IEM Katowice will officially kick off on January 29.

NertZ's Liquid will face HEROIC

ESL has announced the opening round matches of IEM Katowice Phase 1 (formerly known as Play-in), where 16 teams will compete for eight spots in Phase 2 (formerly known as group stages) in the bo3 series.

The most exciting confrontation will be the battle between Liquid and HEROIC, especially when Guy "⁠NertZ⁠" Iluz will meet his old organization again.

Complexity and Eternal Fire will also face off in the same bracket, while 3DMAX will face FlyQuest. Astralis, motivated by the return of Nicolai "⁠device⁠" Reedtz, will face MIBR.

paiN will face a tough opponent in Virtus.pro, while Fredrik "⁠REZ⁠" Sterner's GamerLegion will face SAW in the first round.

The final two matches will be a confrontation between Wildcard and BIG, along with a promising match between Imperial fe and FURIA.

The eight teams invited directly into Stage 2 have also been branched out, opening up many possibilities for reunions between former teammates. G2 and Falcons are in the same bracket in Group A, while Vitality and FaZe are also in this group.

In Group B, Spirit and Natus Vincere are in the same bracket, similar to MOUZ and The MongolZ.

The opening round matches of Phase 1, currently organized in a bo3 format, are as follows (match times are currently undetermined):