Who Will Be the Winner of IEM Winter?

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The Grand Final of IEM Winter is quickly approaching and only 4 teams are left in the race. In this article, you will learn more about them and their odds of winning this great CS:GO event.

IEM Winter – The Story So Far

IEM Winter started on December 2nd with $250,000 in prizes and 16 competitors. The matches were spectacular, to say the least, and offered numerous CS:GO betting opportunities that many fans were able to take advantage of on esports betting sites such as Rivalry. In most cases, the favorites did exactly what was expected of them. But there were several upsets as well. For example, Heroic failed to make it out of Group B, even though this group was regarded as being quite easy compared to Group A.

The 6 teams that survived the Group Stage of IEM Winter were the following:

  • G2 Esports
  • Vitality
  • NiP
  • Virtus.pro
  • GODSENT
  • Gambit

Two of these 6 teams, GODSENT and Gambit, have already been eliminated in the Quarterfinals.

IEM Winter Semifinals

The 2 semifinals of IEM Winter will be the following:

G2 Esports versus NiP

G2 Esports is an exceptional team. In the absence of Natus Vincere, it’s probably the strongest competitor in CS:GO at the moment. NiKo seems determined to win a big trophy before the season ends and this tournament is his last chance. Strangely enough, G2 has not managed to win a single important competition in 2021, despite coming close several times.

NiP is currently ranked 7th globally but it’s probably a bit stronger than that. However, the roster change it went through after the PGL Major has left it unstable and inconsistent. Right now, NiP might crush a strong opponent, or it might lose to a relatively weak one. And it all comes down to match-day form. Without a clear system in place, the team’s playstyle can get very chaotic, and the players’ morale can plummet in just several rounds.

G2 and NiP met each other at the recent PGL Major. G2 won that match with ease (2 – 0). It’s not yet clear what will happen this time because device and his crew had almost a week to prepare for this battle. And a week is a long time in esports. Under normal conditions, the score here would be 2 – 0 in favor of the French squad. But because of NiP’s prowess on several maps and the long preparation time, it’s more likely that G2 will need 3 maps to win instead of 2.

Virtus.pro versus Vitality

The second Semifinal will take place between the 3rd best CIS team and the 2nd best French team.

Virtus.pro is ranked 6th at the moment and the entire lineup seems determined to win. It’s been a long time since we’ve last seen VP is such great shape. Another thing to keep in mind here is the fact that Jame’s team encountered Vitality at the PGL Major just 6 weeks ago. And despite the odds, it won (16 – 14). Of course, 6 weeks is a long time in CS:GO, but the result is still significant.

Vitality is ranked 2nd and has played really well at its last several tournaments, finishing 3rd at IEM Fall, 5th – 8th at PGL Major Stockholm, and 2nd at BLAST Premier: Fall Finals. The team’s greatest player is ZywOo and he is the winner of the last two CS:GO Player of the Year awards. One of Vitality’s biggest strengths is its ability to play well on around 6 different maps. This gives the French squad the option to focus less on its weaknesses and more on banning its opponent’s favorite picks.

This match will almost certainly go the distance. None of the two teams is strong enough to win without losing a single map. But in the end, Vitality should be the winner. It’s hard to imagine them losing to VP, even though the CIS squad plays the best CS it’s played all year.

IEM Winter Grand Final

The Grand Final of IEM Winter will most likely take place between G2 Esports and Vitality. The two teams already faced each other once in the 3rd round of the Group Stage. The match was extremely close but G2 eventually won thanks to its deep knowledge of Inferno, which was the 3rd map. In a rematch, the same result is likely to occur again.

Adam

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Adam

Adam is the owner of BC-GB, find him on Twitter. BC-GB is the place to get CSGO tips, news and blog.

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