TI 2025: eSpoiled Made History in the EEU Qualifiers

The International 2025 hasn’t started, and it’s already delivering its fair share of drama and first-ever moments. In the Eastern Europe Regional Qualifiers, something happened that had never been seen before in the history of Dota 2.

In a bizarre turn of events, eSpoiled lost a match after destroying the enemy Ancient. This happened during the first round of the EEU Closed Qualifiers. They made the wrong call at the wrong time and proved exactly why the saying “fight until the very end” has stood the test of time.

TI 2025: Regional Qualifiers Already Underway

If you’re a die-hard Dota 2 fan, you may have noticed that the regional qualifiers for The International 2025 are already underway. The first region to kick things off was Eastern Europe, quickly followed by South America. Thanks to its earlier start, the Eastern Europe region also became the first to reach the Closed Qualifiers stage.

Eastern Europe is considered the strongest region so far in 2025. – Credit: Twitter (@wykrhm)

Only one precious slot at The International 2025 is available through these qualifiers. As shown above, ten teams are battling fiercely for it. Nemiga Gaming, for instance, started their run with a loss to One Move in the upper bracket. But their fortunes were about to change.

eSpoiled’s Unprecedented Mistake

eSpoiled also suffered an early loss in the upper bracket, falling to Runa Team and dropping to the lower bracket. There, they faced Nemiga Gaming, who were looking to recover from their initial setback. The series didn’t start well for eSpoiled — they dropped the first map, putting them one game away from elimination.

Then came the second map, which lasted a grueling 51 minutes. In an unexpected twist, eSpoiled called GG, essentially forfeiting the game — just seconds before their creeps destroyed Nemiga’s Ancient.

Turns out the result shown on the screen wasn’t the whole story. – Credit: Valve

After a short review of the situation, tournament organizers decided that since eSpoiled had surrendered before the game officially ended, Nemiga Gaming would be awarded the win. As a result, the match was recorded as a 2-0 victory for Nemiga, and eSpoiled was eliminated from the tournament.

This marked the first time in Dota 2 history that a team forfeited a match and still managed to destroy the enemy Ancient. There’s a Twitch clip of the exact moment this happened, and the confusion in chat says it all — viewers were stunned.

Looking Ahead

This bizarre incident will likely be remembered for years and serves as a cautionary tale for all teams: never call GG too early. With the regional qualifiers still unfolding, expect more surprises. Teams from every corner of the globe battle for a coveted spot at The International.

I wonder if we are also going to see teams surprising us on the South American Qualifiers. It is lore accurate. – Credit: Twitter (@wykrhm)

If you want to stay informed on TI 2025 Regional Qualifiers, metagame trends, team performances, surprising upsets, and how these storylines shape the road to The International, be sure to read our full coverage on the Strafe website — your home for everything Dota 2!

Featured image source: Valve