BIG vs paiN Gaming – IEM Cologne 2025 Stage 1 Lower Bracket Round 1

paiN Gaming eliminated BIG with a 2–1 comeback victory in the first round of the lower bracket at IEM Cologne 2025 Play-in. After dropping Ancient, the Brazilian-Uruguayan squad bounced back with a dominant performance on Nuke and edged out a close win on Inferno. AWPer nqz led the charge with a 1.26 rating and 80.5 ADR across the series. JDC shined for BIG with a 1.39 rating on Ancient, but the rest of the team struggled to match paiN’s consistency. BIG exit the tournament in 17–20th place, while paiN advance in the lower bracket.

Map 1 – Ancient (13:7 BIG)

BIG opened strong on their map pick, controlling the pace on both sides of the map. JDC delivered a standout performance with 107.8 ADR and several multi-kills to give his team a solid lead. paiN couldn’t find momentum on T-side, managing only three rounds before switching. The German squad wrapped up the map 13:7, with tabseN providing solid support despite a negative K/D.

Map 2 – Nuke (13:3 paiN)

paiN struck back with a one-sided showing on their pick of Nuke. They raced to a dominant 10:2 CT half, anchored by nqz’s sharp AWP play and dgt’s efficient trading. BIG’s T side never took off, managing just three total rounds before being shut down decisively. nqz topped the scoreboard with a +13 K/D and key mid-round impact.

Map 3 – Inferno (13:11 paiN)

The decider saw both teams trading blows round-for-round. BIG took an early lead, but paiN clawed back on their T side thanks to coordinated banana control and key entries from dgt. snow and dav1deuS chipped in with timely frags, while BIG faltered in late-round executions. Despite another strong showing from JDC, it wasn’t enough, as paiN sealed the series 13:11.

Standout Performers

• nqz (paiN): 47–34 K-D, 1.26 rating, 80.5 ADR
• dgt (paiN): 43–38 K-D, 1.10 rating, 73.2 ADR
• JDC (BIG): 33–18 K-D, 1.39 rating, 107.8 ADR

paiN Gaming survive the elimination match and will move forward to face another lower bracket opponent. BIG, meanwhile, join the list of early exits from Cologne, unable to convert a strong start into a series win.

Upcoming matches on July 25 include Liquid vs FlyQuest and Astralis vs FURIA in the upper bracket.

IEM Cologne 2025 is held in Cologne, Germany, running from July 23 to August 3. Stage 1 features a double-elimination bracket from July 23–25. Stage 2 begins July 26, followed by Playoffs in LANXESS Arena. The event boasts a $1,000,000 prize pool, with $400,000 for the winner, $180,000 for second place, and $80,000 for third.