CSGO Betting Tips for the Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII Sydney

Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII Sydney is an upcoming CS:GO tournament scheduled to take place in Sydney between May 1st and May 6th. The event brings together a total of 16 participants including many of the world’s best teams and has a prize pool of $250.000.

IEM Sydney Participants

Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII Sydney features 16 teams from all over the world:

• Cloud9

• FaZe Clan

• Fnatic

• mousesports

• Natus Vincere

• Renegades

• SK Gaming

• Space Soldiers

• Astralis

• NRG Esports

• MVP PK

• TyLoo

• B.O.O.T-dream[S]cape

• Chiefs eSports Club

• Grayhound Gaming

• to be announced (Oceanic Qualifier)

Event format

Initially, the teams will be divided into 2 groups of 8. Both of these groups will be played in a GSL format (double-elimination bracket). The winner of each group qualifies for the Semifinals. The 2nd and 3rd placed teams qualify for the first round of the Playoffs, where 2nd placed team from Group A plays against 3rd placed team from Group B and vice versa.

Chiefs eSports Club Tucks at IEM Sydney 2017. Photo via https://www.hltv.org

The initial matches are Bo1. All the other matches are Bo3, with the exception of the Grand Final, which is a Bo5 series. The Playoffs will be played in a single-elimination bracket format.

Prize pool distribution

The $250.000 prize pool will be divided among participating teams in the following way:

• 1st place: $100.000

• 2nd place: $42.000

• 3rd – 4th place: $20.000

• 5th – 6th place: $10.000

• 7th – 8th place: $6.000

• 9th – 12th place: $5.000

• 13th – 16th place: $4.000

Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII Sydney Betting considerations

Here are some betting tips and considerations for this event:

SK Gaming is still weak

After dominating the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive professional scene in 2016 and 2017, SK Gaming is now a shadow of its former self and needs to train hard in order to start winning again. The team has been struggling for several months and lost TACO, who joined Team Liquid. He was replaced by a strong player (Stewie2K from Cloud9) but SK’s future is still uncertain at this point. The team’s playstyle and overall coordination has taken a hit with the addition of this player, who will have to be integrated in the core roster’s system of play.

SK Gaming Coldzera at IEM Syndey 2017. SK Gaming won the event after they battled it out with FaZe Clan in the finals. Photo via https://www.hltv.org

For the time being, you should not bet on SK Gaming when their adversary is a world class team with a solid strategy. In fact, quite the opposite.

Strong underrated teams

These are teams that people tend to regard as outsiders with no chance of winning at this level, but who are actually very good. Space Soldiers is an example of such a team and its recent 2nd place finish at World Electronic Sports Games clearly proves that. Keep an eye on this underdog and don’t miss the chance to bet on it when the probability of an upset is high.

Space Soldiers Roster. Photo via https://www.facebook.com/SpaceSoldiersTR/

Top contenders

Going into IEM Sydney, there are several teams which will almost surely get a top 4 finish. These teams are Fnatic, FaZe Clan, mousesports and Astralis. Until they start facing each other, these participants are likely to crush all opposition. It’s hard to say which of them is the favorite for winning the whole event, but I suspect that either Fnatic or mousesports will be the champion.

Outsiders

These are teams that you should definitely bet against, especially when their opponent is one of the top contenders. Examples of such teams are the following: MVP PK, Grayhound Gaming, Chiefs eSports Club, and B.O.O.T-dream[S]cape.

As we approach Intel Extreme Masters Season XIII Sydney, make sure to keep an eye on the best bookmakers’ offers and stay in touch with the latest news regarding team results and player transfers!