The group stage of IEM Cologne 2025 kicks off on July 26. The organizers have already announced the initial matchups in the upper bracket. NAVI will face FaZe, while G2 will go up against FURIA Esports .

First Matches:
aurora vs. NIP (Group A)
NAVI vs. FaZe (Group A)
G2 vs. FURIA Esports (Group B)
Falcons vs. GamerLegion (Group B)
Team Vitality vs. Astralis (Group B)
The MongolZ vs. 3DMAX (Group B)
Mouz vs. Liquid (Group A)
Team Spirit vs. Heroic (Group A)

The group stage of IEM Cologne 2025 will take place from July 26 to July 29, consisting of two groups of eight teams each. Each group will follow a double-elimination format, with all matches played in a best-of-3 format. At the end of the group stage, three teams will advance to the playoffs: the group winner will go directly to the semifinals, while the second and third place teams will proceed to the quarterfinals.