TYLOO and 9z meet in the first round of the Group B lower bracket at IEM Beijing 2026. 9z rank 26th in the VRS, while TYLOO sit 58th. However, the two teams have played four series this year, and the latest one went to TYLOO.
This match opens the lower bracket of Group B at IEM Beijing 2026. Both teams already lost once in this group, so a defeat here means elimination. 9z enter as the higher-ranked side. TYLOO, on the other hand, play at home in China and beat 9z in their most recent meeting.
Current Form
TYLOO: a mixed stretch with a fresh win over 9z
TYLOO beat ZOTIX 2:0 and 9z 2:1 in recent series. Meanwhile, they lost to MOUZ, Iberian Soul and FURIA. As a result, their form is uneven, but they enter this match with a win over this exact opponent.
The key player is JamYoung. He posts a 1.21 rating, 0.72 kills per round, 0.61 deaths per round, 71.7% KAST, a 1.26 multi-kill rating, +2.36% round swing and 79.8 ADR. His round swing stands out as especially strong.
Recent results:
- TYLOO 0:2 MOUZ
- TYLOO 2:0 ZOTIX
- TYLOO 1:2 Iberian Soul
- TYLOO 0:2 FURIA
- TYLOO 2:1 9z
9z: five straight series losses
9z lost all five of their recent series. They fell 1:2 to BetBoom and TYLOO. In addition, they lost 0:2 to MOUZ, Vitality and Aurora. Therefore, 9z arrive in poor form, even though several of those opponents sit near the top of the ranking.
Their key player is HUASOPEEK. He posts a 1.08 rating, 0.67 kills per round, 0.70 deaths per round, 70.3% KAST, a 1.16 multi-kill rating, +0.57% round swing and 74.3 ADR. JamYoung is ahead of him on every key stat, and the gap in round swing is especially large.
Recent results:
- 9z 1:2 BetBoom
- 9z 1:2 TYLOO
- 9z 0:2 MOUZ
- 9z 0:2 Vitality
- 9z 0:2 Aurora
Head-to-Head
9z hold the edge in this matchup. They have won three of the four series in 2026, and across all those maps the count is 7 for 9z and 3 for TYLOO. No map went to overtime.
Most recently, at PGL Masters Bucharest 2026 on October 26, TYLOO won 2–1. They took Mirage 13–7 and Nuke 13–5, while 9z took Inferno 13–11.
At ESL Pro League Season 24 on October 4, 9z won 2–0. The scores were 13–2 on Mirage and 13–10 on Nuke. Earlier, at XSE Pro League Guangzhou 2026 on July 9, 9z won 2–1. They took Inferno 13–5 and Nuke 13–9, while TYLOO took Mirage 13–7.
The first meeting came at IEM Cologne Major 2026 Stage 2 on June 8. 9z won 2–0, with scores of 13–6 on Inferno and 13–10 on Overpass.
Map Pool & Veto
Win rate over the past 3 months (TYLOO | 9z):
- Cache: 75% (4 maps) | 33% (6 maps)
- Dust2: — (0 maps) | 44% (9 maps)
- Mirage: 62% (13 maps) | 44% (9 maps)
- Inferno: 40% (10 maps) | 33% (6 maps)
- Nuke: 14% (7 maps) | 25% (12 maps)
- Ancient: 50% (8 maps) | 0% (3 maps)
- Anubis: 25% (4 maps) | — (0 maps)
Expected veto: 9z will almost certainly ban Cache, where TYLOO win 75% and 9z only 33%. In return, TYLOO have a clear reason to remove Dust2, which is 9z’s best map at 44% over nine maps. Ancient is another likely ban for 9z, as they have lost all three of their maps there while TYLOO sit at 50%.
After those bans, TYLOO can pick Mirage, where they hold 62% over a big 13-map sample. 9z, on the other hand, can lean on Inferno. They have won all three Inferno maps in their head-to-head record, even though both teams are below 50% there in the last three months. Nuke looks like the most likely decider, since 9z took two of the three maps they played against TYLOO there. However, both teams have poor numbers on it, with TYLOO at 14% and 9z at 25%.
VRS forecast: TYLOO currently have 1265 points and sit 58th. A win would lift them to 1320 points and 48th place. A loss would take them to 1260 points and 59th place.
9z have 1489 points and sit 26th. A win would move them to 1517 points and 22nd place. A loss would take them to 1469 points and 27th place.
Prediction
9z have real arguments. They lead the head-to-head 3–1 in series, they won Inferno in every meeting, and they have the higher ranking. In addition, they beat TYLOO twice in three clean series.
Still, TYLOO look slightly stronger right now. JamYoung leads HUASOPEEK on every key stat, and 9z have lost five series in a row. Moreover, TYLOO won the latest meeting and hold better numbers on Cache, Mirage and Ancient. However, 9z’s head-to-head record shows they know how to beat this team, so expect a close decider.
If TYLOO secure Mirage and stay competitive on Nuke, they should survive the elimination match. 9z will need Inferno and a strong start to end their losing streak.
Projected result: TYLOO 2–1 9z
