Intel Extreme Masters Winter 2021: Everything that you should know

Intel Extreme Masters Winter 2021: Everything that you should know regarding the tournament. We will witness the final tournament of the Intel Extreme Master series in competitive Counter-Strike: Global Offensive at the IEM Winter 2021. This will be the last chance for teams to obtain a large number of points for their ESL Pro Tour as they advance into the next major tournament which will be IEM Katowice 2022. The 16 teams will also be fighting for a total prize pool of $250,000 US Dollars.

From Spring, Summer and Fall, we are onto Winter. The Last Chance to qualify for #IEM Katowice! 🏆

Are you ready for some fantastic Counter Strike? 🔥

Dec 2 – Dec 12 pic.twitter.com/PAPjPJBDfh

— Intel®ExtremeMasters (@IEM) November 19, 2021

IEM WINTER 2021: Teams

There will be 16 teams participating in the event. 11 slots will be for invited teams. The top 3 teams from the European Closed qualifier will make it here. The last two slots will be taken by the winning team of the North American Qualifier and the Asian Qualifier. The final list of teams are as follows:

Astralis (Invited)
BIG (Invited)
FaZe Clan (Invited)
Heroic (Invited)
G2 Esports (Invited)
Gambit Esports (Invited)
Team Liquid (Invited)
Ninjas in Pyjamas (Invited)
OG (Invited)
Virtus.pro (Invited)
Team Vitality (Invited)
Fnatic (EU Qualifier)
MOUZ (EU Qualifier)
ENCE (EU Qualifier)
GODSENT (NA Qualifier)
TYLOO (Asian Qualifier)

IEM WINTER 2021: Format

The teams have been split into two groups of eight. GROUP A has G2 Esports, OG, MOUZ, Team Vitality, TYLOO, Team Liquid, Ninjas in Pyjamas, and Astralis. GROUP B has Gambit Esports, Fnatic, ENCE, Virtus.pro, FaZe Clan, BIG, GODSENT, and Heroic. The format of the tournament will be as follows.

Group Stage
- The two different groups will follow the double-elimination format (GSL).
- The opening matches of each team will be a best of 1.
- All the remaining matches in the Group stage will be the best of 3.
- The three teams sitting at the top of the Group Table will advance into the Playoffs.
  - The team at the top of the Group Table will qualify directly for the Semi-Finals.
  - The team at the 2nd position will qualify for the Quarter-Finals in a higher seed.
  - The team at the 3rd position will qualify for the Quarter-Finals in a lower seed.
Playoff Stage
- The teams compete in a single-elimination bracket.
- The teams will fight in a best of 3 match series in the Quarter-Finals and Semi-Finals.
- At the Grand Finals, the top two teams will battle in a best of 5 match series.

IEM WINTER 2021: Schedule and Prize Pool

The Intel Extreme Masters Winter 2021 will be held from 2nd till 12th December. The total prize pool of the tournament is $250,000 US Dollars. This will also be the final chance for teams to gain a load of ESL Pro Tour points. These rewards will be distributed among the teams as follows:

1st Place: $100,000 and 1000 EPT points.
2nd Place: $42,000 and 750 EPT points.
3rd and 4th Places: $20,000 and 525 EPT points each.
5th and 6th Places: $10,000 and 350 EPT points each.
7th and 8th Places: $6,000 and 200 EPT points each.
9th to 12th Places: $5,000 and 100 EPT points each.
13th to 16th Places: $4,000 each and no EPT points.

Where to watch

Fans can catch all the CSGO team action at the ESL_CSGO channel on Twitch TV. The LIVE broadcast of the 1st day of the tournament will begin on 2nd December at 4:30 PM IST as Ninjas in Pyjamas will take on Astralis while Team Vitality will face off against MOUZ. There will also be further beginning matches later that day. Stick with us as we bring you the latest updates regarding IEM Winter 2021.