Heroic started the IEM Dallas group stage with a big win against Aurora Gaming, and it’s going to need to get another one to make it to the playoffs.
Heroic scored a messy win over FaZe Clan and Oleksandr “s1mple” Kostyljev to stay alive in IEM Dallas. That win over a high-tier team is actually the worst Heroic has looked in weeks, which speaks to how good they’ve been. The team proved it could hang with tier-one competition a few days ago by beating Aurora Gaming, but there are few easy outs in IEM Dallas.
That has set up a rematch between these two teams. So can you bet on Heroic getting another win over the Turkish team?
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Aurora Gaming and Heroic are in a do-or-die elimination match in IEM Dallas’ group stage. The winner of the match earns a spot in the playoffs, starting in the quarterfinals. The loser is eliminated from the tournament.
Heroic kicked, screamed, and flailed its way to a messy comeback victory against FaZe Clan, but make no mistake; the team is better than it looked. Even if FaZe Clan wasn’t in a disorderly state, Heroic has been in great form and showed it can hang with tier-one opponents by beating Aurora Gaming.
For its part, Aurora looks ready to put in one of its signature workmanlike performances. İsmailсan “XANTARES” Dörtkardeş has been on fire during the event, spearheading pushes for his team. The first match between the two was defined by the rest of Aurora struggling to do anything without him, so he’ll need some help in this rematch.
Aurora Gaming entered IEM Dallas after taking third in PGL Astana. Its trip to North America started with a loss to Heroic, but it has recovered nicely:
Aurora Gaming fields an all-Turkish roster that was long associated with Eternal Fire:
Aurora Gaming has been on a hot streak on Dust 2 and Mirage over recent weeks, going 4-1 on both maps in their last five.
Heroic won MESA Nomadic Masters Spring 2025 to enter IEM Dallas hot, and converted that into a win against Aurora Gaming. A loss to Falcons sent Heroic to the lower bracket but it advanced forward by beating FaZe.
Heroic saw its roster picked apart by Team Falcons, but the organization rebuilt with a new roster in January that seems to have hit its stride in recent months:
Anubis, Dust 2, and Mirage have been key to Heroic’s success in 2025 thus far, and it’s important to note that this success held up against tier-one teams in Aurora Gaming and FaZe Clan. That said, don’t expect the team to play on Inferno.
The current Heroic has played against this Turkish squad two times in 2025. At IEM Katowice, Heroic took a 2-0 loss from the then-Eternal Fire roster. But much more recently, the group stage to IEM Dallas actually started for both teams with Heroic beating Aurora Gaming.
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Aurora Gaming is the betting favorite against Heroic, albeit to a modest degree. The moneylines stand at 1.62 against 2.24, showing that betting sites aren’t viewing Aurora’s earlier loss as any major indictment on the team.
Aurora Gaming should be able to even the score with Heroic. Heroic’s win in their first match wasn’t a fluke, but it was still an upset. Aurora has looked sharp in its two lower bracket matches and ought to be able to punch its ticket to the IEM Dallas playoffs.
Think you know who will win? Place your bets here!
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