Stage 1 Day 3 of IEM Cologne Major 2026 produced the first Stage 2 advancement locks and the first eliminations of the Major. The Day 3 results:
3-0 Stage 2 locks
- GamerLegion 2-0 BetBoom: Mirage 13-9, Anubis 13-7. The scoreboard headline of the day - GamerLegion's structural map-pool depth read at the top tier from the opening match.
- paiN 2-1 B8: Dust2 13-11, Inferno 11-13, Nuke 13-9. The closer of the two 3-0 path matches, with B8 taking Inferno before paiN closed on Nuke.
1-1 vs 1-1 results
- HEROIC 2-0 ECSTATIC, Metizport 2-1 Lynn Vision, FlyQuest 2-1 Nemiga, 3DMAX 2-0 Chinggis Warriors — winners move to the 2-1 advance pool, losers drop to 1-2.
0-2 elimination matches
- SINNERS 2-1 Imperial: Cache 13-10, Ancient 9-13, Vertigo 13-11. Imperial finish Stage 1 at 0-3 — the second Brazilian-region side to exit the Major before Stage 2, after FaZe missed the qualification cycle.
- M80 2-1 Wildcard: Anubis 13-7, Mirage 8-13, Nuke 13-9. Wildcard finish at 0-3.
The Day 4 picture
Day 4 (June 5) opens at 10:00 CEST with three 2-1 vs 2-1 bo3 matches and three 1-2 vs 1-2 bo3 matches. Winners of the 2-1 matches advance at 3-1; losers fall to 2-2 for a second-shot bo3 in the day's second window. Winners of the 1-2 matches advance to 2-2; losers are eliminated at 1-3. The full Stage 1 advancer list closes by Day 4 evening, with the Stage 2 (Legends) pairing reveal scheduled for 19:00 CEST.
