by in
The International (TI) is the culmination of a Dota 2 player's competitive season. It is a tournament that is more important than all the other tournaments combined. Not only because of the high prize pool but also because of the opportunity for the player to inscribe his name on the Aegis of Immortality and be remembered as one of the best players in the world. The tournament lasted 8 days. The first part, the group stage, lasted from September 04.09.2025, 07.09.2025. until September 11.09.2025, 14.09.2025. year. The second part, the playoff phase, lasted from September XNUMX, XNUMX. until September XNUMX, XNUMX. year.
After countless finals and a dominant previous season, the team Team Falcons entered this year's International as one of the favorites. Many Dota 2 fans have them high on their predictions, and for good reason.
The entire tournament was played with two wins (BO3), except for the Grand Final, which was played with 3 wins (BO5). Falcons opened the group stage with a 2-1 victory over the team NemesisLater that day, they defeated the team Tundra Sports which has reached 6 finals in Tier 1 tournaments this season, winning 3 of them. At the same time, Team spirit, a team that has already won two Internationals and is also the main favorite to win the entire tournament for the third time, with a victory over the North American team wildcard They started off dominantly from 2-0. However, on the first day they faced the Chinese team. XtremeGaming and lost with a score of 2 – 1. The Chinese also won against the team a little earlier on the same day Aurora Gaming and with the result 2 – 0. It is interesting that the second team is from China Team Tidebounds who won a month before the biggest tournament of the season Calavision Masters 2025 also took two victories over the teams Born to Win i Team Liquid with scores of 2 – 1 and 2 – 0. This was a shock for fans of last year's winners, Team Liquid, who looked very strong months before TI. We must not forget the team Paravision which was a secret favorite of Eastern Europe. They beat the teams on the first day Team Heroic i Nigma Galaxy with the same result, 2 – 0.
The entire tournament from the group stage to the Grand Final was broadcast live by the best esports commentator of Montenegro on his YouTube channel.
Stream of the first day of the group stage:
On the second day of the tournament Team Falcons they encountered the previously mentioned Chinese team XtremeGaming which had one of the worst seasons ever. When it comes to predictions, only a few experts, including our own Vladimir (Vlado_Skaljari), predicted that the Chinese will have a good placement at this year's International. That prediction came true at the moment when the Chinese defeated one of the main favorites Falcons with a score of 2 – 1 in the longest BO3 series in the tournament. Already on the second day, it became clear to all Dota 2 connoisseurs that these two teams will meet again in the final, be it the final of the upper bracket or the Grand Final. Besides, the team Tidebounds has mastered Paravision with a score of 2 – 0 thanks to incredible dominance during the draft phase of the games. This prompted fans of the world's most demanding game to watch the Chinese teams with caution as they went through the group stage of the competition like a knife through butter. At the end of the second day, the team Nemesis was eliminated with the result 0-4.
Stream of the second day of the group stage:
Team Falcons is in the third day of the competition with a 2-0 victory over the team Liquid put herself in a solid position, one game away from qualifying for the playoffs. Simultaneously, Paravision met with its regional competitor Team spirit and showed his best game so far. They won 2-0 and put the main favorites in an awkward position in the group stage. In addition, the two Chinese giants had a clash on the third day of the tournament because only one, undefeated team has a chance to reach the very top of the upper bracket in the playoff phase. After only two games, the difference in quality became clear. XtremeGaming absolutely dominated its regional competitors and placed at the very top of the playoff stage with a score of 4-0 in the group stage. Team Tidebound had to prove herself in a match against the team Falcons. After 3 games of one hour each, the Chinese celebrated their passage to the playoff stage with a score of 4 - 1. The other team that will join them in that position is BetBoom TeamThis team had a bit more luck than the others, and won against much easier opponents like Boom Esports, Born to Win i Aurora Gaming found herself in a clash with the team ParavisionAfter 3 very close games betboom the team wins with a score of 2 – 1. After this day, the teams are eliminated Born to Win i Boom Esports with a score of 1 – 4.
Stream of the third day of the group stage:
The last day of the group stage of the competition, better known by its name The Road to The International is reserved for elimination matches. After a brutal day, the following teams were eliminated: Yakoutu Brothers, Aurora Gaming, wildcard, Team Liquid, Team spirit. On this day, three-quarters of the Dota 2 community's predictions failed. Many believed that Team Spirit and Team Liquid would go all the way.
Stream of the last day of the group stage:
In the playoff phase or The International 2025 The 8 best teams were found: XtremeGaming, Team Tidebounds, BetBoom Team, Tundra Sports, Heroic, Paravision, Nigma Galaxy i Team Falcons. This phase of the tournament lasts 4 days, and we got a surprise on the first one.
