After FUT dominated the weaker field of PGL Bucharest 2026, IEM Rio 2026 is bringing back all the top teams in CS2 to Brazil. The major race may be settled, but everything’s still to play for at Rio. Especially for Vitality, as the world number one squad stands just one event win away from securing their second Grand Slam. Can anyone stop Vitality short of another historic achievement?
IEM Rio 2026 Teams
The meteoric rise of PARIVISION, Astralis and FUT across 2026 makes their absence from the IEM Rio field notable. Though, that has little to do with the invitation system itself, as FUT and PARIVISION both failed to make it through the Global Qualifiers, while Astralis declined that invite altogether. The other heavy hitters are all in attendance though, making Rio an incredibly stacked tournament.
- Vitality
- NAVI
- FURIA
- Falcons
- Aurora
- MOUZ
- Spirit
- G2
- Legacy
- 3DMAX
- B8
- Liquid
- Passion UA
- Gentle Mates
- HOTU
- RED Canids
Stand-ins and Roster Moves at IEM Rio 2026
Among the top squads, Spirit coach Sergey “hally” Shavayev, and G2 IGL Nemanja “huNter-” Kovač will both be missing the Brazilian event due to health issues. While Spirit will see their Academy coach Dmitry “S0tF1k” Forostyanko guide the team in hally’s absence, G2 will rely on the combination of Álvaro “SunPayus” García and Guy “NertZ” Iluz to lead the troops.
Passion UA’s much-hyped global roster will also wait a few events longer for their big event LAN appearance, as Justin “FaNg” Coakley will step in for Azbayar “Senzu” Munkhbold at Rio to ensure Passion UA maintain the North American that was the basis of the team’s invitation.
Finally, this could well be Falcons’ last event as a five-man roster as recent reports have placed Finn “karrigan” Andersen at the helm of the roster ahead of the IEM Cologne Major 2026.
IEM Rio 2026 Prize Pool
The event will feature a $1 million prize pool, with the split between players’ share and club share weighted towards the latter.
| Placement | Prize Money (+ Club Share) |
|---|---|
| 1st | $125,000 (+$170,000) |
| 2nd | $50,000 (+$120,000) |
| 3rd | $30,000 (+$95,000) |
| 4th | $20,000 (+$75,000) |
| 5-6th | $12,500 (+$55,000) |
| 7-8th | $7,000 (+$35,000) |
| 9-12th | $5,000 (+$15,000) |
| 13-16th | $4,000 |
IEM Rio 2026 format explained
The event follows ESL’s standard event format, featuring two GSL groups and a six-team single elimination event format. 8 teams enter each group, battling for the top three slots to earn their playoffs berths, with the top seed also receiving a bye straight to the semifinals. Each series in the groups and playoffs will be a best-of-three with the exception of the best-of-five grand finals.
IEM Rio 2026 Match Schedule and Results
Monday, Apr. 13, 2026
- Vitality vs. RED Canids (15:00 CEST)
- Gentle Mates vs. G2 (15:00 CEST)
- Spirit vs. Liquid (17:30 CEST)
- 3DMAX vs. Falcons (17:30 CEST)
- B8 vs. NAVI (20:00 CEST)
- Legacy vs. MOUZ (20:00 CEST)
- FURIA vs. Passion UA (22:30 CEST)
- Aurora vs. HOTU (22:30 CEST)
Where to watch IEM Rio 2026
You can watch all the matches live on ESL’s official Twitch and YouTube channels:
