IEM Cologne Major Stage 3 Set After Brutal Stage 2

It’s been a wild ride so far for Counter-Strike 2 (CS2) esports fans watching IEM Cologne Major 2026. We’ve seen the biggest comeback in CS2 history in Stage 1, with BIG beating NRG to advance to Stage 2 after coming back from 12-0 down to win 16-0.

We’ve seen Team Spirit absolutely wreck everyone in Stage 2, with a total of eight teams progressing to Stage 3 to compete alongside the creme of the crop, aka the Stage 3 direct invites. Now, from 11 to 15 June 2026, the IEM Cologne Major 2026 Stage 3 will take place, determining the final eight teams set to compete in the Playoffs Stage.

IEM Cologne Major Stage 3 Teams

Check out the list of teams competing at IEM Cologne Major 2026 below, starting with the eight direct invites, and then the eight teams who made it past Stage 2.

Direct Invites:

• Team Vitality
• FURIA
• NAVI
• MOUZ
• Team Falcons
• PARIVISION
• The MongolZ
• Aurora Gaming

Teams From Stage 2:

• Team Spirit
• FUT Esports
• G2 Esports
• Monte
• BetBoom Team
• B8
• Legacy
• 9z Team

For the first time ever, the Stage 3 matches are all best-of-three, so we are done with those unpredictable best-of-one matches from Stages 1 and 2. Remember to get your Pick’Ems sorted and locked in before the start of Stage 3 (11 June at 11:00 SAST) if you own a Viewer Pass for the event.

CS2 esports fans can watch all the action live via the official ESL Counter-Strike YouTube and ESLCS Twitch channels. Stay tuned to Esports Central as we plan to bring you a highlights video and the complete results of the IEM Cologne Major 2026 near the end of the month.

Header image via ESL.