BLAST Slam 6 Malta power rankings — The best teams

If you fancy a (virtual) trip to somewhere warmer in these winter months, Dota 2 has you covered — thanks to BLAST Slam 6 happening in sunny Malta in the Mediterranean. After the success that was BLAST Slam 4 Singapore and the followup BLAST Slam 5 in Chengdu, it’s clear that BLAST are here to stay in the Dota scene.

As in previous iterations of the Slam, 12 teams will play on the European Dota server for the right to appear at the LAN portion of the tournament. But which of these teams will come out on top?

#1 — Tundra Esports

Out of all the top teams in the world right now, only Tundra Esports can call themselves consistently the best in the entire scene. While other clubs might falter here and there, Neta “33” Shapira and the rest of his crew have been the best this season at minimizing disappointment for themselves and their fans.

And lest we forget: BLAST Slam is their territory, full stop. They have won four out of five in this series since it began in early 2025, and they even placed second in the one that they didn’t win. I asked coach David “MoonMeander” Tan in Singapore why they do so well at the Slam, to which he gave a classic MoonMeander answer: it’s just the vibes, man.

Expect these guys to channel those vibes and turn it into another deep run in Malta.

#2 — Team Spirit

It should be illegal to have a squad like Team Spirit, in the sense that they can so seamlessly get someone to stand in for Denis “Larl” Sigitov any time he needs to take a break. Marat “Mirele” Gazetdinov is almost as good as Larl is, and has shown on a few occasions a level of maturity that should be well beyond the small amount of experience that he possesses as a professional player. Read: he’s only been a pro since 2024.

This, plus their recent grand final appearance at FISSURE Universe Episode 8 makes putting them in second place on my power rankings very easy. They do have a new coach after Airat “Silent” Gaziev’s departure in the form of Dmitry “Korb3n” Belov, which is a tiny asterisk in all of this — but given that Korb3n has been the manager for both Yellow Submarine and Spirit for years now, I have every faith in him regardless of the change in personnel here.

#3 — Team Falcons

I’ve always preached that Dota is as much a mental game as it is a mechanical and strategic one, and no top level squad embodies that more than Team Falcons — for better or worse. They are on paper the best roster on the planet, which they proved at The International 2025 (TI14) by winning the whole damn thing.

Unfortunately, they also get in their own heads a lot, something that has happened a few times at BLAST Slam in particular. They played a little too much into the crowd’s hype in Singapore by drafting the exact same lineup in their deciding game 5 against Tundra in the grand finals, which nearly paid off if not for Tundra’s insane composure in that series.

By Wu “Sneyking” Jingjun’s own admission at DreamLeague Season 27, they haven’t really been in good shape lately, and it showed in their results before the end of 2025. They’ll want to get back to winning ways in Malta, and while they certainly have the talent to do so, it’s going to be up to them to get their heads on straight. Thus, I’m only comfortable putting them as high as third on this list.

#4 — Team Yandex

Speaking of mental fortitude though, how about that Team Yandex, huh? Martin “Saksa” Sazdov has done a masterful job of helping this team develop into a serious contender at top level LANs, which finally culminated in them winning DreamLeague Season 27 against Team Spirit just before the holidays last year. They’ve since followed that up with third place at FISSURE Universe Episode 8, emphasizing the fact that this team is not arriving, but that they are here.

That said, they are still behind in terms of raw talent and experience versus the three clubs above them on this list. I don’t expect that Yandex will make every grand final ever, but they’ve already made a case for being one of the best teams at upsetting the natural balance. I expect them to continue their success in Malta, as they’ve already shown a pretty decent grip on this new metagame.

#5 — MOUZ

Man, it’s getting harder and harder to make these lists given the level of competition. MOUZ are more or less a mirror image of Yandex, insofar as them being a roster held together by an extremely successful captain and mentor in the form of Melchior “Seleri” Hillenkamp. They’ve also won a premier event already this season, making them a known quantity.

I could very easily swap their placement here with that of Yandex; I’d say they’re that close in terms of overall strength. Like, if these two teams faced each other in an elimination match, which they might given the format of BLAST Slam 6, I could see things going either way in a total coinflip. The only real reason I have Yandex ahead of them is that Yandex have better results recently, while MOUZ bombed out of DreamLeague and placed below the top 4 at FISSURE Universe Episode 8.

Still, if Seleri can get his boys back on track, anything is possible for them.

#6 — Team Liquid

I hate that this team finds ways to make me groan in disappointment just when I start thinking that they might finally have figured things out. Team Liquid are the epitome of inconsistency this season as they started the year off poorly, got better at PGL Wallachia Season 6, but then fell off a cliff yet again thereafter.

I suppose this is just going to be a chronic problem for them until they figure out what to do with Marcus “Ace” Christensen’s outdated playstyle. Being an aura bot might have brought him and Gaimin Gladiators to the top of the Dota world in 2023, but that type of play from the offlane doesn’t really fly anymore. Patch 7.40 seemingly hasn’t changed that, as they merely stumbled their way into fourth place at FISSURE Universe Episode 8.

That said, I cannot in good conscience put them in the bottom half of my power rankings. This lineup should be much better — they just haven’t put the pieces together yet. I don’t really know if they will in Malta, but I’m not holding my breath for too long.

#7 — OG

Here’s another team that I’m loathe to put this low given how high pros and fans alike are on them. OG came bursting onto the scene this season after picking up Team Aureus out of Southeast Asia, and their play has earned praise from their rivals thus far. They’re obviously really good and have immaculate vibes all around, but they haven’t really proven anything yet.

when in Lisbon…. 🧠 pic.twitter.com/IX5XNLLUyO

— OG (@OGesports) February 1, 2026

If coach Adam “343” Shah can keep them stable, the potential in this squad is almost unlimited. But it’s clear that they suffer from the classic SEA/all-Filipino issue: they’re emotional and can tilt off the face of the planet in tight games. I’m gonna need them to solve that before I’m ready to call them actual contenders.

#8 — Xtreme Gaming

Chinese team Xtreme Gaming are once again in their usual spot on my power rankings: eighth place and typically no higher than that. I honestly think this roster is significantly worse than the one they ran with at TI14, with Cheng “NothingToSay” Jin Xiang being the biggest red flag for me. He’s been having an awful year thus far, and he is honestly a shell of his former self. This guy used to win every mid matchup, but now he’s a huge burden — especially on a squad like this where Wang “Ame” Chunyu needs all the space he can get.

Their surprise fourth place result at DreamLeague Season 27 gives me some pause with regards to this team as a whole, but I don’t think they’ll be much better in Malta than where I have them on this list.

The Rest

I’m tired of expecting things from Na’Vi at this point. They’re always hanging around the middle of the pack at most tier 1 tournaments, but can’t seem to make that breakthrough that they’ve desperately been looking for since last season. Ain’t no way they’re doing that in Malta.

I do have my eyes on REKONIX, though, who came out of the SEA qualifiers for this tournament. I know I have them dead last in the table, but I’m thinking they could potentially move up the ladder against others like GamerLegion and HEROIC.