Dota 2 Champions League Season 8 playoffs - Let's Get Started

As the Dota 2 Championship League heats up, let’s get into the Playoffs and the potential results

When it comes to Dota 2 competitive play, the D2CL is the standard. The Champions League has always firmly decided who the best Dota 2 eSports team is. The Dota 2 Champions League 2022 is another exciting annual addition.

Some great teams are competing this year, including the likes of Gambit eSports, No Monkey Business, cybercats, and Team Empire. The tournament began on February 21st and features a grand prize pool of $50,000 for the winning team. The teams are either decided by invitation or by open qualifiers.

Eighteen teams compete in the tournament, with the winner and finalist of the previous season automatically getting invited to the playoffs, with two others getting playoff invites.

The other fourteen compete in the group stages, with two of those teams competing in open qualifiers. The open qualifiers usually result in a single-elimination, 16-person team to earn your way into the Dota 2 Champions League 2022.

There are two groups of seven teams in the group stages. The top two teams in each group gain entry to the upper bracket, the middle two gain entry in the lower bracket, and the final two get eliminated.

The playoffs then consist of an elimination-style tournament, with the winners of the upper bracket and the lower bracket competing for the D2CL trophy.

Favorite Team inc. Odds/Recommended Bookmaker

When looking at the favorites to walk away from the D2CL trophy, there’s no doubt HellRaisers is top of that list. They are the current defending champions, and they’ve been a force to be reckoned with in competitive Dota 2 play.

Last season, it was a clear clean sweep between HellRaisers and Entity Gaming; it was clear one of them would pick up the trophy in the end.

However, while this season is a lot more unpredictable, the strength of the HellRaisers side can’t be denied. Look at their side, and you’ll see why they look so unstoppable at the moment: watson, Limitless, Gilgir, Malady, and re1bl.

Coached by the phenomenal Hall of Famer Nofear, who spectacularly won Season 5, this side has continued success under his coaching skills. They have yet to compete in the Dota Championship League 2022, as it is early stages and they are the defending champions, but there’s no doubt they’re a looming presence over some far weaker teams this season.

The odds on HellRaisers to win the D2CL this year are an overwhelming 0.74. We believe Bet365 is the place to wager on HellRaisers. They offer a great platform to bet on and some relatively competitive odds on a team like HellRaisers.

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Outside Bet inc. Odds/Recommended Bookmaker

Taking a look at the Dota Championship League 2022 field this season, it’s clear that Team Empire is the smart outside bet to win.

Currently sitting at the top of Group B with three wins and only one loss, Team Empire has run through any competition that has faced them in the D2CL. Take a look at how well crafted their squad is, and you’ll see why the side is so strong this season.

They’ve got stars like Cooman, DkFogas, Dodren, [T]SA, and Antares. Being coached by the legendary Ghostik, it’s clear this new team has represented Team Empire well.

With strong wins over the likes of Gambit eSports, Alliance, and cybercats, they’ve already beaten some of the strongest teams in Group B. The odds are certainly in their favor, and you can see that when searching for outright winners of the D2CL.

The best odds for Team Empire winning the Dota Championship League 2022 is 1.24, and those are strong odds for a favorite.

We’d recommend you bet on GGBet if you’re focusing on backing Team Empire. They always offer some great odds on outside bets, so you’ll still get value for wagering on dominant group stage teams.

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Group Stage Winner

With the way the group stages are going, it’s a tough one to call. For Group B, we have to back our original pick as an outside bet. We think Team Empire will edge the win in this group, but it will be a close call between Empire and Gambit eSports.

Group A is much more competitive. So many teams are tied for a top place right now, it’s very difficult to call the winner this early in the tournament.

We think Yet Another Team could pull off a big upset here, and edge the group. They’ve scored some serious upsets so far, and the youth and quick instincts of these teams have benefitted the fresh side.

Conclusion

The DC2L this year is a fantastically competitive season. Even though it is early stages, there are some exciting games to come. Once the defending champions HellRaisers and finalists Entity Gaming get involved, it will only get more exciting.

We think the smart bet would be on HellRaisers because they are such an established and dominant side the last few seasons. However, Team Empire would also be a smart bet, as they’ve stepped up this season. You have plenty of options, and bookmakers like GGBet and Bet365 provide these options.

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