IEM Dallas 2025 kicked off with a bang, seeing a huge viewership spike thanks to one of the most anticipated roster moves in Counter-Strike history. The debut of Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyliev for FaZe Clan has propelled the event massively, with Day 1 numbers more than doubling those of IEM Dallas 2024.
The tournament, which features elite teams such as Team Vitality, Team Falcons, and a restructured FaZe Clan, saw s1mple take over the AWP role from Helvijs “broky” Saukants.
Despite FaZe falling 2-0 to Team Liquid, the match drew a staggering 784,335 peak concurrent viewers – over double that of the next most-watched game of the day, Vitality vs Legacy.
According to data from Esports Charts, overall engagement saw dramatic gains year-over-year. Total watch time surged by 104%, average concurrent viewership climbed significantly, and peak viewership grew by 13% compared to the same stage in 2024. These numbers underscore the superstar effect s1mple continues to have on Counter-Strike as one of the greatest players of all time, if not the greatest.
There is still plenty more Counter-Strike to be played, with FaZe hoping to make a run through the lower bracket of the group stage and make it to playoffs.
