A Perfect Run for Na’Vi in IEM Fall

Given that Natus Vincere is already guaranteed a spot at the upcoming PGL Major Stockholm, a lot of people speculated that they were going to underperform at IEM Fall. After all, with just $50,000 on the line and Bo1 matches, it’s always tempting to not even bother to try to win. But s1mple and his crew came prepared and so far, they’ve won every single match. At this point, Na’Vi is the only team in Europe and CIS (so 36 participants in total) who has a record of 4 W – 0 L. It is absolutely inspiring to see a roster of young players who are all extremely motivated to win every tournament, regardless of its significance.

IEM Fall Partial Results

IEM Fall is currently underway in 4 different regions. I will analyze the partial results of each of them below.

CIS

The CIS Division of IEM Fall features 12 teams divided into 2 groups. And what is interesting is that in both groups, the difference between the top teams and the bottom teams is huge.

Group A:

• 1^st place: Natus Vincere: 4 W – 0 L
• 2^nd place: Entropiq: 3 W – 1 L
• 3^rd place: Team Spirit: 3 W – 1 L
• 4^th place: Nemiga Gaming: 2 W – 2 L
• 5^th place: Akuma: 0 W – 4 L
• 6^th place: AVE: 0 W – 4 L

Group B:

• 1^st place: Gambit Esports: 3 W – 1 L
• 2^nd place: INDE IRAE: 3 W – 1 L
• 3^rd place: Virtus.pro: 3 W – 1 L
• 4^th place: forZe: 1 W – 3 L
• 5^th place: K23: 1 W – 3 L
• 6^th place: Team Unique: 1 W – 3 L

Natus Vincere hasn’t exactly surpassed itself by winning 4 consecutive matches against these opponents. But other teams, such as Entropiq and INDE IRAE certainly have.

In Group B, Gambit Esports would have had a perfect score if it won against Virtus.pro. But James’ team was just a bit stronger and stole the victory in extra time (22 – 20).

Europe

In Europe, the battle in most groups is fierce. The most pleasant surprises were offered to us by G2 Esports (2 W – 0 L), Double Poney (2 W – 0 L), OG (2 W – 0 L), and Copenhagen Flames (2 W – 0 L). All of these teams have demonstrated great skill in their first few matches and based on how they played, there’s a good chance that they’ll continue to do well.

Other competitors, such as Fnatic (0 W – 2 L) and BIG (0 W – 2 L), have done the exact opposite and are in a lot of trouble right now.

These are the most likely winners (top 3 positions) in each group:

• Group A: G2 Esports, Copenhagen Flames, mousesports
• Group B: Heroic, Astralis, Sinners Esports
• Group C: Vitality, OG, ENCE
• Group D: NiP, FaZe Clan, Double Poney

In Group D, NiP’s superb victory against FaZe Clan (16 – 8 on Ancient) suggests that device may have finally found a way to make use of his teammates’ positioning during the game. His individual AWP skills are phenomenal but for quite a few months, he wasn’t able to do for NiP what he used to do for Astralis.

South America

IEM Fall: South American Division started poorly for MIBR. The Brazilian team lost rather unexpectedly against Sharks. The match was very close (14 – 16; 14 – 16) but ultimately, the lesser-known competitor won.

In the Upper Bracket Final, Sharks will play against Bravos. While in the Lower Bracket Round 1, MIBR will need to defeat Imperial to stay in the tournament. Normally, given the competitive level of the event, MIBR should make a comeback and win its next 3 matches.

Oceania

The IEM Fall tournament in Oceania is dominated by Renegades. However, their main rival, ORDER, managed to lose somehow against a no-name opponent called L4Org. USTILO’s crew has already won its first Lower Bracket match against VERTEX and will most likely encounter L4Org again in the Lower Bracket Final. No matter who wins that match, the Grand Final should belong to Renegades.

 

Photo credit: IEM|Bart-Oerbekke