IEM Rio CSGO Major 2022: Outsiders crush Heroic and win their first Major

The Rio Major has come to a close. After a series of dramatic upsets and two finalist teams that have never won a major, IEM Rio Major 2022 was won by the Outsiders. Catch up on the action here with all the event details, including the format, schedule, and the final results.

• Outsiders beat MOUZ to book their finals spot, and went on to crush Heroic 2-0
• Hometown favorites FURIA stunned by Heroic and knocked out in the semifinals
• Despite getting knocked out of the tournament in the quarterfinals, s1mple was crowned the player of the decade by ESL

Come to Brazil, they said. Now Counter-Strike’s best are doing just that. The IEM Rio Major 2022 brought the peak of the game’s competition to the CS:GO-loving nation with a $1 million prize purse and the illustrious title on offer.

After being canceled in 2020, Valve and ESL have followed through on their promise to bring the biggest stage to Rio in 2022 where 24 of the world’s best Counter-Strike teams fought to win the major title. 

Catch up with all the IEM Rio Major 2022 pre-event info right here including the format and who qualified.

Contents

• Streams
• Schedule & results
• All qualified teams

IEM Rio Major 2022: Streams

Being an ESL-run event, the IEM Rio Major 2022 was streamed on all ESL CSGO Twitch channels. Miss a game? Catch up with VODs on the ESL Archives YouTube channel.

Main stream

IEM Rio Major 2022: Schedule & results

The IEM Rio Major 2022 took place from October 31 to November 13, 2022. It was split into three different stages: Challengers, Legends, and Champions. This is akin to formats used in past Majors.

Challengers and Legends work on a five-game Swiss format, where teams need to win three matches to qualify for the next stage. Lose three matches and you’re eliminated.

The top eight teams foght through a single-elimination bracket to cement their place in Counter-Strike history. With $1.25 million on the line, the Outsiders walked away with a decent chunk of change ⁠— and a slot at IEM Katowice 2023.

Stephanie Lindgren for PGL

FaZe Clan took home the last CS:GO Major in Antwerp earlier in 2022.

The event ran as follows:

Dates: October 31-November 13

• Challengers Stage: October 31-November 3
• Legends Stage: November 5-8
• Champions Stage: November 10-13

Champions Stage (November 10-13)

Day 1: November 10

Day 2: November 11

Day 3: November 12

Day 4: November 13

Legends Stage (November 5-8)

Day 1: November 5

Day 2: November 6

Day 3: November 7

Day 4: November 8

Challengers Stage (October 31 – November 3)

Day 1: October 31

Day 2: November 1

Day 3: November 2

Day 4: November 3

IEM Rio Major 2022: All qualified teams

Twenty-four teams qualified for the IEM Rio Major 2022 via the Regional Major Ranking (RMR) events in Europe, the Americas, and Asia.

The eight-best teams from the qualifying events (seven from Europe and one from the Americas) have made it into the Legends Stage ⁠— straight into the Top 16. The other 16 will have to battle their way through the Challengers Stage, which will also include two teams from Asia-Pacific.

You can find the full slot breakdown for the IEM Rio Major 2022 below.

Legends teams

Challengers teams

Contenders teams

IEM Rio Major 2022: prize money distribution

The IEM Rio Major will have $1.25 million on the line. It’s a $250,000 increase when compared to the previous two CS:GO Majors, though it’s important to mention that, because of this change, the RMRs no longer have prize money on offer. All in all, the prize money for the entire Major cycle remains the same.