Natus Vincere have booked their place in the quarterfinals of IEM Cologne 2025 after defeating FaZe Clan for the second time at the event. The Ukrainian team cruised through Ancient with a dominant 13:4 win and held their ground on Inferno, closing the series 2:0. 

This was a rematch between NAVI and FaZe after their first clash in the upper bracket, where FaZe pulled off a comeback on Ancient from 4:8 to 13:11. But this time, karrigan's squad couldn’t repeat the feat. NAVI dismantled FaZe’s initial setups with smart aggression in Cave, mid dominance, and a controlled B site defense.

Although FaZe won the pistol round, they quickly lost momentum — iM picked up an AK and began to break through their defense. He and makazze shut down mid, while b1t dominated on B, helping NAVI secure a 9:3 half.

On Inferno, FaZe started stronger with rain and broky delivering crucial multikills. However, a failed 2v3 and a triple kill from b1t shifted the momentum. NAVI equalized the score before the side swap and took control with a force-buy round win, eventually reaching 12:7.

What’s next?

With this victory, NAVI advance to the quarterfinals of IEM Cologne 2025 and await their opponent — one of the second-place teams from the remaining groups. FaZe, on the other hand, are eliminated from the tournament after losing to NAVI twice in one week, raising serious concerns about their current form and lineup changes involving EliGE.

NAVI’s next match will be on August 1 at 20:00 CEST against The MongolZ — the winner of that match will move straight into the LANXESS Arena semifinals.