The International is to Dota 2 what the Champions League is to football: the tournament where careers are made, legacies are cemented, and prize pools make traditional sports executives do a double take. And right now, eight teams in China are fighting for two of the last remaining seats at the table.
Day 2 of the TI15 China Regional Qualifier is underway, part of a four-day online double-elimination tournament running from June 15-18. The stakes are simple. Win enough series and you earn one of two spots at The International 2026, Valve’s flagship Dota 2 event scheduled for August 20-23 in Shanghai.
The field and the format
Eight teams survived the open qualifier gauntlet, which ran from June 9-12, to reach this stage. Among the contenders are Vici Gaming, a name that carries serious weight in Chinese Dota history, along with Roar Gaming, Yakutou Brothers, and Team Resilience.
For context on what these teams are playing for: The International’s main stage in Shanghai will feature 16 teams total. Valve announced direct invites for seven squads around late May, including six from Europe and one Chinese representative, Xtreme Gaming. That leaves nine spots spread across regional qualifiers worldwide.
