How do Dota 2 tournaments work?

What happens in the group stage?

In the group stage, the teams play against each other in small groups. A win gives points. The teams with the most points go to the playoffs. The teams at the bottom are out of the tournament.

Some events use a Swiss system instead: teams with the same record play each other, round after round. Every tournament explains its own rules on its page.

What does best of three mean?

In pro Dota 2, two teams play a series of games, not just one game.

Some group stages use a best of two (Bo2). Here a 1–1 is possible: a draw.

• Best of one (Bo1): one game decides.
• Best of three (Bo3): the first team to win two games wins the series.
• Best of five (Bo5): the first team to win three games wins. Grand finals are often best of five.

What are the upper and lower bracket?

Many playoffs use double elimination: a team must lose two series to be out.

• Upper bracket: teams that have not lost a series yet. The winner moves up, the loser drops to the lower bracket.
• Lower bracket: teams that have lost once. One more loss and they are out.
• Grand final: the winner of the upper bracket plays the winner of the lower bracket for the title.

Some events use single elimination instead: one lost series and the team is out.

A real example: BLAST Slam VIII

BLAST Slam VIII (September and October 2026) had 16 teams and a total prize pool of $750,000. After the groups, six teams reached the playoffs in Malta. All playoff series are best of three, only the grand final is best of five. The winner gets $270,000. Read our weekly recap for the details.

What are Tier 1 tournaments?

Liquipedia, the big Dota 2 wiki, sorts tournaments into tiers. Tier 1 events have the best teams and the biggest prize pools. Tier 2 and lower are smaller events, often with younger or amateur teams.