Dust2's Underdog Fantasy Pick 'Em IEM Cologne Preview

After a competitive Play-In, IEM Cologne is here to deliver the best of professional Counter-Strike inside the Cathedral. With this being the last big event before the break, many teams and players have more riding on their performance in Germany than just lifting a trophy. With so many weaving storylines inside this event, the opening matches could not be more important.

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Last month was much better than the first, as we shot two for three on bets. In fact, we were one headshot away from having a perfect run. Unfortunately, that's sometimes how the cookie crumbles when it comes to betting. This is why Dust2 only encourages responsible fun.

The opening round of IEM Cologne has many enticing lines, but we could only pick so many. Here are our favorite round one bets at IEM Cologne, sponsored by Underdog Fantasy.

Lukas: Nikola "NiKo" Kovač (O42.5 frags, maps 1+2) vs Movistar Riders

G2 is back at LAN after being grinded out by Vitality in the semi-finals at BLAST. NiKo has been a treat to watch throughout the whole year unless he was playing against your favorite team. His dominance despite stretches of team struggles makes him one of the best players in the world, which by default makes him a fun player to bet on. When you add the matchup to the context, it gets even better.

Movistar Riders are entering the opening round with the momentum of a six-game win streak on their side. However, look for NiKo to be the player to end that. These two teams faced off at IEM Dallas right at the end of May which resulted in a one-sided stomp from G2. Leading that stomp was NiKo, who ended the 16-5 beatdown with 23 frags. I expect that same intensity to be brought in this matchup by NiKo and his team, as they will also need to gather momentum ahead of the potential BO3 against the winner of ENCE and Vitality.

Lukas: Ádám "torzi" Torzsás (U36.5 frags, maps 1+2) vs NaVi

Talk about an unlucky draw. Things have not been the greatest over at the MOUZ camp, more specifically, the performance at LAN. They'll have to work on finding that form with one another in the first round against the second-best team in the world, NaVi.

The young AWPer torzi will especially have his work cut out for him. His performance in particular has waned from online to LAN. Over the year, the 20-year-old currently averages 18.8 frags a map, putting him just on pace to break the 36.5 thresholds. This is against a variety of different skilled opposition and does not consider that he will be facing off against the best AWPer in the world, Aleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev. Look for torzi to have a long day against NaVi tomorrow.

Mareks "YEKINDAR" Gaļinskis (O37.5 frags, maps 1+2) vs Spirit

Honeymoon hype train anyone? The best entry fragger in the world has graced North American Counter-Strike for what appears to be one event. Temporary or not, look for both Liquid and YEKINDAR to make the most opportunity, as both parties have much to prove at this event.

For YEKINDAR, if he is not staying with Liquid, this will be a prime chance to showcase his skills in a completely foreign team environment. For Liquid, this serves as an opportunity to either make a case to persuade YEKINDAR to stay or to prove themselves as a team to any free agents that they may want to seek out. The new-look Spirit has yet to lose a match since its inception, but they haven't faced the new-look Liquid.

Have you heard the saying, "It's not about the size of the dog in the fight, it's about the size of the fight in the dog"? No matter how the game goes, there are just certain players that cannot be kept down. With the IEM Cologne set to begin, here are your "Dog in Him" players for the event, sponsored by Underdog Fantasy:

• Benjamin "blameF" Bremer (Astralis)

• Ludvig "Brollan" Brolin (NIP)

• Abey "HObbit" Khasenov (Cloud9)

• Finn "karrigan" Andersen (FaZe)

• Aleksandr "s1mple" Kostyliev (NaVi)

Sign up on Underdog Fantasy with our affiliate link here and they will match your first deposit up to $100. For mobile bettors, download the app and use promo code "DUST2" to match your first deposit. After signing up, anyone who uses your signup link or codes will receive a deposit match of up to $100 for their first deposit. As always, Dust2 would like to remind all readers and bettors to please follow all rules associated with gambling and to always gamble responsibly.