DreamLeague is Back: ESL Announces April 2023 Return
It’s official, ESL has returned with another season of DreamLeague. The tournament will host 16 of the best Dota 2 teams in the world as they compete for their fair share of the $ 1 million USD prize pool.
The event is also part of the recently announced ESL Pro Tour, a supplement to Valve’s official DPC season. ESL Pro Tour also offers both reputation and rewards that can be considered comparable to Dota 2 Pro Circuit. The event will be held online from April 9 to April 23, 2023.
The teams
The 16 teams competing in the tournament are the best teams from each region. WEU received five slots, and NA received three slots. The other regions, Eastern Europe, South East Asia, South America and China, received two slots each.
The teams are as follows :
- OG
- Team Liquid
- Tundra Esports
- Gaimin Gladiators
- Entity
- Team Spirit
- HellRaisers
- Shopify Rebellion
- TSM
- Nouns
- Evil Geniuses
- Beastcoast
- Excretion
- Talon Esports
- Team Aster
- PSG.LGD
Addressing the concerns
Before the start of the tournament, there were concerns about the reliability of the ESL One team’s ranking. Addressing the issue, ESL One released a new guided explanation of their EPT Ranking System.
Team Secret and Bet Boom will not participate in DreamLeague Season 19. The teams’ results in the DPC Winter Tour play a crucial role in this. Despite being fifth on the ESL Pro Ladder, Team Secret fall flat in their Winter Tour run. The team got relegated to Division II. The Division II playoffs dates collide with the DreamLeague S19 dates. Thus Team Secret was deemed ineligible. OG took Team Secret’s spot.
BetBoom, on the other hand, is a relatively new team. Despite having a fantastic start, the team fell short, failing to get the points needed to secure an invite to the Lima Major. Also, they started with minimal points as they were a new team. DreamLeague S19 provides a way for the fans to keep an eye on their favourite team before the start of The Berlin Major.
Featured Image Source: Twitter/ @ESLDota2