CS2 Players & Teams To Watch At IEM Cologne Major 2026
The 2026 IEM Cologne Major is fast approaching. Let’s take a look at some players and teams I’m keeping a close eye on.
Teams Trending Up
These are the squads who are looking sharp ahead of the big event:
FUT
These young fellas are scary talented across the board, and they should pose a serious threat at the major despite their relative inexperience at the highest level. FUT have already picked up some big-time wins at tier-one events in 2026, and they play a highly confident brand of CS.
Spirit
A more obvious pick, but you have to like what you’ve been seeing out of Spirit. The early results with the new starting five were rough, but now donk and company are looking dangerous. tN1R in particular is looking more confident, and his play will be an X factor in Cologne.
Teams Trending Down
Which teams have not been at their best lately?
PARIVISION
I’m a big Jame fan and I think PARIVISION will always be a serious threat at tournaments because of him. That being said, recent performances for the team have been worrying. There have been rumors of lineup changes if certain players don’t step it up.
Aurora
This is another team that’s been disappointing lately. XANTERES is one of the most skilled players in Counter-Strike, and Wicadia is strong as well, but the results have been poor. They simply haven’t had what it takes to overcome the best teams in the world.
Players Trending Up
Here are the players to track for the 2026 major:
npl
The primary reason B8 have been playing so well: npl. He is not only calling well but bringing the firepower too.
latto
Fresh off an MVP showing at the CS Asia Championships, Legacy’s rifler has been peaking at just the right time.
w0nderful
Na’Vi’s AWPer has been elite lately, and his play will be crucial to the team’s chances of securing a deep run at the major.
For player-level ratings check CARNAGE before games start. For game-level fair values see MARKET. The new tool, RANGE, shows outcome distributions on a player and team level. For the full event hub see IEM Cologne Major 2026.
Good luck!