3DMAX pull up as favorites in IEM Cologne Play-In Stage
Published: Aug 7, 2024
IEM Cologne kicks off with a riveting Play-In Stage, as 16 teams try to make it to the Group Stage. In our Play-Ins preview, we’re looking at the competing teams, betting odds and the opening match-ups to provide further insight.
IEM Cologne 2024 Play-In – Qualifying Odds
First things first, GG.Bet offers odds for teams qualifying for the next stage of the competition, finishing in the top 8 of the Play-In. Here’s a look at what these esports odds look like:
| IEM Cologne Play-In Team | GG.Bet Qualifying Odds |
|---|---|
| The MongolZ | -228/1.44 |
| HEROIC | -228/1.44 |
| Eternal Fire | -189/1.52 |
| Complexity Gaming | -176/1.57 |
| Team Falcons | -167/1.60 |
| Team Liquid | -159/1.63 |
| 9z Team | -143/1.70 |
| FURIA Esports | -125/1.80 |
| BB Team (former) | -112/1.89 |
| BIG | +120/2.20 |
| pAIN Gaming | +120/2.20 |
| Imperial Esports | +150/2.50 |
| SAW | +150/2.50 |
| MIBR | +225/3.25 |
| FlyQuest | +275/3.75 |
| ALTERNATE ATTaX | +900/10.0 |
Odds accessed 06/08/24, liable to change.
The above odds don’t include the recent news that BetBoom couldn’t make it to the event, so 3DMAX were invited to the tournament instead.
Compared to the endless number of tournaments that we preview, the odds for this IEM Cologne 2024 Play-In are incredible with all the teams tightly ranked according to the esports odds.
Factors influencing these odds are likely the opening match-ups between these teams and performances in prior tournaments – all teams have earned their spot based on the ESL World Ranking.
3DMAX become the last-second favorites
Up until yesterday, 3DMAX weren’t even participating in this tournament. With BetBoom bowing out due to visa issues, 3DMAX is seeded as the next-best team and might even be CS2 betting favorites.
Packing a dominant history in Tier 2 Counter-Strike, 3DMAX have numerous wins in ESEA and ESL Challengers tournaments while also participating in Tier 1 competitions such as EPL Season 19.
Most recently, at the Skyesports Championship 2024, 3DMAX reclaimed their foothold over Tier 2 – that was a week ago, taking down The MongolZ in a 2-0 sweep Grand Final. In our opinion, they are last-second favourites for the IEM Cologne Play-In.
However, they will likely face HEROIC to fight for Qualification early on, making for a fantastic match.
MongolZ seek revenge for Skyesports Championship flop
Back when we previewed the Skyesports Championship, The MongolZ stood out as clear favourites over the competition. Despite the upset in the Grand Final against 3DMAX, they remain a strong team maintaining momentum from their win at the YaLLa Compass 2024 earlier this year.
Considering their side of the bracket, featuring SAW, BIG and FlyQuest, The MongolZ are likely to slip into Qualification without much trouble.
HEROIC to play with a stand-in
Naturally, we don’t always agree with esports betting odds and that seems to be the case for HEROIC at the IEM Cologne Play-In. While this team does have a legacy competing in Tier 1, with a few wins in 2023, they have been disastrous since transitioning to Counter-Strike 2.
Signing the incredible “degster” from OG, they did impress with a 5-6th finish at IEM Dallas 2024 which would make them favourites here. However, for IEM Cologne, “woro2k” is standing in for “degster” for the opening matches.
However, after finishing 7-8th at the YaLLa Compass, we are less convinced about HEROIC. While they are likely to qualify for the next stage, their lack of consistency risks either suffering a loss or squeaking out wins.
Eternal Fire and Falcons in an early brawl
If we take a look at the schedule and the odds, the early match between Eternal Fire and Team Falcons has the makings of a fantastic brawl.
With the Falcons still trying to put the pieces together, they recently peaked in form with a 2nd place finish at ESL Challenger DreamHack Summer and 9-12th at IEM Dallas 2024. Speaking of form, Eternal Fire recently won the CCT Season 1 Global Finals, placed 3-4th at Skyesports Championship and placed 5-8th at the PGL Major Copenhagen 2024.
Although Eternal Fire is favoured in this match-up, Falcons could make this interesting. The winner likely faces Complexity for qualification.
Opening Round Matches – Schedule
Seeded into the opening round of a double-elimination bracket with BO3 matches, here are what matches look like on 7th August:
- FlyQuest vs BIG – 10:30 CEST
- SAW vs MongolZ – 10:30 CEST
- HEROIC vs MIBR – 13:30 CEST
- 3DMAX vs 9z – 13:30 CEST
- Complexity vs ALTERNATE aTTaX – 16:30 CEST
- Eternal Flame vs Falcons – 16:30 CEST
- FURIA vs Imperial – 19:30 CEST
- paiN vs Liquid – 19:30 CEST
Each match also has its own match odds we recommend checking out via CS2 betting sites should you be interested.
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