Eternal Fire Reach Lower Finals By Beating 3DMAX At IEM Katowice

The series kicked off on Inferno, where Eternal Fire secured the pistol round. However, 3DMAX quickly took control, delivering a masterclass offensive performance that saw them take a 9-3 lead by halftime. The French team, led by Pierre "⁠Ex3rcice⁠" Bulinge, took this momentum to the second half, storming through the rounds with a dominated 13-4 victory.

The next map, however, was Eternal Fire’s playground, where they had remained undefeated on the map since adding Samet "⁠jottAAA⁠" Köklü at the start of the year. That streak extended to seven wins, as the Turks controlled the first half with a four-round and then crushed 3DMAX’s comeback in overtime.

Dust2 was a back-and-forth affair from the outset, with both teams locked in a force-buy battle that kept them within touching distance of each other. Eternal Fire eventually pulled ahead toward the end of the first half, finishing with a narrow 7-5 lead. The second half began wel for 3DMAX as they secured the pistol round, but they failed to convert against MP9s in the next, marking the first of two crucial mistakes that Eternal FIre capitalized on to extend their lead to 11-6. Once rifles were in play, 3DMAX exploited Mid control, forcing Eternal Fire into defensive missteps and rallying back to 11-10. Just as they seemed posed for a full comeback, their momentum was shattered. Özgür "woxic" Eker led a game-changing round, halting 3DMAX in their tracks. That moment proved to be the breaking point, and despite their efforts, the French squad couldn’t recover. Eternal Fire closed out Dust2 with a 13-10 victory, sealing the series.

Eternal Fire is now set to face FaZe at the Group A Lower Brackets Final on February 4.

What did the players say?

“I’m very proud,” said 3DMAX’s Bryan “Maka” Canda, commenting on their overall performance in Katowice. “We showed something people didn’t expect from us last year. We won against the teams we were supposed to beat and we put up a good fight against a better team, or even a team like Eternal Fire”.

“If we won today I think we could have put up a good fight tomorrow, but in the end it ended up like this. We will keep working,” continued Maka.