Twenty-four teams began their journey for the prestigious IEM Cologne trophy, but two teams stood out sharply against the rest. Natus Vincere and Team Vitality secured the top spots in their groups and successfully closed out their semifinal matches with clean 2-0 victories. This set the stage for a showdown between these two powerhouses.

On one side, we have Natus Vincere, who has won a Major and the Esports World Cup this year, but the team has yet to establish itself as a dominant force. On the other side, Team Vitality, led by ZywOo, is one of the contenders for the title of the best player of the year. However, the main storyline revolved around the captain of the French club, apEX, who has been striving for ten years to win the Cologne trophy. This was his third grand final, with previous matches in 2015 and 2019 ending in defeat.

The teams delivered an unforgettable match. Two out of four maps went into overtime, with Mirage requiring three sets of additional rounds. The teams fought tooth and nail, making this match one worth watching. Mirage is a contender for the best map of the year.

ApEX finally lifted the long-awaited trophy, and now the community's attention turns to the closed qualifiers for the Shanghai Major. Next week, we will learn the names of the teams that will travel to Shanghai, where they will first compete in RMR tournaments and then battle it out at the main event of the second half of 2024.

Header Image: x.com

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