanks to winning previous IEM events from this season and placing high on the ESL World Rankings.
Teams in Stage 1 were invited based on their ESL World Ranking and regional ESL rankings. ALTERNATE aTTaX is the only team that qualified for the tournament through an open qualifier.
| TEAM | REGION | PLAYERS |
|---|---|---|
| Team Spirit | Europe | Chopper, magixx, zont1x, donk, sh1ro |
| FaZe Clan | Europe | rain, broky, karrigan, ropz, frozen |
| MOUZ | Europe | torzsi, xertioN, siuhy, Jimpphat, Brollan |
| G2 Esports | Europe | huNter-, NiKo, mONESY, malbsMd, Snax |
| Team Vitality | Europe | apEX, ZywOo, Spinx, flameZ, mezii |
| NAVI | Europe | b1t, Aleksib, jL, iM, w0nderful |
| Astralis | Europe | dev1ce, Staehr, stavn, jabbi, br0 |
| Virtus.pro | Europe | Jame, FL1T, fame, n0rb3r7, electroNic |
| Herioc | Europe | TeSeS, sjuush, NertZ, kyxsan, degster |
| Eternal Fire | Europe | XANTARES, Calyx, MAJ3R, wicadia, woxic |
| Team Falcons | Europe | Snappi, Magisk, made, SunPayus, dupreeh |
| Complexity | North America | JT, floppy, Grim, hallzerk, EliGE |
| 9z Team | South America | dgt, max, buda, HUASOPEEK, Martinez |
| The MongolZ | Asia | bLitz, Tenchno4K, 910, mzinho, Senzu |
| FlyQuest | Oceania | INS, aliStair, Liazz, Vexite, dexter |
| Team Liquid | North America | NAF, YEKINDAR, Twistzz, ultimate, jks |
| Imperial Esports | South America | VINI, felps, noway, decent, try |
| FURIA Esports | South America | yuurih, KSCERATO, FalleN, Chelo, skullz |
| BIG | Europe | tabseN, Krimbo, syrsoN, JDC, rigoN |
| BetBoom Team | Europe | nafany, KaiR0N-, s1ren, zorte, Magnojez |
| paiN Gaming | South America | biguzera, lux, kauez, nqz, snow |
| MIBR | South America | exit, brnz4n, insani, drop, saffee |
| SAW | South America | MUTiRiS, rmn, ewjerkz, story, arrozdoce |
| ALTERNATE aTTaX | Europe | awzek, FreeZe, PerX, ArroW, hyped |