IEM Rio 2026 opened on Monday, April 13, with eight matches across both groups and a mix of favorite-confirming wins and near-upsets. Team Vitality picked up where they left off — dispatching Brazilian qualifier RED Canids 2-0 despite hostile crowd energy. G2 Esports, MOUZ, and FURIA all needed three maps to advance. And NAVI delivered the stat line of the day: 13-0 against B8.
Group A Results
- Vitality 2-0 RED Canids (13-7, 13-9) — Vitality's anti-barrel boost strategy became a talking point after the match.
- G2 2-1 Gentle Mates — G2 sealed a Bo3 win but were pushed by Gentle Mates through three maps. MartinezSa posted a 1v2 clutch that kept Gentle Mates alive briefly.
- Team Spirit 2-0 Team Liquid — magixx has been shouldering expanded in-game responsibilities during hally's absence.
- Falcons 2-0 3DMAX — 3DMAX's PGL Bucharest bronze momentum didn't carry over. kyxsan had a 1v2 clutch that put Falcons within reach of a dominant series win.
Group B Results
- NAVI 2-1 B8 — NAVI opened with a historic 13-0 on Ancient before B8 pushed them through tighter subsequent maps. The CIS powerhouse looks dangerous after skipping Bucharest.
- MOUZ 2-1 Legacy — MOUZ dropped the opener before recovering to advance, one of two Bo3s where a top team was pushed by a tier-2 opponent.
- FURIA 2-0 Passion UA — YEKINDAR's 1v3 clutch kept FURIA ahead at a critical moment on map one. The Brazilian crowd energy clearly helped.
- Aurora 2-0 HOTU — The rising CIS squad handled the Global Qualifier entrants without drama.
The Vitality Question
Vitality's 2-0 was confidently delivered, but RED Canids pushed them harder than preseason forecasts expected. Map one's 13-7 scoreline involved a hard-fought CT side from the Brazilians. The star cast looked slightly less comfortable than they did in Cluj-Napoca. Three trophies in a row is enough to expect the world to catch up — the question is whether that happens in Rio or later.
Day 2 Schedule (April 14)
- 13:00 BRT: Vitality vs G2 (Upper Bracket Semifinal, Group A)
- 13:00 BRT: RED Canids vs Gentle Mates (Lower Bracket, Group A)
- 15:30 BRT: Liquid vs 3DMAX (Lower Bracket, Group A)
- 15:30 BRT: Spirit vs Falcons (Upper Bracket Semifinal, Group A)
- Group B UB Semifinals: NAVI vs MOUZ, Aurora vs FURIA
Both Upper Bracket Semifinals guarantee the winner an early playoff slot. Vitality vs G2 is the marquee match of Day 2 — two top-5 teams colliding after G2's three-map sweat against Gentle Mates. Full coverage on SkinPulse.
