The 2023 edition of the prestigious IEM Katowice tournament will kick off on Feb. 1 with the Play-in stage. From there, the top eight teams will join eight of the best teams in the world in the main event and play from Feb. 4 to 12, pursuing their share of the $1 million prize pool.
The Play-In will place the 16 teams in attendance in a double-elimination bracket, starting with best-of-one openers, but will change for best-of-threes after as the top eight advances to the event proper.
The main stage of IEM Katowice will split the 16 teams into two double-elimination format groups and all matches will be played under the best-of-three format. The group winners will qualify for the semifinals, while the runners-up and third place will move on to the quarterfinals.
The playoffs, which will be played at the iconic Spodek Arena, will run from Feb. 10 to 12. It’s a single-elimination bracket and all matches are best-of-three series apart from the grand finals, which will use the best-of-five format. The list of teams that directly qualified for the main stage includes the reigning champions FaZe Clan, Vitality, Heroic, Natus Vincere, and G2 Esports.
Here’s everything you need to know about IEM Katowice 2023.
How to watch IEM Katowice 2023
IEM Katowice will feature simultaneous matches during the Play-in stage and the group stage: they are going to be broadcasted on ESL’s primary and secondary Twitch channels. You can also follow the tournament in secondary broadcasts provided by community figures like Gaules.
IEM Katowice 2023 team list
Directly qualified teams
- FaZe Clan
- Vitality
- Outsiders
- Heroic
- Team Liquid
- Natus Vincere
- G2 Esports
- MOUZ
Play-in teams
- Ninjas in Pyjamas
- Team Spirit
- Cloud9
- Complexity Gaming
- FURIA
- MIBR
- IHC
- Grayhound
- OG
- ENCE
- BIG
- Sprout
- PaiN Gaming
- Evil Geniuses
- Fnatic
- Permitta Esports
IEM Katowice 2023 Play-in bracket
IEM Katowice 2023 Play-in schedule and results
All matches are listed in Central Time and are susceptible to delays.
Wednesday, Feb. 1
- 4am: ENCE vs. paiN
- 4am: C9 vs. IHC
- 5:15am: NiP vs. MIBR
- 5:15am: Spirit vs. Grayhound
- 6:30am: OG vs. Sprout
- 6:30am: Fnatic vs. EG
- 7:45am: BIG vs. Complexity
- 7:45am: FURIA vs. Permitta