forZe beat Heroic to secure final IEM Chicago spot

FORZE bested HEROIC 2-1 in the grand final of the GG.BET Chicago Invitational, securing the final slot at IEM Chicago.

The grand final of the GG.BET IEM Chicago qualifier saw FORZE and HEROIC duke it out for the final spot at the $250,000 tournament. The first map, Inferno, saw a convincing 5-0 T-side start from the Danes that was equalised by the defence immediately. Momentum was not translated in the long run by Dmitriy "⁠facecrack⁠" Alekseyev and company, leading to a 6-9 halftime score in favour of the Danes. On the offense, the CIS representatives took control of proceedings, conceding but two rounds over the entire half to run out 16-11 victors.

Overpass followed, where FORZE managed to get the ball rolling on the offense, despite initial success from Benjamin "⁠blameF⁠" Bremer and his men. The Danes struggled severely in holding down bombsites, and persistent economic issues allowed a 10-5 half in favour of the Russians.

HEROIC consistently accrued rounds on the offense, very nearly losing momentum twice in 1v2 situations, both of which were converted successfully, assisting the team in achieving map point. While great promise was shown, a loss to a force buy in round 30 on the Danes' part meant overtime. The two sides proceeded to grind out a grand total of four OTs, with HEROIC eventually taking the win at 28-26 to force a third map.

The final map, Nuke, began with FORZE taking a 6-1 lead despite losing the opening pistol round. A slight sway in momentum mid-half gave the Danes the majority of the subsequent round count, bringing the deficit to five before switching sides.

Much like their opponents, FORZE found success in the first round but struggled thereafter. After giving up the lead, the Russian side finally woke up, chaining five rounds en route to a 16-12 finish.

FORZE will join Envy, the winner of the North American qualifier, and six invited teams at IEM Chicago. The North American event with run from July 18-21 at the United Center, with the full team list looking as follows: