The International 2025: Group stage recap

The International 2025 kicked off with perhaps the best group stage in the history of the tournament. Fan favourites were eliminated, underdogs were taking games off the top teams, and the diverse picks showcased each team and player’s individual playstyles.

The modified Swiss format turned every series into a do-or-die for the playoffs spot, treating fans with multiple hour-long epics fit to be grand finals, but added in short dismantlings for good measure. Drafts grew bolder, pocket picks were revealed, and a zoo meta has caught on for the contestants.

TI14 is producing world-class Dota 2 games, and this is the place to catch up on all the highlights you’ve missed with the stacked event.

Before Dota 2 esports was dominated by European and CIS teams, Chinese superstars were the top contenders. Teams like Invictus Gaming, Newbee, Vici Gaming, were strong contenders in The International. But since the strongest TI-winning team of all time, Wings Gaming, won the tournament, China has failed to lift another Aegis.

PSG.LGD came close to winning TI twice (2018, 2021), but failed to overcome the tournament’s eventual winners. However, it looks like the sleeping dragon has woken up by taking over the first phase of the event.

Xtreme Gaming, composed of former PSG.LDG and Azure Ray members ended the group stage with a perfect 4-0 standing. There were no easy games either, and the team had to claw its way through each series, taking down Aurora Gaming 2-0, Team Spirit 2-1, Falcons 2-1, and fellow countrymen, Team Tidebound 2-0, for its playoff spot. Uncrowned king Ame played like a beast, often going deathless in many of his games.

Team Tidebound is coming hot off its win from the recent Clavision Masters 2025. The team is another mix of Chinese legends and former Wings members like Bach (Faith_bian) and y`. Tidebound qualified for the playoffs with a 4-1 standing, only losing to Xtreme Gaming. They took down NAVI 2-1, Team Liquid 2-0, PARIVISION 2-0, and Falcons 2-1. 

The third Chinese national team, Yakutou Brothers, advanced to the fifth round in the Swiss stage, then fought an elimination round against HEROIC. However, they lost 0-2, allowing the South American team to run its signature Meepo in both games of the series.

Here’s something to ruin everyone’s predictions: Team Liquid and Team Spirit are not going to the main stage.

Defending TI champions Team Liquid scored a middling 3-2 standing during its group stages. The team won its opening match against BOOM Esports 2-1, then lost to Tidebound 0-2. They picked up another win against NIGMA 2-1, but lost to Falcons 0-2, then won its fifth round against Yakutou Brothers 2-1.

This put them up against Tundra Esports in the elimination round. Liquid went up against its former captain, 33, who helped the organisation win The International last year. The first two matches were close, hour-long battles that could go either way. 

On their third and final match, Tundra brought out a Phoenix offlane last pick that helped close out the game in 30 minutes. Tundra qualified for the playoffs with a stand-in, as its support, Whitemon, couldn’t secure a visa in time.

Another fan favourite also saw an early exit. Team Spirit entered TI14 as the team to beat, owing to its perfect run in EWC. Spirit won its first match against Wildcard 2-0, lost to Xtreme Gaming, then won a hard-fought 2-1 against Tundra Esports. But they faltered on the second day, losing two straight series against PARIVISION and Aurora Gaming.

In the elimination round, Spirit faced off against Team Falcons. The first game of the series went over 76 minutes, filled with so many twists and turns that it was worthy of a grand final. The second game was a one-sided affair heavily in favour of the Falcons, crushing them with a huge gap in kills and net worth.

With Spirit and NAVI out, other CIS teams rose to the occasion. BetBoom Team was one of the top three teams that qualified straight for the playoffs because of its 4-1 Swiss record. PARIVISION also qualified for the next phase after taking down Wildcard 2-0 in a fairly well-fought series.

Two surprise teams join the playoffs, proving time and time again that anything can happen in The International.

HEROIC’s last big win was in PGL Wallachia Season 2, winning against Falcon in the grand finals. Since then, the team would sometimes go as far as the playoffs, but never made any deep runs in the tournament.

