IEM Cologne 2022 Esports Betting Guide

By Aleksandar Bozic  | 

Jun 30th, 2022 02:08 PM  |  8 mins

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Ever since Counter-Strike: Global Offensive saw the light of the day there have been thousands of tournaments. Not a single one was drawing more interest and attention than IEM Cologne. “The Cathedral of Counter Strike” has a special spot in the hearts of the community, making the event one of the greatest of all time. This year will be no different. With millions of fans across the world witnessing plenty of great matches and an electric atmosphere made by more than 18,000 fans in the Arena, another team will earn the right to have their name engraved on the trophy. 

With IEM Cologne 2022 ahead of us, we are bringing you the complete event guide to the $1,000,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament, held annually in Cologne, Germany. The event will take place in Lanxess-Arena from July 5-17, 2022, featuring 24 of the best teams in the world. More and more of the best betting sites are offering markets on the event.

Last year’s edition saw Natus Vincere lifting the trophy by beating G2 in the Grand Finals. Together with SK Gaming they are the only team that came victorious twice in Germany, lifting the first one back in 2018. 

IEM Cologne 2022 will kick off with a Play-In Stage where sixteen teams will fight for eight spots in the Main event. The opening matches will be played out in a Best-of-1 (BO1) format, while the remainder will be using a traditional Best-of-3 (BO3) format. 

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IEM Cologne 2022 Schedule

Taking place July 5-6 IEM Cologne 2022, the Play-In tournament will feature sixteen teams fighting for the eight spots in the main event. Half of those sixteen were invited by ESL, based on their respective ESL Pro Tour Points. The second half earned their spots through a lengthy online qualification process. The initial match-ups are now revealed and a couple of high-intensity battles are ahead of us on the opening day. With Outsiders taking on Imperial and Movistar Riders taking on MIBR. Below you can find the complete list of the first round matches.

1. Heroic vs. Sprout July 5^th, at 11:00 AM CET
2. MOUZ vs. paiN July 5^th, at 11:00 AM CET
3. Spirit vs. Complexity July 5^th, at 11:00 AM CET
4. 00NATION vs. Astralis July 5^th, at 12:15 PM CET
5. BIG vs. ORDER July 5^th, at 12:40 PM CET
6. Outsiders vs. Imperial July 5^th, at 12:40 PM CET
7. MIBR vs. Movistar Riders, July 5^th, at 1:30 PM CET
8. TYLOO vs. Vitality, July 5^th at 2:20 PM CET

Majority of the Play-In tournament will be played in a Best-of-3 (BO3) format where a team needs to win on two out of a possible three maps. The initial round will be played in a Best-of-1 (BO1) format, where the winner is the team that wins 16 rounds first.

IEM Cologne 2022 Brackets

The Play-In tournament will be played in a double elimination format. Winners will play each other in the quarter-finals to decide who qualifies for the Main Event. Opening round losing teams will have another chance in the Lower Bracket.

The Main Event Group stage will be played out in its entirety in a Best-of-3 format, with two 8-team groups. Four teams advance to the Playoffs, with the top two advancing directly to the Semifinals, the third and fourth team go to the quarter-finals.

IEM Cologne 2022 Prize Money

IEM Cologne prize money is traditionally equal to $1,000,000. With the lion’s share going to the champion. Below you can see how the prize money will be distributed by finishing position. Along with how many EPT points each team will take home.

Best Esports Betting Sites

If you’re deciding to bet on IEM Cologne 2022 it is crucial to know where the best offers are. This is where were Bookmakers step in to help. We have a reputation for providing our readers with the best betting offers from online bookmakers and eSports betting sites around the globe.

If you are looking for variety of betting options including player and team futures, specials, MVPs, or odds to reach the Grand Final then you should check what bet365 prepared for you. If you register today, you may even be able to claim a free bet that you can use on IEM Cologne 2022. All you need to do is sign up via Bookmakers.com.

Betway Sportsbook offers free bets to new and existing customers which can be used on IEM Cologne 2022 bets. Betway is top of the line sportsbook when it comes to margins and competitiveness of their betting lines, so we highly suggest taking advantage of this opportunity. These free bets should be available on websites and the  best sports betting apps that are available where you are.

888sport has a lot to offer, including betting on IEM Cologne 2022. Your free bets for opening a new 888sport account can be placed on any sport or market you choose, including eSports. 

IEM Cologne 2022 Esports Betting Odds

With just two Top 20 teams missing to qualify for the IEM Cologne 2022 it is clear this event will offer intense and uncertain matches. This could be a potential high reward for passionate bettors as the outright winner betting odds are tempting, especially on in-form teams. 

The odds with many of the best betting sites are reflecting current form and recent results leading into IEM Cologne 2022 so it is not unexpected to see odds as low as +200 on Natus Vincere to win the event or as high as +150000 on TYLOO to come out triumphant. If you believe that the Ukraine-Russian squad will secure their third title in Cologne, go ahead and take advantage of this offer via bet365.

Here are the pre-tournament odds for IEM Cologne 2022, correct at time of publish.

IEM Cologne 2022 Tips and Bets

We’ve put together in-depth analysis of teams playing in both stages of IEM Cologne 2022 in order to give you best IEM Cologne tips and betting advice. With the exception of beginner’s luck, no one can simply win every time, especially not in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. This is why we believe the below analysis will be extremely helpful, no matter if you are a first time or an experienced bettor used to wagering on some of the sports betting apps available.

