Dota 2 TI15 Group Stage Preview — Format, Schedule and Teams to Watch

Owen Harsono Published 12/08/2026

Dota 2’s TI15 is about to begin, and like any other esports tournament, it’ll start with a Group Stage. Here, we’ll get to see all 16 participants debut at Dota 2’s biggest event. If you’re looking to follow the tournament, here’s everything you need to know about The International 2026 Group Stage, including format, schedule, and teams to watch.

TI15 Group Stage Format

The TI15 Group Stage will use the tried-and-tested Swiss-system format, but with a little twist.

The Swiss system means teams are not in enclosed groups (e.g. groups of four). Teams will only be matched up against opponents with the same win-loss record. However, the Swiss system at TI will work a little differently.

Only the top three teams will immediately advance to the Playoffs: to finish within the top three, a team must either go 4-0 or 4-1. This also means the bottom three teams, which either go 0-4 or 1-4, will be eliminated from the event right off the bat.

The 10 remaining teams will enter the next phase: Elimination round. Here, only five teams will make it to the Playoffs – the remaining teams will be eliminated without playing on the main stage.

All Dota 2 matches in the Group Stage will be played in Best of 3 format.

TI15 Group Stage Schedule and Time Zone

The Group Stage for TI15 will run from August 13 to 16. The Group Stage will get a little chaotic, as four separate matches will be live streamed simultaneously.

The first match of the day starts at 10 AM CST (Chinese Standard Time), and the stream ends once the last match of the day is over.

For more scheduling details, make sure to check out our full TI15 schedule guide.

Image credit: Valve

Round 1 Matchups Revealed

Valve has already dropped the opening matchups for the first round. We’ll get to see the following games to start the event:

• Team Falcons vs LGD Gaming
• Team Spirit vs Xtreme Gaming
• Iron Wing vs Nigma Galaxy
• Team Liquid vs Vici Gaming
• BoomBoys vs OG
• Aurora vs GamerLegion
• TEAM VISION vs Team Resilience
• Team Yandex vs HULIGANI

TI15 Group Stage Odds

All of the above fixtures are available at the best esports betting sites, including GG.BET, which is renowned for having highly competitive odds.

The Favorites to Advance to the Playoffs

So, which teams are the favorites to claim the fast pass to the Playoffs? According to our TI15 Power Rankings, here are the three likeliest candidates:

TEAM VISION (PARIVISION)

TEAM VISION are the favorites to win the entire tournament. They recently won the Esports World Cup in very dominant fashion, and are looking like the team to beat at this event. The team has some of the best Dota 2 players in the world and are gelling really well with Puppey’s coaching.

If you’re looking to place an outright bet on a team to win TI15, taking TEAM VISION on GGBET is your best option.

Team Yandex

Team Yandex, led by veteran support player Saksa, is an easy number two pick. They’ve won three S-tier tournaments this year and regularly make podium finishes. Seeing them make it out of the Group Stage is already a given. With how things have looked in recent months, Team Yandex look like the only team that can contend with TEAM VISION.

Image via Luc Bouchon for BLAST

BoomBoys (BetBoom Team)

TEAM VISION and Team Yandex are the clear top two, but BoomBoys aren’t that far behind. This is another very solid team that has consistently made deep runs at top-tier events. Their mid-laner and soft support players, gpk~ and Save-, have been playing some exceptional Dota recently. Advancing to the Playoffs should be an easy task.

Featured image credit: The International

Owen Harsono

About Owen Harsono

Owen lives for competition, spending most of his gaming hours on Dota 2, CS2, and Valorant. A regular on the SEA Dota 2 leaderboards, he combines his first-hand experience with a deep passion for esports journalism, following the professional scenes of all three esports betting titles religiously. When he’s not writing, he’s most probably betting on esports and watching the latest events.

View full profile

Read Also

Dota 2

Team Spirit wins TI15 to lift a record third Aegis of Champions Michael Hassall Team Spirit has defeated TEAM VISION in the grand finals of TI15, The International 2025. In a full five-game series on Aug. 23, Spirit pulled out all the stops and narrowly defeated an incredible VISION team in a back-and-forth series in Shanghai, China. With Spirit’s victory, Illya "Yatoro" Mulyarchuk and Magomed "Collapse" Khalilov become the first ever three-time TI champions, and Team Spirit becomes the first ever organization to lift ...

Dota 2

The International 2026 (TI15) Finals Preview and Predictions Michael Hassall The International 2026, TI15, has reached its final day, and just three teams remain in the fight for the Aegis of Champions. With the lower bracket final and Grand Final still to come, everything comes down to one final day of Dota 2 action. The lower bracket finalists will first battle for the right to reach the main event’s final series, while the winner will advance to face the upper-bracket ...

Dota 2

TI15’s opening ceremony weaves a tapestry of emotion for Valve’s storied title Michael Hassall The main stage of The International 2026, TI15, kicked off today with the traditional opening ceremony heralding the start of the biggest celebration of Dota 2 on the calendar. On Aug. 20 fans in Shanghai, China, and at home, were treated to a rousing 11-minute series of performances and video packages, introducing TI15’s main stage show. Here’s how the magic unfolded: The ceremony began with a graphic which quite literally ...

Dota 2

The International 2026 (TI15) Playoffs preview and predictions Michael Hassall The Group Stage of The International 2026, TI15, is in the books and we’ve whittled down 16 of the world’s best Dota 2 teams to just eight finalists. One of these talented lineups will be the ones lifting the Aegis of Champions come Sunday, Aug. 23, but until then, there’s plenty of playoff shenanigans that could go on. Below we’ve put together a preview of the upcoming Playoff Games, along ...

News

The Esports Nations Cup Has Been Postponed to November 2027 Ben Boland The 2026 Esports Nations Cup has been suspended until 2027. The Esports Foundation announced the delay on August 18, citing ongoing regional uncertainty. The inaugural competition was scheduled to take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, comprising over 100 national teams and featuring 16 different games, including League of Legends. According to the Esports Foundation, this decision follows ongoing developments in the region and consultation with key stakeholders. Moving the event ...

Dota 2

Team Spirit vs Iron Wing at TI15: Best Betting Predictions and Picks Owen Harsono The playoffs for TI15 starts off with an absolute banger of a match between Team Spirit and Iron Wing, and the betting odds could not be any closer. Here are our TI15 Team Spirit vs Iron Wing predictions. Tournament: The International 2026 (TI15) Stage: Playoffs Game: Dota 2 Format: Best of 3 Betting tip: This is the closest series we have at the first round of the TI15 playoffs, as ...

Dota 2

Who Will Win The International 2026 (TI15)? These Are Our Best Picks Owen Harsono The TI15 group stage is over, and we’re down to the top eight teams. We’ve now got a pretty good idea of which teams are the favorites heading into the playoffs based on recent performance and season results, so here are the teams we think have the best shot at winning TI15 and claiming some of The International  prize pool. The TI15 group stage saw eight teams exit the event ...