Your complete guide to The International 2025
The Aegis of Champions is beckoning, as The International 2025 is set to begin this week. We’ll see the best Dota 2 esports fans across the globe compete for their share of the huge (but not as big as before) growing prize pool, fighting to lift the coveted trophy.
So you don’t miss out on any of the top-tier Dota 2 esports action, we’ve got a complete viewer’s guide to share with all the necessary information, so let’s just jump straight in.
The International 2025 details
The International 2025 (also known as TI14 thanks to COVID) starts this week, on Thursday, 4 September 2025. The event takes place on LAN in Hamburg, Germany, starting with the “Road to The International” aka the Swiss Stage.
The first stage of The International 2025 runs from 4 to 7 September, featuring all 16 qualified teams. They’ll compete in a Swiss System format, where all matches are BO3. The top three teams advance directly to the Playoffs Stage, while the 4th to 13th-placed teams proceed to the Elimination Round, and the bottom three teams are eliminated. The Elimination Round will see five additional teams advancing to the Playoffs Stage, while the rest are eliminated.
The Playoffs Stage of The International 2025 will take place in front of a huge crowd at the Barclays Arena venue in Hamburg, Germany, from 11 to 14 September 2025. The eight remaining teams will compete in a double-elimination bracket, where all matches are BO3, except for the Grand Final, which is a BO5 slugfest.
Teams Competing at TI14
Check out the complete list of teams competing at The International 2025 below, including how they earned their spots:
- Team Spirit (Direct Invite)
- Team Liquid (Direct Invite)
- BetBoom Team (Direct Invite)
- PARIVISION (Direct Invite)
- Team Tidebound (Direct Invite)
- Yakutou Brothers (Direct Invite)
- Tundra Esports (Direct Invite)
- Team Falcons (Direct Invite)
- NAVI (Western Europe Qualifier)
- Nigma Galaxy (Western Europe Qualifier)
- Aurora Gaming (Eastern Europe Qualifier)
- Xtreme Gaming (China Qualifier)
- BOOM Esports (Southeast Asia Qualifier)
- Team Nemesis (Southeast Asia Qualifier)
- HEROIC (South America Qualifier)
- Wildcard Gaming (North America Qualifier)
You’ll notice that Gaimin Gladiators is missing from the list, as the organization withdrew its squad from the tournament. They are replaced by Yakutou Brothers.
You can watch all the Dota 2 esports matches from The International 2025 via official streams on Twitch and YouTube. Stay tuned to Esports Central as we’ll bring you the results and even a highlights video from the iconic annual event!
Header image via Valve.
