Liquid defeat paiN at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper Bracket
Liquid claimed a 2–0 win over paiN in the opening round of IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1. The North American squad won Mirage and Dust2 without needing Inferno, led by Polish rifler ultimate, who earned MVP with a 1.36 rating and 85.5 ADR. Twistzz and siuhy also posted strong numbers. With this result, Liquid move forward to face FaZe in the upper quarter-finals, while paiN drop down to meet BIG in the lower bracket.
Map 1 – Mirage (13:7 Liquid)
Liquid’s pick opened with a 6:6 halftime, but they pulled away on CT with a dominant 7:1 run. siuhy controlled mid with multi-kills, and ultimate delivered several site holds to keep paiN off the board. A late 1v2 clutch from nqz showed life from the Brazilians, but it wasn’t enough to turn the tide.
Map 2 – Dust2 (13:8 Liquid)
Dust2 was paiN’s pick, but Liquid took control early with a 9:3 T-side lead. paiN closed the gap slightly after halftime, with dgt winning a key 1v3 post-plant defuse in Round 17. Still, Liquid closed out the map with disciplined trading and B site pressure. Twistzz topped the scoreboard with 17 kills on Dust2.
Liquid move on to play FaZe in the upper quarter-finals. paiN drop to the lower bracket where they will face BIG in an elimination match. Elsewhere, NiP, VP, 3DMAX, Astralis, FURIA, and GamerLegion also advanced in the upper bracket.
#21
BIG
#13
paiN Gaming2.19Make a bet1.54IEM Cologne 2025 Play-in
#14
Astralis#9
FURIA1.66Make a bet2.08IEM Cologne 2025 Play-in
#26
FlyQuest
#11
Liquid2.7Make a bet1.41IEM Cologne 2025 Play-in
#10
Virtus.pro#15
Heroic1.78Make a bet1.94IEM Cologne 2025 Play-in
#17
3DMAX
#40
TYLOO2.06Make a bet1.76IEM Cologne 2025 is hosted in Cologne, Germany with a $1,000,000 prize pool. Stage 1 runs from July 23–25, followed by Stage 2 from July 26–28. Playoffs begin July 30. The top prize is $400,000, with $180,000 for second place and $80,000 for third.
Vitalii Diakiv writes gaming blogs and guides, focusing on the latest announcements and games matched with pop-cultural phenomena. Second, he covers esports events Counter-Strike 2, Marvel Rivals, League of Legends, and others.
24vitaliiD
FaZe beat Liquid on IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper BracketFaZe secured a 2–1 win over Liquid in the IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper Bracket, advancing to Stage 2. EliGE led the charge with a 1.39 rating over three maps.
23vitaliiDHeroic vs MIBR – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Lower BracketHeroic eliminate MIBR 2–0 at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1. yxngstxr and tN1R lead with dominant CT sides. Heroic advance to play Virtus.pro next. MIBR exit in 13–16th place.
23vitaliiDFlyQuest vs B8 – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Lower BracketFlyQuest eliminate B8 in a close 2–1 series at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1. regali leads with a 1.25 rating. FlyQuest advance to face Liquid in lower round 2, B8 are out of the tournament.
32vitaliiDNinjas in Pyjamas vs 3DMAX – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper BracketNinjas in Pyjamas defeat 3DMAX 2–0 in IEM Cologne 2025 upper quarters. xKacpersky top-frags with 1.41 rating. NiP qualify for Stage 2, 3DMAX fall to lower bracket to face TYLOO next.
31vitaliiDTYLOO vs Complexity – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Lower BracketTYLOO eliminate Complexity 2–1 in the IEM Cologne 2025 lower bracket. Moseyuh leads with a 1.26 rating. TYLOO advance to face 3DMAX, while Complexity exit in 13–16th place.
27vitaliiDGamerLegion vs Virtus.pro – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper BracketGamerLegion defeat Virtus.pro 2–0 at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 upper quarters. PR leads with 1.52 rating. GamerLegion qualify for Stage 2, VP fall to lower bracket vs Heroic.
24vitaliiDFaZe beat Liquid on IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper BracketFaZe secured a 2–1 win over Liquid in the IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper Bracket, advancing to Stage 2. EliGE led the charge with a 1.39 rating over three maps.
23vitaliiDHeroic vs MIBR – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Lower BracketHeroic eliminate MIBR 2–0 at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1. yxngstxr and tN1R lead with dominant CT sides. Heroic advance to play Virtus.pro next. MIBR exit in 13–16th place.
23vitaliiDFlyQuest vs B8 – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Lower BracketFlyQuest eliminate B8 in a close 2–1 series at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1. regali leads with a 1.25 rating. FlyQuest advance to face Liquid in lower round 2, B8 are out of the tournament.
32vitaliiDNinjas in Pyjamas vs 3DMAX – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper BracketNinjas in Pyjamas defeat 3DMAX 2–0 in IEM Cologne 2025 upper quarters. xKacpersky top-frags with 1.41 rating. NiP qualify for Stage 2, 3DMAX fall to lower bracket to face TYLOO next.
31vitaliiDTYLOO vs Complexity – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Lower BracketTYLOO eliminate Complexity 2–1 in the IEM Cologne 2025 lower bracket. Moseyuh leads with a 1.26 rating. TYLOO advance to face 3DMAX, while Complexity exit in 13–16th place.
28vitaliiDGamerLegion vs Virtus.pro – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper BracketGamerLegion defeat Virtus.pro 2–0 at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 upper quarters. PR leads with 1.52 rating. GamerLegion qualify for Stage 2, VP fall to lower bracket vs Heroic.
