The IEM Dallas 2025 tournament launched on May 19th with an electrifying opening day, drawing a peak viewership of over 800,000, largely fueled by the debut of Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev with FaZe Clan, according to viewership data. The Counter-Strike 2 icon, on loan from NAVI to FaZe Clan, marked his return to competitive play, boosting the event’s appeal.
Record-Breaking Viewership Numbers
The tournament’s opening day achieved a peak of 803,335 viewers, nearly matching the 2024 event’s overall high of 830,000. The average viewership settled at around 330,000. The standout match was FaZe Clan versus Team Liquid in the group stage, which alone pulled in 784,335 viewers, dwarfing other matches like Team Vitality versus Legacy, which peaked at 315,650 viewers.
S1mple’s Return to the Spotlight
S1mple’s appearance was a major draw, marking his first competitive match since the Shanghai Major’s Europe RMR in November with Team Falcons. He stepped in for Helvijs “broky” Saukants and will remain with FaZe Clan through the BLAST.tv Austin Major next month. His return generated significant excitement among fans, contributing to the massive viewership numbers.
FaZe Clan’s Performance and Roster
In their opening match, FaZe Clan faced Team Liquid in the upper bracket quarterfinals. Felipe “skullz” Medeiros substituted for Håvard “rain” Nygaard, creating an intriguing dynamic as both s1mple and skullz competed against teams they had previously represented. Team Liquid secured a 13-10 victory on Ancient and another 13-10 win on Inferno, advancing to the upper-bracket semi-finals against MOUZ. FaZe Clan now heads to the lower-bracket quarterfinals to take on BC.Game Esports.
The current FaZe Clan roster for IEM Dallas 2025 includes Håvard “rain” Nygaard, Finn “karrigan” Andersen, David “frozen” Čerňanský, Jonathan “EliGE” Jablonowski, Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev (on loan), Felipe “skullz” Medeiros, and Filip “NEO” Kubski.