IEM Beijing 2026 Playoffs Preview and Predictions

The IEM Beijing 2026 playoffs will run from November 6 to 8, featuring several intense matchups. With a $1.25 million prize pool on the line, six top CS2 teams will battle it out at the Bloomage Biotech Biohyalux ECM Arena in Beijing, China.

Here's everything to know about the IEM Beijing 2026 playoffs, including schedule, format, match predictions, and more.

Teams, Bracket, and Format

IEM Beijing 2026 kicked off with a GSL-style Group Stage featuring two double-elimination groups of eight teams. To qualify for the playoffs, teams had to be one of the top 3 contenders in their group. After three days of highly competitive matchups, here are the six teams that made it to playoffs at IEM Beijing 2026:

After finishing as group leaders with a flawless 3-0 run, The MongolZ and MOUZ directly qualified for the semifinals. 

FURIA and PARIVISION, meanwhile, entered the quarterfinals as the high seeds owing to their 2-1 upper bracket run. NAVI and BetBoom made lower bracket runs with a 2-1 tally and qualified for the quarterfinals as the low seeds. 

These six teams will now compete in a single‑elimination bracket. All matches are best‑of‑three, except for the Grand Final, which will be best‑of‑five.

The IEM Beijing 2026 playoff bracket is as follows:

IEM Beijing 2026 Playoffs Schedule 

The IEM Beijing playoff schedule is as follows: 

Quarterfinals Fixtures and Predictions

IEM Beijing 2026 Quarterfinals Matchups (Credit: ESL)

PARIVISION vs. NAVI

PARIVISION has generally failed to make their mark in Tier 1 events this year, but they did enjoy an Upper Bracket run at IEM Beijing. After defeating G2 and Team Liquid, PARIVISION faced MOUZ for a spot in the semifinals. They suffered a painful defeat, winning only 11 rounds across two maps.

Following a series of poor finishes, NAVI are finally in the top six of a tournament. Unlike recent events, the team had a promising run in the IEM Beijing Group Stage. NAVI defeated Falcons twice and B8 once, with their only defeat coming against an in‑form FURIA, who were riding on back‑to‑back tournament wins.

Both teams have had their ups and downs as of late. In this matchup, however, NAVI look more promising. They faced tougher Group Stage opponents, and their performances looked more convincing.

Furthermore, in their three head‑to‑head encounters this year, NAVI has won two. PARIVISION, however, won the most recent one at ESL Pro League Season 24 last month.

FURIA vs. BetBoom 

FURIA is currently in their best form of the year, having clinched consecutive trophies last month alone. So far in this tournament, they defeated FaZe Clan and NAVI before falling to The MongolZ. While the defeat exposed some of their weaknesses, FURIA remain in hot form and ready to take on the competition at IEM Beijing.

Ranked 4th in the VRS Global standings, BetBoom has become a regular presence at Tier 1 events. Despite dropping to the Lower Bracket at Beijing, they battled through an additional match to secure their playoff spot, defeating 9z, Aurora, and Liquid along the way. Their only loss came against MOUZ.

FURIA are certainly the favorites in this matchup, but if there's anything we've learned over the last few months, it's to never write off BetBoom.

The recent head‑to‑head results do favor FURIA, though, with the Brazilians winning all four of their encounters against BetBoom. In fact, FURIA eliminated BetBoom from their last two tournaments, adding even more intrigue to this playoff game.

Who Will Win IEM Beijing 2026?

Out of the six contenders, MOUZ and FURIA seem most likely to leave Beijing with silverware.

MOUZ is currently ranked #1 in the VRS Global standings, ahead of prominent teams like Vitality, Spirit, and Falcons. Though they have won only one tournament all year, their consistency is commendable, as they finished in the top 3 of three of their last four tournaments.

While MOUZ could yet again fail to convert a promising run into a title, they are in a good position now, with just two wins needed to lift the trophy.

FURIA, as mentioned earlier, are on a generational run that could very well extend to the Singapore Major. FalleN giving it his all in the last few months of his professional career seems to have impacted the team's morale as well.

A dark horse pick here would be The MongolZ. While we haven't seen them achieve Tier 1 success in a while, they remain a top‑10 contender. And with cobrazera's return to the team, The MongolZ look exciting.

Where to Watch

The IEM Beijing 2026 Playoffs will stream live on ESL's official channels across multiple platforms. You can also watch co-streams from various content creators. Below are the official English stream links: 

• Twitch

• YouTube

• Kick

You can also follow CS2 IEM Beijing 2026 live on Strafe.

Follow Strafe Esports for the latest Counter-Strike 2 news, and check out our X account for more updates and coverage. You can also visit the Strafe YouTube channel for exclusive interviews, press conferences, and more.

Featured image Credit: ESL 

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