As Counter-Strike 2 Intel Extreme Masters Katowice 2024 unfolds, 24 elite CS teams are set to compete in Katowice, Poland. Given the quality of the competing teams, this event promises intense competition. Our CS2 IEM Katowice 2024 predictions guide provides insights into this event.
The tournament starts with a play-in stage featuring 16 teams battling in a double-elimination play-in bracket. The top eight teams emerging victorious from this stage will advance to the group stage, where they’ll cross paths with eight directly invited teams. The ultimate prize for the winners of this competition is a direct route to qualify for both IEM Cologne 2024 and the Blast Premier World Final.
| ℹ️ Tournament: | Counter-Strike IEM Katowice 2024, Esports (CS2) |
| 🧾 Format: | CS2 Offline S-tier tournament with 24 teams and a few stages |
| 🏟️ Venue: | Spodek Arena, Katowice, Poland |
| 🗓️ Dates: | Wednesday, January 31 – Sunday, February 11, 2024 |
Given their abilities and latest results, the best betting sites for CS2 have compiled a list of favored teams to win IEM Katowice 2024:
Team Vitality have the best IEM Katowice 2024 odds heading into this competition, proving their top-1 status in the global CS rankings. The French organization won the last two CS2 tournaments of 2023 and secured the spot for the BLAST Spring Finals 2024. In addition to those wins, Team Vitality claimed the top spot at Gamers8 2023, BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023, and Intel Extreme Masters 2023. However, they lost Emil ‘Magisk’ Reif (who joined the Falcons), while the arrival of William ‘mezii’ Merriman slightly lowered their potential. However, the great performances of the top-1 HLTV player of 2024, Mathieu ‘ZywOo’ Herbaut, keep them at the top.
FaZe Clan currently holds the second spot in the global CS rankings. Bookies expect them to be refreshed following the recently concluded winter break. While undeniably formidable, FaZe Clan failed to win the last two CS2 tournaments in 2023. They finished second in the BLAST Premier: World Final 2023 and BLAST Premier: Fall Final 2023. Before these, they showcased their dominance by clinching victory in the Thunderpick World Championship. Their performance on the IEM Katowice 2024 will muchly depend on how David ‘frozen’ Čerňanský implemented in the team after his transfer at the end of 2023.
NAVI finally found their strong form after losing Oleksandr ‘s1mple’ Kostyliev at the end of 2023, replacing him with another promising Ukrainian AWPer ‘w0nderful’. Their performance during the BLAST Premier Spring Groups 2024 and RMR Closed Qualifier for the Copenhagen Major 2024 were pretty impressive. Thus, the team stood strong against proven heavyweights like G2 (beating them twice) and against Virtus.Pro on the respective tournaments. Before that performance, bookies were given the odds of about 15.00 (14/1) for them to win IEM Katowice 2024, while now they are a pretty logical joint-third favorite.
The CIS team Virtus.Pro will look to make their presence felt in Katowice. This team performed well last year, reaching the Thunderpick World Championship. However, they ended the tournament as runners-up, losing the final to FaZe Clan. Virtus.Pro bounced back from this defeat, securing a win at the ESL Challenger during DreamHack Atlanta in December 2023. Virtus is off to a fair start with one win and a loss in the IEM Play-In. However, we expect them to bounce back and make the group stage, proving their top-4 place in the global rankings.
Team Spirit enters this tournament with a 64% win record from 2023, which is not bad, considering the quality of teams in CS2. They recently crashed out of the Blast Premier Spring Groups due to losses to Team Liquid and FaZe Clan. With two wins already in the Play-In stage, Team Spirit secured the spot in the group stage, but they have to step up to perform well in Katowice. The addition of Dmitry ‘sh1ro’ Sokolov, currently ranked eighth in the world, adds a potent force to their lineup, and his cooperation with teammates becomes better.