Xtreme has overcome Tundra with a score of 2 – 0, Paravision won by the same score Heroic dok je BetBoom Team mastered Nigma Galaxy with a score of 2 – 1. Team Falcons already had a chance to taste Chinese dota in the group stage and lost both times after 3 long games. Team Tidebounds was the first obstacle in their passage through the upper bracket of the International. It seems that 3 free days were enough for them to prepare the strategy of their team Tidebounds overcame with a score of 2-0.
Stream of the first day of the playoffs:
On the second day of the playoffs, the eliminations began. Tundra Sports she lost from Heroic as well as in the group stage with a score of 0-2, and the dream of Neto "33" Šapira to win three Internationals was postponed. At the same time, the team Tidebounds she played against Nigma Galaxy team and lost with the score 0 – 2. This was a big surprise. No one expected that Nigma after several years of failing to qualify at TI at all, he can enter the top 6 teams at the same. In addition to the 2 eliminations, we also received the finalists of the upper bracket, which are Paravision i Team Falcons. Paravision defeated the previously undefeated team 2-0 XtremeGaming and showed why she was directly invited to this year's TI. Falcons had a slightly more even series against betboom team they defeated 2-1.
Playoff day two stream:
On the third day of the playoff phase, we found out the 3 best Dota 2 teams this season. By winning over the team Paravisions with a score of 2 – 1 Team Falcons He found himself in the Grand Final of the biggest tournament this season. Paravision the team fell into the lower bracket, where they will wait for one of the 4 teams to try against them for placement in the Grand Final tomorrow.
Heroic showed a lot against betboom team, but he still came out on top. They lost with a score of 1-2 and settled for the best placement of the South American team at the International so far. At the same time Nigma Galaxy team after the defeat against Xtreme Gaming 0 – 2 satisfied with the best placement since its formation (top 6). Xtreme After a dominant group stage, they fell into the lower bracket and now face a very demanding opponent, BetBoom TeamAfter two games that lasted over an hour each Xtreme managed to win 2-0 and place themselves in the top 3 teams in the world.
Playoff day three stream:
The last day of the tournament is reserved for the final of the lower bracket as well as for the Grand Final in which the team found itself XtremeGaming after a very uncertain 3 games they played against Paravision teams. Falcons they have figured it out Paravision the previous day to the bans Slarka i Monkey King who are the main heroes of Edgar “9class” Naltakin. Xtreme just had to copy their strategy, which they did.
Now in the Grand Final XtremeGaming more determined than ever, led by veterans such as Wang "Ame" Gunju and Zhao "XinQ" Žiksig took the first map against the team Falcons in the dominant style. Falcons they hit back in the second game after a very strange draft by the opposing team. Not only did they win the second game, but it was the most dominant game in Dota 2 Grand Finals history. XtremeGaming realized that this would be much harder than they thought and Ame asked the coach to play Sven with which he completely dominated and brought his team to match point for victory. Then it was the right time to coach the team Falcons Kurtis “Aui_2000” Ling reveals his ace up his sleeve. In agreement with team captain Amar "ATF" Al Asaf, he came up with a dangerous last pick that beat even Ame's Sven. The crew Xtreme Gaming now she was left without her ace up her sleeve with her back against the wall. Their plan was to rely on their mid laner Gu “XM” Hongcheng and his Shadow Fiend hero. They started strong and created a solid advantage in the early stages of the game thanks to the obtained mid lane and Ame's interesting build on the keri Jurner. However, they gave Falcons to the team of a very potent hero Naked Sierna which is the most banned hero of the tournament. All teams were afraid to play against this hero, but Xtreme bravely allowed it to his opponent in the last game of the tournament. That ultimately cost them the victory. The last two fights in the game Falcons the team won only thanks to that Nagi and the outstanding performance of Jingjun “Sneyking” Wu in whose hands it was Naga and the fate of the entire team. After 58 minutes of play Team Falcons overthrew the throne and became the best team in the world.
Stream of the last day of the tournament:
This is their coach Kurtis' third Aegis of Immortality. He won one as a player back in 2015. under the banner Evil Geniuses teams. He won the other two as a coach. He was once the coach of the team Tundra Sports 2022 and the second time Team Falcons teams in 2025.
"Thank you to my family. Thank you to my friends. Thank you to my team. Thank you to everyone who supported us. And this...this is just the beginning." are the words of young Amar after lifting the biggest trophy in the history of esports.
Oliver "Skiter" Lepko and Jungjung "Sneyking" Vu commented that they are happy that their name will be inscribed on the Aegis of Immortality for the second time, but that they are even happier because the name of Andreas "Cr1t-" Nielsen, who was so close to this achievement so many times, only to succumb near the end, will be inscribed next to them.
In addition to high-quality dota and good games, the tournament had a lot of mini-events for the players and the audience. From "cosplay" contests to contests in making short films as well as various interactions with the audience from which mini prizes could be won for participants and fans of this ancient game.
All the best and sincere congratulations to the team Team Falcons at the won International!
