Team Spirit has officially withdrawn from IEM Melbourne just a week and a half before the event kicks off, ESL announced.
The Russian organisation will be replaced by Complexity Gaming, which was next in line based on the latest Counter-Strike 2 Global VRS rankings. The team has accepted the invitation.
Although Team Spirit notified ESL of its withdrawal on April 4th, neither the team nor ESL has provided a reason for the same.
“Team Spirit have withdrawn from IEM Melbourne on Friday, April 4th and will no longer be competing in the tournament. Complexity accepted our invitation and we’re excited to see them return down under after their Grand Final appearance at IEM Sydney 2023,” ESL stated in the announcement.
Other CS2 organisations that have opted out of the event include G2 Esports, FURIA and Astralis. Here’s the updated list of participating teams, along with their group distribution:
| Group A | Group B |
| MOUZ | Team Vitality |
| The MongolZ | Natus Vincere |
| FaZe Clan | Team Falcons |
| 3DMAX | Virtus.pro |
| GamerLegion | Team Liquid |
| paiN Gaming | SAW |
| Complexity | MIBR |
| BIG | FlyQuest |
Team Vitality defeated Team Spirit to win IEM Katowice 2025 and with its current roster, combined with Spirit’s absence, the team will be aiming to lift its third CS2 trophy of the year.
With one less top-tier opponent, MOUZ also has a great opportunity to focus on taking BLAST Open Spring and ESL Pro League Season 21 revenge against Vitality and become the champions.
ESL has also revealed the opening matchups and brackets for the event:
IEM Melbourne is set to begin on April 21st, with the Grand Final taking place on April 27th. The tournament will be streamed live on ESL’s official Twitch and YouTube channels. For those attending in person, the Rod Laver Arena will host live audience and tickets are already completely sold out.
