IEM Rio 2023 is fast approaching, and it’s an opportunity for some teams to have a much-needed reset. Perhaps surprisingly, the latest Intel Extreme Masters tournament sees some big names miss out, with G2, Liquid, Virtus.pro, and Astralis not in attendance.

NAVI have a chance. Credit: Helena Kristiansson/ \u00a9 ESL

There are some early matchups that players should look out for. The first is Ninjas in Pyjamas vs Imperial. After Virtus.pro withdrew from IEM Rio 2023 just days before it began, NIP will be facing the late replacement Imperial. This makes it so much harder to prepare, only making the matchup more exciting. With NIP swiftly dumped from IEM Katowice 2023, they have their own point to prove, and it should result in some incredible CS:GO being played.

The second exciting match is The MongolZ vs NAVI. Looking at the CS:GO live stats for The MongolZ’ recent matches is interesting. The team were recently playing under the IHC banner, where they managed to defeat paiN, FURIA and Cloud9. Those are some serious scalps for this roster to take, but it will be exciting to see if they can continue that under the new moniker. Meanwhile, NAVI look resurgent. Newbie npl was the best player across the entire Paris Major RMR, representing an enormous step forward for the youngster. These are two teams with a real point to prove, and it should make for a tasty matchup.

With some of the best CS:GO players and teams missing out on IEM Rio 2023, there’s some serious upset potential here. These are just some of our predictions for the upcoming tournament.

Of all the CS:GO games today and beyond, it’s FaZe’s matches that we’re keeping an eye on. The Paris Major qualification debacle has left the team emotionally exhausted. They look a far cry from the roster that won the Intel Grand Slam just weeks ago. We think the hangover from that might continue a little longer, and FaZe could make an early exit here.

Heroic have some interesting prospects here. Their Group A draw looks extremely favorable, having to defeat 9INe and one of either BIG or MOUZ to guarantee a playoff place. It should be comfortable for cadiaN’s Heroic, who are looking to win their first tournament since BLAST Fall Finals 2022. We reckon they’ll come up short, finishing runners-up.

Looking at potential underdogs, it’ll be exciting to see what MOUZ can come up with at IEM Rio 2023. Qualification for the Paris Major leaves the team in a great headspace, with a winnable opener against BIG. Due to potentially facing Heroic, they’ll likely do it through the Lower Bracket, but we can definitely see MOUZ making the playoff. A semi-final result would be incredible here, and that’s where we think they’ll end up.

As for a winner? It’ll be NAVI’s moment. Looking at the CS:GO live stats makes for some grim reading – it’s approaching a year since NAVI won an S-Tier competition. But with npl’s incredible Paris Major RMR performance, it seems as though the presumed weak link in the team has repaid the immense faith shown in him by NAVI. He’ll be key if the team is to have their huge comeback moment at IEM Rio 2023.

You can catch IEM Rio 2023, and other CS:GO games today, on the ESL Twitch channel.