IEM Katowice 2024 dark horses

IEM Katowice 2024 will bring in Poland 24 teams. Some of them need no introduction whatsoever. But others don’t get the respect they deserve.

In this article, I will take a closer look at three teams that have the potential to become dark horses at this tournament.

Monte

Monte haven’t made any roster changes since July 2023. And prior to that, they changed their coach and another player, bringing in Viktor “sdy” Orudzhev, who went on to become the team’s IGL.

Since he joined the team, Monte obtained around a dozen excellent results, in B-tier, A-tier, and even S-tier tournaments.

• 1^st place at CCT West Europe Series #2
• 1^st place at ESL Challenger League S44 Europe
• 1^st place at CCT Central Europe Series #5
• 1^st place at CCT West Europe Series #3
• 5^th – 8^th place at BLAST.tv Paris Major
• 3^rd – 4^th place at ESL Pro League S18
• 2^nd place at Roobet Cup
• 3^rd – 4^th place at Thunderpick World Championship
• 1^st place at DreamHack Winter
• 3^rd – 4^th place at DreamHack Atlanta

These results have made Monte the 6^th best team in the world. But very few fans are aware of just how strong they are at the moment. In most matches, most people’s prediction is that Monte will lose, just because the other team has a more prestigious name or has been around for much longer.

IEM Katowice 2024 will be a tough event. After the play-in stage, only 16 of the 24 teams will remain. And of these 16 teams, only six will advance to the playoffs. Monte will need to finish their group in the top three, but their chances of succeeding are better than you’d think.

1 year together with this boy @somedieyoungCS 💙 #MonteGang pic.twitter.com/gfYgwh94ph

— MONTE ESPORTS 🇺🇦 (@Monte_Esports) January 18, 2024

Cloud9

Cloud9 will start the tournament in the play-in stage. Assuming they survive, and they should, they will face tough opposition in the group stage. But if we look at their current roster and recent achievements, it’s clear that they have everything they need to succeed.

Three of their players won the Stockholm Major together in 2021, while competing for Natus Vincere. Since Kirill “Boombl4” Mikhaylov joined, back in November 2023, C9 finished 3^rd – 4^th at Thunderpick World Championship, 3^rd – 4^th at BLAST Premier Fall Final, and 5^th – 6^th at BLAST Premier World Final.

The team is now ready to do more, and there are very few competitors who can beat them in a best-of-three. If they manage to avoid Team Vitality, FaZe Clan, and G2 Esports until the upper bracket Final, their chances of qualifying for the playoffs are high.

Header: ESL