The open qualifiers for The International 2026, Dota 2’s most prestigious annual tournament, concluded on June 12 after four days of grueling competition. The stakes were simple and brutal: one slot per region, hundreds of teams competing, and a path that ultimately leads to Shanghai in August.
For the uninitiated, The International is to Dota 2 what the World Cup is to soccer, except the players are clicking instead of kicking. TI 2026, also known as TI 15, represents the fifteenth iteration of Valve’s flagship esports event, and the open qualifiers are the very first gate that non-invited teams must pass through.
The gauntlet from June 9-12
The open qualifiers ran from June 9 through June 12, serving as the entry point for teams that didn’t receive one of the seven direct invites to the main event. Each region gets exactly one slot from the open qualifier phase, meaning every team except the winner goes home.
What made this year’s open qualifiers particularly noteworthy was the caliber of players who showed up. Topson, the two-time TI champion who became a legend with OG’s back-to-back wins, was among the competitors. Arteezy, one of North America’s most recognizable Dota 2 pros, also participated. Ceb, another former OG standout, and qojqva, a veteran of the European scene, rounded out the list of high-profile names grinding through the bracket.
