Spirit, Yandex sweep playoff openers at The International

Dota 2 competitors at the 2025 Esports World Cup. Team Spirit, TEAM VISION, Team Yandex and Nigma Galaxy won their upper-bracket quarterfinal matches Thursday at The International 2026 in Shanghai. Sixteen teams began the 15th annual Dota 2 tournament on Aug. 13. The crowd-funded prize pool has a base of $1.6 million and a current value of more than $3.2 million. Eight teams made the double-elimination playoff bracket, with all matches best-of-three until Sunday's best-of-five grand final. Team Spirit swept Iron Wing and Team Yandex did the same to Team Liquid, while TEAM VISION and Nigma Galaxy earned 2-1 wins against BoomBoys and Team Falcons, respectively. Team Spirit defeated Iron Wing in 62 minutes on green and 44 minutes on red. Team Yandex took down Team Liquid with a 54-minute win on green and a 38-minute win on red. TEAM VISION wrapped 77- and 31-minute wins on red around BoomBoys' 51-minute win on red. Team Falcons opened with a 42-minute win on green before Nigma Galaxy rallied with a 40-minute win on green and a 60-minute win on red. Friday's playoff schedule: Upper bracket semifinals: --Team Spirit vs. TEAM VISION --Team Yandex vs. Nigma Galaxy Lower bracket Round 1: --Iron Wing vs. BoomBoys --Team Liquid vs. Team Falcons The current $3.2 million prize pool: 1 TBD, $1.37 million 2. TBD, $418,510 3. TBD, $289,657 4. TBD, $193,148 5-6. TBD, $160,935 7-8. TBD, $128,722 9-13. Vici Gaming, Aurora Gaming, Team Resilience, GamerLegion, LGD Gaming, $57,879 14-15. OG, Xtreme Gaming, $32,213 16. HULIGANI, $16,107 --Field Level Media