IEM Melbourne 2025 preview: Who does our team back to win it all?

IEM Melbourne has arrived at last. The 2025 edition of the tier-one CS2 tournament sees 16 of the world's best descend upon the Victorian capital for the lion's share of a $300,000 USD prize pool and the title of Australian champions.

So, who's the team heading home with the plate? Our DFRAG team has put their picks in — here's what may (or may not) happen at IEM Melbourne this week!

Flamboyant: FaZe to take it all

For me it's FaZe. Finn "karrigan" Andersen and Jonathan "EliGE" Jablonowski have a long standing relationship with fans in Australia. Their presence at IEM Sydney in 2023 is amazing and I’m sure Row F will be there to carry the spirit for the players.

Personally, Håvard "rain" Nygaard has been one of the best peformers for this FaZe roster and doesn't look like he is slowing down whatsoever, backed by a third place finish at PGL Burchrest.

IEM Melbourne is the perfect opppurtuinty for them to spoil Vitality's party and their Grand Slam hopes. We have seen players like David "frozen" Čerňanský rise to the occasion to perform in this team and it looks as if we are coming to the end of the 3-4 month period of FaZe where they play like crap, then get into contact with Australia, and then turn on the afterburners for the major.

Seriously though, they have a great opportunity to bounce back and they do well with the time zone difference. Maybe they're just immune to jetlag?

Iceo: Vitalty to complete Grand Slam

I find it very difficult to predict anyone other than Vitality, who travel to Melbourne with extra motivation: They are only one title away from an ESL Grand Slam.

Australian fans will be excited to witness CS history on their own shores (should it happen) and it is definitely foreseeable that a large contingent of the crowd would be supporting the European powerhouse to make it happen.

MOUZ have already met them in two previous finals this year and could definitely press for the title; but ultimately, with Aurora and now Spirit missing the event, Vitality’s run to a Grand Slam has only become easier.

Aussie crowds will, however, naturally be rooting for hometown heroes FlyQuest, hoping for a deep run. They may find better success in supporting our APAC contemporaries in The Mongolz, who despite a bit of a dip in form recently, are well-equipped to go all the way.

Joshin: Ropz's addition makes Vitality unbeatable

Vitality. The only real two teams that could contest with them is either MOUZ or NAVI. Every other team doesn’t even come close. It’ll be great to witness Vitality achieve their inevitable ESL Grand Slam in Australia.

Robin "ropz" Kool has been their missing puzzle piece and they’ve romped in all tournaments in it even dismantling the seemingly unbeatable Team Spirit. With Spirit’s withdrawal, I see no opposition for Dan "apEX" Madesclaire's coronation.

MongolZ are rapidly falling and FlyQuest is unlikely to make the grand stage on the weekend. The black horse teams to watch out for will be Virtus.pro, 3DMAX, Falcons, and GamerLegion.

BreadHead: ZywOo to lift the plate

Vitality has established themselves as the most dominant and consistent team of 2025 having secured three LAN titles this year thus far. In-game leading and CS2 have been a perfect match for apEX, especially with the current meta favoring the T-side.

ApeX continues to level up his team with each event Vitality attends. Since acquiring ropz from FaZe in January, the team has a LAN map win rate of just over 80%. Their game involves more than just "Zywoo go kill," however; Vitality has developed a well-rounded, tactical playstyle that creates space for individual talent to shine.

IEM Melbourne will be used to further sharpen Vitality’s game as they prepare for the Austin Major, where they will most likely be betting favourites.

My other contenders include MOUZ, The MongolZ, and Falcons. It's important to note that Ilya "m0NESY" Osipov will be making his debut for Falcons in his first game since transferring from G2.

M0NESY made an incredible impact at his first LAN event with G2, reaching the grand final of IEM Katowice and immediately elevated the team's performance. I see Falcons posing a threat, but come championship Sunday, Vitality will be too good.

IEM Melbourne's group stage kicks off April 21. We hope to see you at IEM this year, with DFRAG operating both on the media front as well as a booth in the CENTERPIECE IEM Expo!