Copenhagen Flames secure IEM Katowice berth, NIP sent to lower bracket

The Danes won each of their three maps played against fnatic and Ninjas in Pyjamas to reach the main event.

Copenhagen Flames have become the first team to secure a spot at the IEM Katowice main tournament after taking out Ninjas in Pyjamas in a two-map series on Nuke (16-3) and Mirage (16-12).

The Danish squad that took the world by storm in late 2021 at events such as IEM Fall and the PGL Major, but subsequently fell off playing online amid rumors of a bid for the team by Complexity, have impressed with two straight victories in the play-in — the aforementioned dismantling of Ninjas in Pyjamas and an opening 16-7 victory over fnatic.

The first map in the clash between the Swedish and Danish squads came on Copenhagen Flames’ map pick of Nuke, and it was the team led by Rasmus "⁠HooXi⁠" Nielsen, both in calling and on the scoreboard, that kicked off the series plugged in and ready to go on the attack, scoring 12 rounds out of the 15 possible before going on the CT side. Completely dazed, Ninjas in Pyjamas weren’t able to respond and were put out of commission after four rounds in the second half.

The Danish squad showed no signs of slowing down on Mirage, their rivals’ pick, winning their third pistol round to take an early lead and start to build up a bank on the defense going up 4-0 before Ninjas in Pyjamas were able to successfully hit a site for the first time. Unable to chain rounds together, Hampus "⁠hampus⁠" Poser and company quickly fell behind winning only one more round before the half.

The Swedes pushed for early dominance on the CT side, making a solid attempt at a comeback while allowing Copenhagen Flames a single round before hitting double digits, but Copenhagen Flames were finally able to muster up the final two rounds needed to seal the deal and advance to IEM Katowice’s main event.

Ninjas in Pyjamas are not out of contention yet, however, as they still have the lower bracket to look forward to for another chance at making it through the gauntlet successfully, with their first match slated to be against the winner of the match slated at 12:30 on Wednesday between MIBR and Movistar Riders.