CS2 IEM Dallas 2025: Teams & complete schedule

The stage is set for one of the biggest Counter-Strike 2 events of the year – Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) Dallas 2025 kicks off today (May 19) under the aegis of ESL. Sixteen of the world’s top teams will travel to Dallas and fight it out for the 300K prize pool, but only one will lift the IEM trophy in Texas. 

In this article, we’ll go over everything you need to know about CS2 IEM Dallas 2025, including a format explainer, all 16 invited teams, the complete match schedule, and who the favourites are. 

Intel Extreme Masters (IEM) is one of the longest-running and most prestigious tournament series in Counter-Strike esports. Organised by ESL and sponsored by Intel, IEM events have been a pillar of competitive CS for over a decade, continuing the legacy with the transition to CS2. Each IEM event contributes to the ESL Pro Tour (EPL), giving top-tier teams the chance to earn prize money, ranking points, and, of course, international bragging rights. 

CS2 IEM Dallas is the third international event of the 2025 CS2 season, following IEM Katowice and IEM Melbourne. It kicks off May 19 and runs through May 25, with the Playoffs held live at DreamHack Dallas in the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.

The tournament begins with the initial Group Stage featuring all 16 teams, split into two groups of eight (A and B). Each group will follow a standard double-elimination (GSL) format, with all matches played as best-of-three (Bo3).

Here’s how teams progress from the Group Stage to the Playoffs: 

The Playoffs will run from May 23 to 25 as a single-elimination bracket. The Quarter-finals and Semi-finals will be Bo3, while the Grand Final will be an epic best-of-five (Bo5) battle.

For IEM Dallas 2025, there’s a whopping $300,000 prize pool, split among all 16 teams competing. Teams will also receive monetary club bonuses based on their performances, as shown in the table below. 

Here are all the invited teams for IEM Dallas 2025 and their confirmed player rosters by in-game ID as confirmed on Liquidpedia. 

Eight leading teams from different regions received direct invitations to CS2 IEM Dallas 2025, based on their Valve Regional Standings (VRS). Notably, NAVI and Team Spirit, two of the biggest teams in Eastern Europe, are absent from the competition, likely due to conflicting schedules and previous engagements. 

ESL organised closed qualifiers in four regions – Europe, North America, South America, and Asia – giving smaller teams a chance to qualify for this top-level CS2 tournament. 

Naturally, Team Vitality is a firm favourite after winning IEM Katowice 2025 in February and IEM Melbourne in April, making them back-to-back IEM champions with strong players like ZywOo and apEX heading their roster. They are also leading the VRS rankings by a large margin, currently standing at an impressive 2,117 points.  

Another team to watch in IEM Dallas is Team Falcons. They’ve already seen huge success in 2025 jumping through the VRS leaderboards, recently landing in the #3 spot worldwide. They look to be Team Vitality’s biggest contender after the events of BLAST Rivals Spring 2025 and IEM Melbourne, having come 2nd behind Vitality on both occasions. 

As the biggest CS2 IEM event this spring, IEM Dallas will have an action-packed itinerary encompassing six days of non-stop action. All eyes are on who makes the Playoffs, and we’re all anticipating another late-game Vitality vs. Falcons clash – third-time lucky at an Intel Extreme Masters event. 

Here’s the complete CS2 IEM Dallas schedule as confirmed by ESL – all times listed in BST. 

Upper Bracket Quarter-finals – May 19

Upper Bracket Quarter-finals – May 20

Lower Bracket Quarter-finals – May 20

Upper Bracket Semi-finals – May 20

Lower Bracket Semi-final – May 21

Lower Bracket Final – May 21

Upper Bracket Final – May 21

Upper Bracket Quarter-finals – May 19

Upper Bracket Quarter-finals – May 20

Lower Bracket Quarter-finals – May 20

Lower Bracket Quarter-finals – May 21

Upper Bracket Semi-finals – May 20

Upper Bracket Semi-finals – May 21

Lower Bracket Semi-final – May 21

Lower Bracket Final – May 22

Upper Bracket Final – May 22

With a stacked lineup starring top-tier teams like Team Vitality, MOUZ, Team Falcons, and FaZe Clan, IEM Dallas 2025 is already shaping up to be a blockbuster. Vitality is coming in hot after their IEM Melbourne win, while Falcons could swoop in for revenge after falling just short twice this year. Add dark horses like Aurora Gaming and G2 Esports into the mix, and there are guaranteed highlight-reel plays and unpredictable upsets. 

With $300K on the line and international pride at stake, we’re expecting fireworks straight from the first round to the final bullet at DreamHack Dallas.