In the wake of all the changes still rippling through the Wandering Waters update, pro teams around the world have been hard at work, exploring fresh ways to outplay the competition. They've been battling in tournaments around the globe to put those theories to the test, all in pursuit of a single goal: to prove themselves worthy of facing off against the finest competitors in the world at The International.
Direct Invites
Amid all that action, some have already risen above the rest — and we’re excited to extend these eight teams direct invitations to Hamburg, Germany, to compete in The International 2025:
- Team Liquid[expand type=details] Michael “miCKe” Vu Michał “Nisha” Jankowski Jonáš “SabeRLight” Volek Samuel “Boxi” Svahn Aydin “Insania” Sarkohi [/expand]
- PARIVISION [expand type=details] Alan “Satanic” Galliamov Volodymyr “No[o]ne-” Minenko Dmitrii “DM” Dorokhin Edgar “9Class” Naltakian Andrey “Dukalis” Kuropatkin [/expand]
- BB Team [expand type=details] Ivan “Pure” Moskalenko Danil “gpk~” Skutin Matvei “MieRo`” Vasiunin Vitalie “Save-” Melnic Vladislav “Kataomi`” Semenov [/expand]
- Team Tidebound [expand type=details] Guo “shiro” Xuanang Cheng “NothingToSay” Jin Xiang Zhang “Bach” Ruida Lin “planet” Hao Zhang “y`” Yiping [/expand]
- Gaimin Gladiators [expand type=details] Alimzhan “watson” Islambekov Quinn “Quinn” Callahan Marcus “Ace” Christensen Erik “tOfu” Engel Arman “Malady” Orazbayev [/expand]
- Team Spirit [expand type=details] Illya “Yatoro” Muliarchuk Denis “Larl” Sigitov Magomed “Collapse” Khalilov Alexsander “rue” Filin Iaroslav “Miposhka” Naidenov [/expand]
- Team Falcons [expand type=details] Oliver “skiter” Lepko Stanislav “Malr1ne” Potorak Ammar “ATF” Al-Assaf Andreas “Cr1t-” Nielsen Wu “Sneyking” Jingjun [/expand]
- Tundra Esports [expand type=details] Remco “Crystallis” Arets Bozhidar “bzm” Bogdanov Neta “33” Shapira Martin “Saksa” Sazdov Matthew “Whitemon” Filemon [/expand]
The Road to TI
The remainder of the tournament field will be filled by the eight teams able to run the gauntlet of the Regional Qualifiers, with specific slot breakdowns as follows:
- Eastern Europe + South America - June 4th - June 8th[expand type=details] Eastern Europe (1 slot) Aurora Gaming Natus Vincere NAVI Junior One Move L1GA TEAM Virtus.pro (+4 teams from Open Qualifiers) South America (1 slot) HEROIC OG.LATAM Edge Team Den (+6 teams from Open Qualifiers) [/expand]
- China + North America - June 9th - 12th [expand type=details] North America (1 slot) Shopify Rebellion Wildcard (+6 teams from Open Qualifiers) China (1 slot) Xtreme Gaming Yakult Brothers (+6 teams from Open Qualifiers) [/expand]
- Southeast Asia + Western Europe - June 13th - June 17th [expand type=details] Western Europe (2 slots) Nigma Galaxy MOUZ OG AVULUS (+6 teams from Open Qualifiers) Southeast Asia (2 slots) TALON BOOM Esports Trailer Park Boys The MongolZ Ivory Execration (+4 teams from Open Qualifiers) [/expand]
A tidal wave of teams will battle for the final eight spots, meaning there’s a flood of Dota still to come. The Road to The International begins with Open Qualifiers running from May 31st–June 3rd worldwide (June 2nd–5th for China), with Regional Qualifiers to follow as detailed above. Only players in good standing with the Dota competitive community are eligible to participate.
From there, the Road continues when the sixteen invited and qualified teams face off in Hamburg, Germany. A three-day, five-round Swiss bracket followed by an elimination round will kick off on Thursday, September 4th and wrap up on Sunday, September 7th, with the eight remaining teams bound for Barclays Arena and a showdown for the Aegis of Champions set to begin on September 11th, culminating in the Grand Finals on Sunday, September 14th.
All this action gets underway in just over two weeks, so clear your calendars. Fans looking to join the fun live at Barclays Arena can grab tickets here.