The current winner, G2 Esports, is another excellent team that could go far in this competition. In addition to winning the Intel Extreme Masters Katowice 2023, they also won the Intel Extreme Masters Cologne 2023. The team got to the semi-finals of the Intel Extreme Masters Sydney and Gamers8 in 2023. However, the transition from CS:GO to CS2 wasn’t perfect, and the team has struggled with results since autumn 2023. G2 Esports will compete in the group stages again this year, and they can fight for the title if the likes of Nikola ‘NiKo’ Kovač and Ilya ‘m0NESY’ Osipov are at their best.
Many sportsIn-play modeLive streaming25+ sportsSuperb bonusesEasy to useVIP programLive gamesMany bonusesMany bonuses24/7 supportMobile appsLive bettingMany sportsFast payoutsTwenty-four teams will vie for a substantial $1 million prize pool and the coveted automatic qualification for two prestigious CS2 events: IEM Cologne 2024 and the Blast Premier World Final. The initial phase, the Play-In, involves 16 teams engaged in a double-elimination play-in bracket. The top eight teams from this stage will progress to the subsequent group stage.
Eight directly invited teams will join the Play-In teams in the group stage. These eight teams are selected based on their previous wins or world ranking. The group stage comprises two groups, each featuring a double-elimination bracket. Six teams will emerge from this stage to advance to the knockout stage. Group winners get a direct qualification to the semifinals. Second and third-placed teams compete in the quarterfinals. This offline competition is set to unfold on one of the traditional Counter-Strike places – Spodek Arena, Katowice, Poland.
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The global ranking confirms that Team Vitality is the most in-form team in CS2. They enjoyed an excellent end to 2023, with wins at the BLAST Premier: World Final 2023 and BLAST Premier: Fall Final 2023. It was a continuation of their strong performances during the CS:GO era, when they won BLAST.tv Paris Major 2023 and Gamers8 2023.
They are off to a solid start in 2024, with three wins in four matches, clinching the direct ticket to the BLAST Premire Spring Final 2024. Their tight matchups against Astralis and Falcons highlighted some problems, but they had enough time to fix them. Given their current form and the lowest Counter-Strike betting odds for clinching the title, it makes sense to back them finish at the top.
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Considering their recent showings, G2 Esports may not be the favorite to secure a second consecutive title. Nevertheless, they are a dark horse in this tournament, which can be a good position for them and slightly decrease the psychological pressure. With a commendable 67% win record in 2023, G2 Esports has demonstrated their capability to secure victories. The key for G2 lies in improving their performance against formidable teams such as FaZe Clan and Team Vitality. A strong start in the tournament could pave the way for them to clinch a second consecutive title, and they don’t need to improve too much to beat the best team in Katowice.
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After suffering defeat in their Play-In match against Gamer Legion, Virtus.pro is set to encounter Cloud 9 in their third Play-In game. Despite the setback in their previous match, Virtus.pro boasts an impressive track record, winning 80% of their last 10 games. They were solid throughout 2023, securing victory in 70% of their matches, but many of their matches were against the tier-2 teams. These statistics suggest that their loss to Gamer Legion could be an anomaly rather than a prevailing trend. We expect Virtus to elevate their performance and emerge victorious in this crucial tie to decide the only ticket to Katowice’s main stage.
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Heading into this matchup, NAVI holds a superior position. They boast an impressive 80% win rate in their last 10 games, securing notable victories against G2 Esports and Virtus Pro. Although they didn’t secure any titles last year, Natus Vincere maintained a solid 67% win rate. With key fraggers Mihai ‘iM’ Ivan and Valeriy ‘b1t’ Vakhovskiy being at their best, NAVI can dream even of the title and so should start strong against the Dragons. One can even try to use a correct score betting strategy and choose a 2-0 victory for NAVI for pretty attractive odds of 3.60 (13/5).
These are the best picks from our 2024 IEM Katowice Counter-Strike predictions:
Given their current form, Team Vitality is the top choice to secure victory in Poland. During this tournament, you can use our unique IEM Katowice 2024 CS2 betting tips for smart staking choices.
