IEM Katowice 2022: NaVi and Gambit rise as top contenders

As we draw close to the end of January, we are almost one month away from the start of the highly anticipated Intel Extreme Masters XVI Katowice 2022, the first massive Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament of the new year, and one of the most traditional competitions within the esports world. The tournament marks the 10-year anniversary of IEM, one of the longest-running pro gaming tours in the world, and the return to Katowice, Poland, a historic city for the CSGO community having hosted a slew of important tournaments.

IEM Katowice 2022 is scheduled to begin on February 15 2022, with the play-in stage, and will run through February 27, when the Grand Final will be contested. The 12-day competition holds an astounding $1 million prize pool and will feature 24 of the most accomplished CSGO teams in the world battling for this huge prize purse, EPL points, and the coveted trophy.

This year’s tournament will also bring back live audiences to the Spodek Arena after almost two years of online competitions. Even though tickets for the event are already completely sold out, there’s a slight possibility that this could change as a result of the spread of the Omicron COVID variant. Due to health concerns and travel restrictions, Valve’s other esport, Dota 2, had to cancel its whole Winter Major. The company had intended to hold the event in front of a live audience, but was forced to cancel the tournament.

Ahead of the start of the tournament, bookies have Natus Vincere, the most dominant team in 2021, as the clear favorites to win IEM Katowice 2022, at -118 odds. With a significant drop off in odds, Gambit Esports - who recently put up a great fight against NaVi in the BLAST Premier World Finals - are the second favorites to win it all, at +235 odds, followed by G2 Esports, who is going through a roster rebuild, at +475 odds.

10th anniversary

To commemorate Katowice’s tenth anniversary, ESL is preparing special events to celebrate a whole decade of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and Starcraft II tournaments as well as the city of Katowice.

“Thinking back to when this place held an Intel Extreme Masters tournament for the first time, what followed would not have been imaginable. This event represents a dream come true to everyone that wanted to build esports into something bigger and unforgettable memories shared by fans and players,” said Michal Blicharz, ESL’s Vice President of Pro Gaming. “We are proud to be coming to Katowice again as an in-person competition and we are looking forward to celebrating the commemorative anniversary together.”

The IEM Katowice 2022 will also feature a new visual identity. This year, the tournament will have a new and fresh look that attempts to express the spirit and personality that IEM Katowice has become. The event will also provide fans access to exclusive content, behind-the-scenes footage, and articles that recap a decade of esports tournaments.

Event format

The IEM Katowice 2022 will be divided into three stages. The play-in stage, which runs from February 15 to 17, will feature 16 teams in a double-elimination bracket fighting to qualify to the group stage.

The eight teams that qualify from the play-in stage will join the other eight teams that earned a direct spot in the group stage, which will feature two groups of 8 teams in another double-elimination bracket. The top 3 teams from each group will advance to the playoffs, with the leaders in each group advancing directly to the semifinals.

The playoffs are when the real action begins, with a grand prize of $400,000 up for grabs for only one team. Squads will face off in best-of-three matches, pushing towards a best-of-five Grand Finals, and the ultimate prize. In addition, the winner will get a tremendous amount of EPT points as well as BLAST Premier points.

Qualified teams

As mentioned above, eight teams have earned direct spots in the group stage. From North America, Team Liquid and Furia have qualified for the group stage, while from Europe, Gambit Esports, Natus Vincere, G2 Esports, Heroic, Team Vitality, and Virtus.Pro have clinched a spot in the group stage.

Teams that qualified for the play-in stage include Ninjas in Pyjamas, Astralis, FaZe Clan from Europe, Godsent and Complexity from North America, MIBR from South America, Tyloo from Asia, Renegades from Oceania, Big, Entropiq, OG Esports, Copenhagen Flames, Fnatic, Ence, and Mouz as ESL WR invitees, and Wisła All iN! as the Polish National Champion.