Heroic, Astralis, Outsiders to advance

Seems like a no-brainer considering their initial matchups in the Play-In phase, but they’ll have bigger tasks ahead of them in the later rounds. Astralis will face Spirit if both meet expectations in the opening matches. This could be a tricky matchup for the Danes but we believe they’ll take their revenge for elimination from the PGL Antwerp Major, especially looking at the recent Roobet and Pinnacle Cup performances.

On the other hand, the easiest job, at least on the paper, will have another Danish squad – Heroic. Playing Sprout and the winner of MOUZ and paiN should not be a big problem for Rasmus “sjuush” Beck & co. Outsiders will have to bounce back after Roobet humiliation and disappointing run at PGL Antwerp where they ended 12-14^th but we firmly believe this team has the quality and is just underperforming in the last couple of months.

FURIA to go far

Brazilians are solid performers when it comes to the group stages but not stepping up against Top 5 teams which is resulting in no major titles or Grand Finals for the franchise. Their stats are solid, map pool is deep, yuurih and KSCERATO are having some of the best seasons in their careers. With a little luck on their side in terms of opponents and map vetoes we believe they could at least repeat their PGL Antwerp Top 8 placement.

Natus Vincere to Win Outright

When it comes to winning IEM Cologne 2022 odds, we were tempted by the odds, but had to slow down after looking at data and go back to the old, but gold statement – Navi is the best team in the world. No matter the roster changes, shaky mid-rounds, slow executions and some small and silly mistakes – they are still the best when it comes to AWP, firepower, teamplay and utility. We see no other option then taking +200 odds with many of thetop betting sites on Navi to win IEM Cologne 2022.

Bets to Consider

This could arguably be the longest section based on your previous experience and opinion. However, we would solely like to focus on the current form, recent results, and mentality of certain teams, all in hopes of winning you IEM Cologne bets and wagers on your favorite online betting apps.

Vitality

French-Danish roster will storm through the Play-In tournament and qualify for the Group Stage, and you don’t have to be an expert to say so. What we believe they’ll do is continue in the same rhythm and dominate the Group Stage, earning themselves a spot directly in the semi-finals. If you believe they can go all the way, the odds on Vitality winning IEM Cologne 2022 are +1800.

FaZe Clan

Another no-brainer is a good placement for FaZe Clan. Most likely less risky then the Vitality one considering FaZe are the second favourite to win IEM Cologne 2022. The importance of the Group Stage is in qualifying directly for semi-finals and we believe FaZe will be one of the four teams to do so, earning themselves a high placement directly from the Group Stage.

Best Esports Betting Markets

With the expansion of eSports IEM Cologne betting sites are now offering variety of different markets and we are counting them now in hundreds. This ranges from the outright winner odds to team and player specials. Below you can find some of the most common markets offered by many of the best betting sites for IEM Cologne 2022.

Outright Bets

Simply explained you are betting on a team to win the entire event. You could lock in some great IEM Cologne odds when looking at outright winner options. 

Total Rounds

Bookmaker will set a margin based on the stats, data and information they have for the given match. Often times you will see these margins going anywhere from 22.5 to 27.5, depending on the teams involved. You can bet over or under on the given number, and with some bookmakers you can even buy a point or two for lower odds, resulting is less risky bet.

Handicaps

Similar to total rounds, bookmaker will offer a handicap on rounds or maps for a certain match depending on the current form of the teams. If a handicap is -6.5 and you bet on a favoured team, they’ll have to win the map with 7 or more round difference. Similarly, if you bet on underdog, you are betting they will not lose by 7 or more round difference.

Specials

This is a market that leaves opportunities to your imagination. Hundreds of options to bet on with likeliness of expanding even more in future, or leaving it to the players to name their bets. You can place your wagers on a team to play most maps, who will have most kills on a map, which player will have the highest ADR (average damage per round), highest headshot percentage and much more. These are usually setup on a head-to-head basis so you can take advantage of odds ranging from -138 to +100. 

HLTV MVP

If IEM Cologne betting odds are not enough, you can place a wager on your favourite player to get a shiny HLTV MVP medal at the end of the tournament. Do you think NiKo can finally close out a tournament, or you don’t see anyone better then s1mple? Is there someone else in the equation like sh1ro or ZywOo? Check out all odds on HLTV MVP by clicking the link below.

Esports Free Bets

One of the best offers for IEM Cologne 2022 is a free bet that is available with almost all major bookmakers. A free bet is a bet that is given to punters for free, often times without any pre-requirement. The main difference between a free bet and other welcome offers is that this offer does not require a deposit to be claimed, making it one of the most exclusive offers.

Free bets and other betting welcome offers can be used on most of the esports markets offered by IEM Cologne betting sites which is ideal for all bettors. Bookmakers simplified their registration process so you can easily claim your free bet, place a bet of your choosing, and collect your winnings while watching your favourite video game. If your wager loses you practically lost bookmakers money and not yours. 

If you are not interested in IEM Cologne betting, have in mind that bookmakers are allowing these free bets for all eSports tournaments including Dota2, League of Legends, Fortnite and much more.

Where can I watch the IEM Cologne 2022?

The IEM Cologne 2022 can be watched for free on ESL’s Twitch channel. When it comes to production ESL is side by side with major TV broadcasting outlets handling the likes of EPL or NFL. ESL will cover this tournament with at whopping 21 talent. 

They are also partnered up with broadcasters around the world to allow multilingual broadcast so very often their events are broadcasted in more than 20 languages, including Russian, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Serbian, Finnish, French, and German. This year will be no exception but at the moment of writing this article official broadcasting partners were not announced. It also remains to be seen if ESL will broadcast IEM Cologne 2022 on YouTube.