Ranking the 10 best and most popular Dota 2 teams of all time
Dota 2 is widely considered to be the most difficult multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) game to learn and master. This is most likely why its championship — The International (TI) — is the most well-funded event in the esports industry and the most popular betting market in iGaming’s esports betting category. It began as a promotional event in 2011 and has since been hosted and produced by Valve Corporation, which is the same game creator.
Despite Dota 2’s extreme challenge, there will always be someone or some team somewhere in the world doing big things. So significant it reaches the point of reinventing the game’s meta and global tournaments.
There have been several teams throughout Dota 2’s history that was just a step ahead of the competition, trouncing their opponents in a bid to be the most dominating team in the world constantly. With the recent conclusion of TI10 on October 17, 2021, in Bucharest, Romania, Bitcasino takes a trip down memory lane at some of the 10 best teams of all time. These are those who continue to strike fear into the hearts of those who try to stand in their way.
- Team Spirit
Team Spirit dominated TI10, bagging the single largest prize payout in esports history worth $18,208,300. Based in Moscow, they are also the first Eastern European team to win since Natus Vincere (Na’Vi), a Ukrainian team, won the first TI in 2011.
Team Spirit was knocked out of the tournament’s lower bracket by Team Secret in their first round, but things only got better from there. They defeated the incumbent champions OG before defeating fellow Russians Virtus.pro on their path to victory. Perhaps most stunning was their victory over 2012 winners Invictus Gaming, who had been touted as one of the tournament’s top teams after going 6-2-0 in the group stages—only PSG.LGD went 7-1-0.
- OG
According to Statista, the 10 leading teams in the world as of May 2021 are ranked by total prize money won. While it’s no secret that Team Liquid has the best total profits, their ratio of the total number of joined events to profit is unrivalled in OG’s five-year historical scale.
OG has a staggering worth of $34.42 million based on over 110 matches. On the other hand, Team Liquid has won over 2,000 events and amassed a total prize pool of $36.7 million.
Founded in August 2015, OG is a European-based organisation most recognised for being the only team to have won Dota 2’s The International twice. Despite being a newcomer to the roster of pros, they quickly established themselves as a force to be reckoned with.
- Team Liquid
Team Liquid, often known as ‘Liquid’ and ‘TL,’ is a well-known name in the online gaming business, with a history spanning more than two decades. They are a multi-regional group based in the Netherlands that represents 19 video games, including Dota 2, CS:GO, and StarCraft. In the former field, they were the first-ever team to have swept a TI championship event at a 3-0 run — quite a remarkable feat to forget.
- Evil Geniuses
Evil Geniuses (EG) is a major force in the North American professional gaming community. It was created in Victoria, Canada, in 1999, but is now headquartered in Seattle, Washington. Their entire prize pool of $24.47 million mostly came from their Dota 2 TI winnings. Apart from their extensive history in the business, they have consistently placed well in recent TI championships and Call of Duty events.
However, what’s more notable about Evil Geniuses is their good teamwork and consistent victories over the years, even in other gaming categories. The story with Sumali is perhaps the most well-known among fans, a teenager who had played so brilliantly, resulting in their TI victory.
- Virtus.pro
Virtus.pro (VP) is a multi-award-winning organisation in over ten esports disciplines. However, they are most noted for their CS:GO and Dota 2 teams.
According to their data, VP’s total revenues did not come from a few large tournament wins. Instead, they came from consistent victories, thus suggesting that they offer consistent and excellent performances despite the number of team changes.
- PSG.LGD
Based in China, PSG.LGD is a partnership between French team PSG Esports and Chinese team LGD Gaming in April 2018. Their highest status ever attained was the runner-up position in TI 2018 and 2021.
- Invictus Gaming
Invictus Gaming, also from China, finished first in the 2020 LPL Spring regular season with a record of 14 wins and 2 defeats. Top Esports knocked them out of the playoffs in the first round, and they lost 0:3 to FunPlus Phoenix in the third-place match. They were defeated 0:3 by LGD Gaming in the first round of the summer playoffs.
- Fnatic
Fnatic is another fantastic squad that got way into our top. However, their Dota 2 tournament history has been filled with ups and downs. They missed a lot of tournaments and lost a lot of battles, but the roster that they have currently is what has made them one of the finest.
They have past TI champions like Universe and Aui_2000, and their recent performance has led you to believe that TI is just around the corner this year.
- TNC
This Filipino squad is widely regarded as the greatest Dota 2 team in the country. Their members are extremely versatile, as they frequently switch jobs as needed.
TNC is more of an underdog since they have been overlooked — until now. Be that as it may, they have shown to be one of the strongest Dota 2 teams, winning championships and booting out well-known strong teams during tournaments. Even more, they have been extremely active in retaining that status until today.
- Wings Gaming
Wings Gaming’s performance in TI 2016 was clear. Even before the event began, both other teams and observers recognized their potential. Their status was rather steady, and there were many expectations that they would easily sweep the championship that year. Their performance was flawless because many of their victories were predictable — certainly the kind of team that might be highly favoured today in Bitcasino.