With Stage 2 of IEM Cologne 2025 wrapped up, it’s time to look back at the takeaways and keep an eye on what’s ahead as the season shifts into full gear.

Starting with the Playoff-bound teams, it’s mostly the usual suspects: Vitality, MOUZ, The MongolZ, Spirit, and NAVI – all delivering the level of performance you’d expect. Not much surprise there.

That said, it’s worth giving a quick nod to rookies zweih and makazze, who, while not putting up flashy numbers, earned their first big-stage appearances.

But you might notice one name missing from that list. FURIA.

That’s right, they’ve made the Playoffs too, ending FalleN’s eight-year drought in Cologne. molodoy silenced the doubters, proving he’s far more than just a pug star, and delivering standout performances to help push the team through. He was joined by a revitalized YEKINDAR, who finally looks like he’s found the right environment to flourish again.

And here’s a fun fact: the only two times FalleN reached the Playoffs in Cologne, he went on to win the whole thing. Surely that won’t happen again… right?

One rookie who didn’t share the same luck as the others was kyousuke, who couldn’t quite drag his team to the LANXESS. But it wasn’t for lack of effort. He finished Stage 2 as the second-highest rated player, trailing only donk (naturally). It’s wild that the 17-year-old you just signed - playing his first big LAN - is the one who has to carry the team, and even that wasn’t enough.

Still, on a more positive note, this kid looks like the real deal. In Cologne, he lived up to the hype, and if this is just the beginning, the future looks very promising.

To our dismay, it looks like the circus might be losing one of its best clowns.

NIP may finally be onto something with xKacpersky. Seriously, he is cracked. If there’s one thing NIP desperately needed, it was raw aggression - someone fearless enough to charge in headfirst - and he brings exactly that. Just watch him play. He’s the textbook definition of a pure opener.

So, does this mean NIP are back? We’re not sure, but this is the most hopeful we’ve felt in a very, very long time.

Finally, in the group of teams that just weren’t good enough, we’ve got Aurora, Liquid, HEROIC, GamerLegion, Astralis, 3DMAX, and G2.

While they all fell short of reaching the LANXESS, G2 deserves a mention.

They’ve shown promising flashes in their first outing with the new additions and huNter- calling the shots. There’s definitely something there. We just have to let sAw cook.

And so, the Cathedral of Counter-Strike opens its doors today as the Playoffs begin, with MOUZ versus FURIA and The MongolZ versus NAVI set to light up the quarterfinals.

We will be there (figuratively).