Esports World Cup Dota 2 Viewer’s Guide — How to Watch

There’s around 24 hours remaining before Dota 2 at the Esports World Cup kicks off, with the best teams in the world competing for the lion’s share of the multi-million dollar prize pool. The tournament itself, formerly known as Riyadh Masters in previous years, could well turn out to be the biggest Dota 2 competition of the season, depending on what Valve decide to do with The International in September.

With the action set to start tomorrow, it’s time for us to discuss the tournament structure, schedule, and more in this Esports World Cup viewer’s guide.

When and where is Dota 2 at the Esports World Cup taking place?

Dota 2 at the Esports World Cup (yes, that is its official name now) will take place at the Boulevard City in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Boulevard City is a mixed-use area, focusing on retail, sports, and entertainment establishments.

The group stage will run from July 8th to the 11th, followed by the gauntlet bracket from the 12th to the 13th. The playoffs, set for July 16th to the 19th, will make up the final phase of the competition.

Which teams will be attending?

The 16 participating teams were determined through a mix of ESL Pro Tour (EPT) leaderboard standings, regional qualifiers, and a tie-in with the Asian Champions League in China. All the teams set to play at the event are as follows:

If you’re curious about how each squad stacks up against the rest of the field, check out my power rankings for EWC 2025.

What is the format of the event?

As mentioned, the tournament is split into three phases: the group stage, the elimination gauntlet bracket, and finally the playoffs. The group stage will divide the 16 clubs at the event into four groups of four squads, where they will play their group rivals in a round robin setting. Each series will consist of two games.

The top team in each group at the end of the group stage will automatically advance to the playoffs, skipping the gauntlet bracket entirely. The second placers will go straight to the second round of the next phase, while the rest will have to start from the first round.

Speaking of, the gauntlet bracket will pit the third and fourth placers of each group against each other, with the winner of that match going up against the second placers thereafter. All matches in this phase will be best-of-three, in a do-or-die single elimination format. The four teams that survive the gauntlet bracket will then move on to the playoffs.

The playoffs themselves are also single elimination, with all matches being best-of-three aside from the best-of-five grand final. There will be no joint winners past fifth place, for there will be a third place decider played on the final day despite the bracket being single elim.

What are the teams playing for?

The Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) is offering a total of $3 million in prize money for this event, with $1 million going to the eventual champions. This is a pool that’s starting to rival some previous TI champions winnings!

Aside from the cash, they’re also awarding EWC Club Points to those that finish within the top 8 spots, which will contribute to the overall championship for the EWC itself. Team Falcons won the Club Championship last year, after scoring more than double the amount of Club Points as the second placers Team Liquid.

The distribution of the prize money and Club Points is as follows:

• 1st place — $1,000,000 & 1,000 Club Points
• 2nd place — $500,000 & 750 Club Points
• 3rd place — $300,000 & 500 Club Points
• 4th place — $200,000 & 300 Club Points
• 5th-8th place — $125,000 & 200 Club Points
• 9th-12th place — $75,000
• 13th-16th place — $50,000

Curiously, the MVP prize doesn’t seem to be around anymore. In last year’s tournament, Gaimin Gladiators’ Quinn “Quinn” Callahan bagged himself an additional $50,000 for being the tournament MVP, but this time it looks like the EWCF is doing away with it entirely.

Who won the previous tournaments?

Having been around since its inaugural edition as Riyadh Masters under the Gamers8 branding in 2022, Dota 2 at the Esports World Cup has had three champions thus far:

• Riyadh Masters 2022 — PSG.LGD
• Riyadh Masters 2023 — Team Spirit
• Riyadh Masters 2024 — Gaimin Gladiators

So where can I watch the games?

All the action will be broadcast on the Esports World Cup official Twitch and YouTube streams. Each day will start at 5am ET/2am PT, with the exception of the last two days which will start an hour later.