The final tournament features a thrilling combination of established champions, up-and-coming teams, a highly-ranked roster facing challenges, and surprising underdogs. It’s shaping up to be a fantastic esports event!
The group stage of IEM Chengdu 2025 was very competitive, leaving only six teams standing out of the original sixteen. Now, the playoffs are a single-elimination bracket where every match is crucial, as losing means being eliminated from the tournament.
I’m so excited for IEM Chengdu! From November 7th to 9th, all the top Counter-Strike 2 teams are going head-to-head for a share of a $300,000 prize pool. But it’s not just about the money – winning this tournament is a huge step towards something even bigger: a chance at the $1 million ESL Grand Slam VI prize!
- Stream
- Schedule
- Matchups and results at IEM Chengdu 2025
- Brackets
- Final standings
- Six teams on the way to the top: Tournament preview
How to watch IEM Chengdu 2025 Playoffs: Stream
You can watch the Playoffs for the Intel Extreme Masters Chengdu 2025 right here. The entire CS2 tournament will be streamed on the official ESL Counter-Strike YouTube channel.
Schedule
The detailed schedule of the IEM Chengdu 2025 Playoffs is in the table below.
| Date and start time | Tournament stage | Matches |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 7, 7:30 a.m. CET / 1:30 a.m ET | Quarterfinal | Astralis vs Team Vitality |
| Nov. 7, 10:45 a.m. CET / 4:45 a.m ET | Quarterfinal | FURIA vs The MongolZ |
| Nov. 8, 7:30 a.m. CET / 1:30 a.m ET | Semifinal | MOUZ vs TBD |
| Nov. 8, 10:45 a.m. CET / 4:45 a.m ET | Semifinal | Team Falcons vs TBD |
| Nov. 9, 5 a.m. CET / 11 p.m ET Nov. 8 | Third-place match | TBD vs TBD |
| Nov. 9, 9 a.m. CET / 3 a.m ET | Grand final | TBD vs TBD |
Matchups and results at IEM Chengdu 2025
Most matches in the final stages use a best-of-three format, meaning winning two maps lets you move on. The championship match is a best-of-five.
IEM Chengdu 2025 will include a third-place match, meaning players aren’t eliminated until the quarterfinals. This gives the teams that lose in the semifinals another opportunity to compete on the final day.
Brackets
| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Third-place match | Grand final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Astralis vs Vitality | MOUZ vs TBD | TBD vs TBD | |
| FURIA vs The MongolZ | Falcons vs TBD | TBD vs TBD |
Final standings
| Placement | Teams | Prize money |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | TBD | $125,000 |
| 2nd | TBD | $50,000 |
| 3rd | TBD | $30,000 |
| 4th | TBD | $20,000 |
| 5th–6th | TBD TBD | $12,500 |
Six teams on the way to the top: Tournament preview
IEM Chengdu 2025 is the final major tournament leading up to the CS2 Budapest Major. It will give us a clear picture of how the best teams are performing right now.
The Group Stage saw some surprising upsets, with both Team Spirit and NAVI being eliminated. While both teams have been struggling recently, no one expected them to be out so early. This also means Team Spirit won’t be able to compete for another ESL Grand Slam title until IEM Cologne 2025.
Unexpected underdogs
One more surprise is about the underdogs who made it to the IEM Chengdu 2025 Playoffs.
- Astralis upset NAVI and The MongolZ in the Group Stage. For the current roster, it’s already a decent achievement. Beating Vitality in the opening match feels like a fantastic dream, though.
A top team with problems
MongolZ is usually a strong team, but they’ve been facing increasing difficulties recently. This tournament, IEM Chengdu 2025, marks their first appearance without Senzu, who has been replaced by controlez from Chinggis Warriors.
It was clear this substitute player wasn’t quite up to par at times. While controlez’s aggressive style might be effective in local matches, it didn’t work well against top international competition – for example, he’d often rush out of cover and get eliminated.
Despite a challenging Group Stage where every match was tightly contested, The MongolZ still managed to overcome even the strong Team Spirit.
Players on the rise
FURIA is currently a team on the upswing. They’ve recently won a couple of notable tournaments, including the Thunderpick World Championship 2025, and are now performing well even against top competition.
- FURIA defeated Lynn Vision Gaming and G2 Esports in the groups. They lost to MOUZ.
CS2 esports powerhouses
Three teams in the Playoffs at IEM Chengdu 2025 are the biggest tournament favorites.
- Vitality won EPL Season 22 and reached two victories in their ESL Grand Slam VI score. In the groups, they still lost to MOUZ.
- Falcons have been achieving good results recently: 3rd at CS2 Esports Worlds Cup 2025 and 2nd at ESL Pro League S22. Team Falcons defeated Spirit in the groups.
- MOUZ are in the top 2 and 3 of so many tournaments, but they can’t reach the #1 spot. IEM Chengdu 2025 can be different! They already defeated their long-term rivals, Team Vitality once, but the rematch is set for the semifinal.
Immediately following this tournament, several leading teams will compete in BLAST Rivals Fall 2025 in Hong Kong, taking place from November 12th to 16th. However, this event will be smaller in scope, featuring only eight teams and lacking some of the very top competitors.
The Counter-Strike 2 competitive season will wrap up with the StarLadder Budapest Major 2025, taking place from November 24th to December 14th.
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2025-11-06 17:12