But past results don’t matter as long as you can show up when it matters. They lost the first two series against PARIVISION and NAVI (0-2 for both), but they didn’t lose any game afterwards. Beating BOOM Esports, Wildcard, and Tundra Esports to qualify for the elimination round, where they would beat Gaimin Gladiator’s replacement invite to qualify.

The win would be marred by controversy because of organiser PGL’s inconsistent rules. If following the official rulebook, Heroic should have been matched against Spirit, and Falcons should’ve gone up against Yakutou.

If this were true, fans have a right to be frustrated with the unfairness, especially because two top teams didn’t make it to the next stage because of this last-minute decision. It’s all up to HEROIC now to prove they deserve the slot.

Another team to qualify has the most solid and loyal supporters: Nigma Galaxy. The organisation was originally founded with four of the five members of Liquid’s International 2017 winning squad. While the organisation is a consistent presence in Dota 2 esports, this is the first time they’ve made it to the playoffs at TI.

Nigma Galaxy started strong in its opening series against BetBoom, beating them 2-1 with a hilarious match from Lone Druid’s Bear, keeping its opponents stuck to the base. Nigma wasn’t able to find success in its three series, losing to PARIVISION 0-2, Team Liquid 1-2, and Yakutou Brothers 1-2. They were able to pull off two decisive games to win against NAVI 2-1.

The elimination round must be a stressful event for fans of both Aurora Gaming and Nigma Galaxy, two teams known for blowing winning games. The series was certainly entertaining, especially the second game, but Nigma came out on top in the last game to move to the next phase.

Our early predictions for the meta heroes for TI14 were close enough, but the tournament was diverse, with many heroes represented across the tournament. Out of all the 125 heroes (minus Kez as he isn’t in Captain’s Mode yet), only 21 heroes went unpicked and unbanned in the tournament. 

The most picked hero of the TI14 so far is Disruptor with 42 appearances and Earthshaker with 30, despite his high ban rate. Bane, Pugna, Snapfire, and Mars are other heroes with more than 30 showings in all the matches.

Going into the tournament, no one could’ve predicted how prevalent Helm of the Dominator would be. Carries, offlaners, and the occasional midlaner would always have this item early.

First popularised by Yatoro when he bought it on Faceless Void as a better farming item than Hand of Midas, it has taken over the tournament. Tundra even showcased a match with three characters carrying the item at one point.

This item reflects on the most contested heroes of TI14. Beastmaster is at a 96% contest rate because of how he can empower a zoo comp. Marci (90%) is another hero who takes full advantage of the extra creep with her abilities. Naga Siren (94% cr, mostly bans) and Nature’s Prophet (92% cr) join these two as the most sought heroes in the tournament.

Now for the big question: which of the remaining eight teams will win it all?

All eyes are on Xtreme Gaming and whether its hot streak will continue into the playoffs.

The Chinese roster only lost two games during the groups, against Spirit and Falcons. Since Spirit is out, the Falcons need to overcome Tidebound, who has already beaten them in the first phase, and then fight the winner of BetBoom vs Nigma Galaxy. Meanwhile, Xtreme Gaming’s first match is against a weakened Tundra and most likely PARIVISION.

Speaking of which, PARIVISION is in top form, perhaps enough to take home the Aegis. The team’s deciding series against Wildcard showed the two stage two incredible comebacks off Satanic’s risky plays. The last time these two teams met, Xtreme Gaming swept PARIVISION 2-0.

Falcons and BetBoom team are other strong contenders for the grand finals. Both teams have shown consistent top-level performances and wins throughout this season, and BetBoom was one of the three teams to skip the elimination round. However, the Falcons have showcased an unbreakable mental game with multiple hour-long matches. 

For this grand final, we’ll most likely see a Chinese team go up against a CIS team (PARIVISION, BetBoom), unless the Falcons have something to say about it.

The group stage of The International 2025 gave us everything a fan would want to see: shocking eliminations, impossible comebacks, new strategies, and the conclusion of year-long storylines.

Old champions have left, and new champions will be on the main stage. Can the Chinese teams keep up their performance in the last leg of the tournament? Or will Europe and CIS regions continue to dominate the game? Stay tuned because if the group stage was this wild, the main event promises to be an unforgettable esports event.