DreamLeague Season 26: Format, Schedule, Fixtures and More

The opening day of DreamLeague Season 26 is fast approaching, and 16 elite teams are preparing to battle for first place. As the final event in the ESL Pro Tour, this tournament will play a pivotal role in determining direct invites for the upcoming Esports World Cup (EWC).

Significant changes have shaken up both team rosters and the tournament lineup. Team Spirit declined their invitation, and Tundra Esports gave up their qualified spot. With the action kicking off on May 19th, here's everything you need to know before the games begin.

Who Will Rise at the Final ESL Pro Tour Event Before the EWC? – Credit: ESL Gaming

DreamLeague Season 26: Invited Teams

DreamLeague Season 26 features 16 teams, four of which received direct invites via the ESL Pro Tour (EPT) Leaderboard. The remaining 12 teams secured their slots through regional qualifiers across the globe.

Here’s a breakdown of the participants and their qualifying regions:

• Direct Invites:

  • PARIVISION – (EEU)
  • BetBoom Team – (EEU)
  • Team Falcons – (MESWA)
  • Team Liquid – (WEU)¹

• Regional Qualifiers:

  • NaVi Junior – WEU²
  • Gaimin Gladiators – WEU
  • AVULUS – WEU
  • Aurora Gaming – EEU
  • Nigma Galaxy – MESWA
  • BOOM Esports – SEA
  • Talon Esports – SEA
  • Shopify Rebellion – NA
  • OG.LATAM – SA
  • Edge – SA³
  • Xtreme Gaming – China
  • Yakult Brothers – China

¹ Team Liquid received the next available invite following Team Spirit’s withdrawal.

² NaVi Junior stepped in after Tundra Esports, who had defeated them in the WEU Qualifier, gave up their spot.

³ Formerly known as Mosquito Clan, the team is now competing as Edge.

Team Liquid inheriting Team Spirit's slot gives Western Europe an even stronger representation. Meanwhile, Tundra Esports’ absence didn’t alter the regional distribution, as their spot originated from a qualifier rather than a direct invite.

DreamLeague Season 26: Tournament Format

DreamLeague has grown into a robust and competitive tournament that features two Group Stages followed by an intense Playoff bracket.

• Group Stage 1 (May 19–22): Features two groups of eight teams playing best-of-2 round-robins. The top four teams from each group advance, while the bottom four are eliminated.

Teams will fight for points in a full round-robin format – Credit: Liquipedia

• Group Stage 2 (May 23–29): A single group of the top eight teams plays another round-robin, but now in best-of-3 format. The top four progress to the Playoffs:

  • 1st & 2nd place → Upper Bracket
  • 3rd & 4th place → Lower Bracket
  • Bottom four → Eliminated

• Playoffs (May 31–June 1): A double-elimination format with best-of-3 matches leading up to a best-of-5 Grand Final.

DreamLeague Season 26: Broadcast Talent

As always, ESL has assembled a stellar broadcast team for DreamLeague Season 26. This season welcomes back familiar faces beloved by the Dota 2 community.

DreamLeague Season 26: Group Stage Schedule

The full Group Stage 1 schedule is here, with exciting matchups and the possibility of a new patch drop, promising even more unpredictability. Here are the matches to watch during the opening days:

Group A – May 19th

• 10:00 - Team Liquid x BetBoom Team
• 10:00 - Nigma Galaxy x Shopify Rebellion
• 10:00 - Xtreme Gaming x BOOM Esports
• 10:00 - Aurora x OG.LATAM
• 15:00 - Team Liquid x Nigma Galaxy
• 15:00 - BOOM Esports x Aurora
• 15:00 - OG.LATAM x BetBoom Team
• 15:00 - Shopify Rebellion x Xtreme Gaming

Group B – May 19th

• 12:30 - PARIVISION x Team Falcons
• 12:30 - Yakult Brothers x NaVi Junior
• 12:30 - Gaimin Gladiators x Edge
• 12:30 - AVULUS x Talon Esports
• 17:30 - Team Falcons x Gaimin Gladiators
• 17:30 - NaVi Junior x AVULUS
• 17:30 - PARIVISION x Talon Esports
• 17:30 - Edge x Yakult Brothers

Group A – May 20th

• 10:00 - Nigma Galaxy x Aurora
• 10:00 - Shopify Rebellion x BetBoom Team
• 10:00 - Team Liquid x Xtreme Gaming
• 10:00 - BOOM Esports x OG.LATAM
• 15:00 - Team Liquid x Aurora
• 15:00 - Nigma Galaxy x OG.LATAM
• 15:00 - Xtreme Gaming x BetBoom Team
• 15:00 - Shopify Rebellion x BOOM Esports

Group B – May 20th

• 12:30 - Talon Esports x Team Falcons
• 12:30 - PARIVISION x Yakult Brothers
• 12:30 - AVULUS x Gaimin Gladiators
• 12:30 - NaVi Junior x Edge
• 17:30 - PARIVISION x Gaimin Gladiators
• 17:30 - Yakult Brothers x Team Falcons
• 17:30 - Talon Esports x NaVi Junior
• 17:30 - AVULUS x Edge

Group A – May 21st

• 10:00 - BetBoom Team x Aurora
• 10:00 - Team Liquid x Shopify Rebellion
• 10:00 - BOOM Esports x Nigma Galaxy
• 10:00 - OG.LATAM x Xtreme Gaming
• 15:00 - BetBoom Team x Nigma Galaxy
• 15:00 - OG.LATAM x Shopify Rebellion
• 15:00 - Team Liquid x BOOM Esports
• 15:00 - Aurora x Xtreme Gaming

Group B – May 21st

• 12:30 - PARIVISION x AVULUS
• 12:30 - NaVi Junior x Gaimin Gladiators
• 12:30 - Edge x Team Falcons
• 12:30 - Talon Esports x Yakult Brothers
• 17:30 - Gaimin Gladiators x Yakult Brothers
• 17:30 - PARIVISION x NaVi Junior
• 17:30 - Team Falcons x AVULUS
• 17:30 - Edge x Talon Esports

Group A – May 22nd

• 10:00 - Xtreme Gaming x Nigma Galaxy
• 10:00 - Team Liquid x OG.LATAM
• 10:00 - BetBoom Team x BOOM Esports
• 10:00 - Aurora x Shopify Rebellion

Group B – May 22nd

• 12:30 - Yakult Brothers x AVULUS
• 12:30 - Gaimin Gladiators x Talon Esports
• 12:30 - Team Falcons x NaVi Junior
• 12:30 - PARIVISION x Edge

Key Matchups to Watch on Day 1

To close things out, here are two matches on May 19th that you won’t want to miss:

• Team Liquid vs BetBoom Team (Group A – 10:00): While both teams struggled during the BLAST Slam III, finishing near the bottom, they still boast exceptional talent and will undoubtedly deliver an intense match.

• PARIVISION vs Team Falcons (Group B – 12:30): After a slight slump during BLAST, PARIVISION is aiming to bounce back. Meanwhile, Falcons are riding high and looking to prove their resurgence is real. Can PARIVISION regain their momentum, or will Falcons solidify their place at the top?

Even though PARIVISION underperformed at BLAST, their TI invite still provides a big morale boost. – Credit: Twitter (@parivisiongg)

All match times listed throughout this article are in GMT (Greenwich Mean Time). Please make sure to convert the schedule to your local time zone so you don’t miss any of the action during DreamLeague Season 26.

For ongoing updates on metagame shifts, roster changes, tournament schedules, and all things Dota 2, be sure to visit the news page at the Strafe official website!

Featured Image Source: eslgaming