Your Guide to IEM Cologne 2026 Major Pick’Em Strategies

We’re just a few days away from the big event—time to finalize your Pick’Ems! The IEM Cologne 2026 Major stage one is about to kick off, featuring 16 teams from around the world vying for a chance to qualify. Who will leave empty-handed, and who will charge ahead into stage two? Here’s everything you need to know about the IEM Cologne Pick’Ems Diamond Coin.

CS2 Pick’Ems are in-game prediction challenges that let you test your knowledge of the pro scene during tournaments. Grab a Viewer Pass, make your predictions, and if you get enough right in a stage, you’ll earn Major shop tokens and upgrade your coin through four tiers: bronze, silver, gold, and diamond.

To achieve the diamond coin, you need to make accurate picks across all three stages and the playoffs. Your progress is tracked through 11 challenges in-game:

For each stage, you’ll need to predict ten outcomes: two teams that will go undefeated (3-0), two that will be eliminated without a win (0-3), and six teams that will advance to the next stage (3-1, 3-2). Get five correct, and your coin will upgrade to the next tier.

To start your journey toward the Diamond coin for the IEM Cologne Major 2026, you first need to obtain the Viewer Pass in-game. Once activated, head to the Pick’Ems hub to make your stage one predictions.

On the Pick’Em page, simply drag and drop the team icons into the designated slots, then hit save to lock in your choices. Achieving 5 out of 10 correct picks in any stage will upgrade your coin and reward you with Major Shop tokens.

If you miss the deadline for any stage, don’t worry—you can still participate during the tournament and complete the remaining stages. While you won’t earn the Diamond coin, you can still upgrade your coin based on how many stages you finish.

With the Majors following a consistent format for the last five years, several platforms allow you to simulate the results of the Major stages. These simulators let you select your predicted winners for each matchup and run through the entire stage’s outcomes before finalizing your Pick’Ems.

Both major simulation sites have updated their tools for the IEM Cologne 2026 Major, so be sure to create your predicted brackets before locking in your picks. These simulators are particularly useful for identifying potential pitfalls: strong teams that might face off early, preventing a 3-0 for at least one of them, or a weaker team that could benefit from a favorable matchup.

The VRS system is doing a commendable job of seeding teams for the Major, which often results in stage one being a mix of squads from around the globe that rarely compete against each other during the season. This can make predicting the Pick’Ems quite tricky. With that in mind, here are some of our predictions for the IEM Cologne 2026 Major stage one.

For 3-0 teams, realistically, only GamerLegion and BetBoom seem likely to achieve a flawless record at this stage, given their superior skills and recent performances. However, our simulations have them facing off against each other for the 3-0 match. So, pick the one you believe is stronger, and consider adding either Heroic or BIG as your other 3-0 choice to protect your picks.

As for 0-3 teams, the options are clear: Sharks and THUNDERdOWNUNDER. Neither team has made a significant impact internationally and lacks standout players. Fortunately for your Pick’Ems, they are likely to miss each other on their way to elimination.

Now, for the six advancement slots, start by selecting from GamerLegion, BetBoom, BIG, and Heroic (whichever you didn’t choose for 3-0). Rounding out the list may be trickier. If you favor strategy over raw firepower, consider NRG, SINNERS, and B8. If you believe in individual carries, MIBR and TYLOO could be strong picks. Lastly, if the legacy of an organization matters to you, Liquid is always a potential dark horse to sneak into stage two, though they didn’t make our final picks.

Unlike previous Majors, Valve has revamped the Major system for IEM Cologne 2026. Instead of earning Souvenir tokens from Pick’Ems, players will now receive tokens that can be used for both crafting Souvenirs and purchasing your favorite stickers directly.

This new system simplifies the process of acquiring the items you want, but be prepared to navigate dynamic pricing for your purchases.