FaZe beat Liquid on IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Upper Bracket

FaZe edged past Liquid 2–1 in a best-of-three upper bracket quarter-final at IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1. The series saw standout performances from EliGE and broky, with EliGE earning MVP honors for his 85.7 ADR and 1.39 rating. With this result, FaZe secure a spot in Stage 2, while Liquid drop to the lower bracket for one last chance to qualify.

Map 1 – Mirage (13:6 FaZe)

Liquid’s pick of Mirage didn’t go as planned. FaZe took control early with an 8:4 T-side, then closed it out cleanly on defense. broky led the server with 18 kills and a 1.41 rating, while rain added key multikills on A site holds. Despite Liquid’s attempts to fight back, they couldn’t break FaZe’s setups in the second half.

Map 2 – Inferno (13:10 Liquid)

FaZe chose Inferno and kept it close at the half (6:6), but Liquid came alive late with aggressive mid control and sharp AWPing from ultimate, who posted three highlight AWP frags in Round 9. NertZ and Twistzz stepped up with multi-kill rounds, and Liquid held off a late FaZe push to tie the series 1–1.

Map 3 – Nuke (13:2 FaZe)

FaZe dominated the decider. A 10:2 T-side set the tone, with EliGE and frozen tearing through defenses. A clean 3–0 CT side closed the map quickly. EliGE’s clutch in Round 1 and rain’s 4K anti-eco hold sealed the result, sending Liquid to the lower bracket.

FaZe qualify for Stage 2 and await their next opponent in the main event. Liquid will face FlyQuest in the lower bracket. Elsewhere, NiP, GamerLegion, and Virtus.pro have already advanced, while B8, Complexity, and MIBR have been eliminated.

IEM Cologne 2025 is held in Cologne, Germany, featuring 16 teams in Stage 1 (July 23–25), Stage 2 (July 26–30), and Playoffs (August 1–3). The prize pool is $28,000, with the top 3 teams earning $12,000, $8,000, and $5,000 respectively.