IEM Cologne 2025: NAVI Defeats MOUZ in Group B Upper Final

In the Group B Upper Final at IEM Cologne 2025, NAVI overcame MOUZ 2–1 in a series that exposed MOUZ’s tempo fragility outside their comfort maps. NAVI won not through raw firepower, but by applying structural pressure in mid-round phases and disrupting MOUZ’s timing models in both control and post-plant.

Map 1 – Ancient (NAVI 13:9)

MOUZ CT Side:

• Cave/long control was passive. No active denial on early B pressure.
• Temple rotates delayed by 1.6 seconds on average.
• 4v4 retakes lacked synchronized flash timing and were executed without layer 2 utility.

MOUZ T Side:

• Donut entries unsupported; elbow pressure absent in mid rounds.
• Frozen isolated in transitions, no info loop established post-control.

NAVI Highlights:

• s1mple played off-angle delay setups; Perfecto handled openers consistently.
• Boosts on B short used in 3 separate rounds to deny default access.

Map 2 – Mirage (MOUZ 13:6)

• MOUZ implemented full mid control using triple utility sequences: window smoke, top mid molly, cat flash.
• Xertion opened three A-site rounds without losses; zero dry entries attempted.
• NAVI lost all jungle splits and failed to retake in four post-plant scenarios due to lack of corner isolation.

Map 3 – Overpass (NAVI 13:7)

MOUZ T Side:

• No toilets control; B-site targeted only once, with zero plant conversions.
• All attacks defaulted to long/short A, with failed site entry patterns.

NAVI CT Side:

• Mid information consistently retrieved through short flanks and layered boosts.
• Perfecto and b1t consistently used info triggers to re-position before commits.

NAVI T Side:

• A-site executes structured at 42s with flash/molly stack on toilets.
• No contact plays before 35s, all entries occurred via split with pre-smoke timing.

Tactical Summary

Betting Implications

• NAVI gain value on maps with mid-lane leverage: Ancient, Overpass, Nuke.
• MOUZ present elevated risk on segmented defaults: Anubis, Vertigo, Overpass.
• Live entries on NAVI become viable from round 5–7 if mid control remains uninterrupted.
• Under 26.5 total if NAVI lose pistol on Mirage – structural collapse evident when behind early.

Conclusion

This series validated NAVI’s layered map control and exposed MOUZ’s limited adaptability under structured pressure. NAVI entered the playoffs with working systems across both sides. MOUZ must recalibrate post-default protocols to maintain map consistency beyond Mirage.