IEM Cologne Major playoffs: schedule and key matchups

The IEM Cologne Major playoffs take place June 18–21 at LANXESS Arena in Cologne. Eight teams compete in a single-elimination bracket on the LANXESS main stage in front of live spectators.

Play opens June 18 with Aurora versus BetBoom at 14:45 BST, followed by 9z against FURIA at 18:00 BST. Quarterfinals continue June 19 with Spirit facing G2 at 14:45 BST and Falcons meeting Team Vitality at 18:00 BST. Semifinals are scheduled for June 20 and the Grand Final for June 21.

Team Vitality are the defending champions and are aiming for a third consecutive Major title. Their quarterfinal opponent, Team Falcons, have returned to a Major top eight with veteran in-game leader karrigan directing the team. Karrigan has previously led teams to strong results early in his captaincies.

Spirit and G2 meet in a Friday quarterfinal. If Spirit and Vitality both win their matches, the two winners would meet in a semifinal that would mirror last year’s final pairing.

On the opposite side of the draw, FURIA’s match with 9z is scheduled for June 18 and presents contrasting team styles. BetBoom are the only team in the bracket that qualified through Stage 1 and open the playoffs against Aurora; a BetBoom win would advance them to the semifinals on a path that does not include Vitality or Spirit.

All matches will be available on the tournament’s official broadcast channels with language-specific feeds. The LANXESS Arena will host spectators for each playoff day, and all matches are played on the event’s main stage.

The IEM Cologne Major is part of the CS2 competitive calendar. The single-elimination format means each match determines which teams move forward and which are eliminated, with the tournament concluding on June 21.