NAVI tie FaZe in Grand Slam race with IEM Rio win

Aleksib's troops have eight chances to complete the Grand Slam run.

Natus Vincere have joined the front of the race for the Intel Grand Slam Season 5 prize after winning IEM Rio on Sunday. They now have two titles to their name, just as many as FaZe, though they have six more chances than their rivals to complete the run.

To win a Grand Slam, a team must win four ESL Pro Tour trophies inside a window of ten events, as long as one of those titles came from a Championship-level tournament (IEM Katowice, IEM Cologne, or an ESL-operated Major),

NAVI added the IEM Rio title to the ESL Pro League Season 20 trophy they had claimed at the end of last month, becoming the first team to win back-to-back ESL Pro Tour tournaments in 2024. They now have eight chances to pick up two more trophies, though one of them must be from a Championship tournament.

FaZe entered the Grand Slam race by winning IEM Sydney 2023 and then added a second trophy six months later when they won IEM Chengdu 2024.

Finn "⁠karrigan⁠" Andersen's charges have no room for error remaining, however, as they must win the next two eligible events, and one of them must be a Championship tournament.

Having missed out on the Rio trophy, MOUZ see their Pro League 18 title fall out of consideration. They now have five chances to add to their Pro League 19 trophy, but they must win three tournaments — including a Championship event — to claim the $1 million prize.

IEM Rio was the last Grand Slam-eligible event of 2024. The tournament organizer has announced eight events for 2025 but no additional details about how its circuit will look next year.

Read more

ESL and BLAST announce 2025 event dates

The IGS standings are:

Natus Vincere (2 wins / No EPTC win / 8 chances)
FaZe (2 wins / No / 2 chances)
Vitality (1 win / Yes / 7 chances)
G2 (1 win / No / 6 chances)
MOUZ (1 win / No / 5 chances)
Spirit (1 win / Yes / 3 chances)