The International 2026 preview: Format, prize pool, schedule, favorites, and teams

Luke Warr Published August 10, 2026

The International 2026 is Dota 2’s most prestigious tournament of the year and it’s about to begin on August 13. Taking place in Shanghai, China, TI15 will welcome 16 of the best Dota 2 teams in the entire world.

Considering the competition’s importance, Dota 2 fans from all over the world will follow every step. The event promises to deliver loads of action, so we have decided to create a complete overview of The International 2026. Join us as we highlight what you need to know about this massive competition.

The International 2026 overview

TI 15 will be an offline tournament held in Shanghai, China, from August 13 to 23. Valve and PGL are the two organizations behind it, and they will host it at the Oriental Sports Center.

The International 2026 format consists of three distinct stages – the group stage, elimination round, and the playoffs (main event).

The group stage will happen from August 13 to 16 and all teams will play in the swiss-system format with the top three advancing to the playoffs. Those between fourth and 13th place will advance to the elimination round while the rest will be eliminated.

The elimination round will allow us to see just five teams that will advance to the playoffs. This means that all of the other Dota 2 The International 2026 teams will be eliminated from the tournament.

As for the Main Event (August 20 to 23), it will feature a classic best-of-three double-elimination bracket. The grand final will offer us the best show as it will be a best-of-five.

TI 15 prize pool

TI15 comes with a base prize pool of $1,600,000. Sadly, Valve moved away from the traditional annual Battle Pass model that previously generated The International’s enormous prize pools. It was the main driver of the huge reward because a percentage of each purchase went to the prize pool.

This year, Valve decided to allow people to contribute to the prize pool via the International 2026 supporter bundle. Essentially, this allows you to support a given team by having logos, badges, sprays and different voice lines. 50% of the sale goes directly to the club, while 30% goes into the prize pool.

At the time of writing this TI15 overview, the reward is sitting at around $2.44 million.

Who are the teams?

• Aurora Gaming
• Team Yandex
• Team Liquid
• Boom Boys (BetBoom Team)
• Iron Wing (1w Team)
• Team Falcons
• Team Spirit
• Xtreme Gaming
• LGD Gaming
• Team Resilience
• HULIGANI
• GamerLegion
• Nigma Galaxy
• OG
• TEAM VISION (PARIVISION)
• Vici Gaming

The International 2026 favorites

People interested in the International 2026 betting odds will notice that bookies rate some Dota 2 teams much higher than others. Even though this is a game where anything is possible, it’s important to know what to expect, so here is a preview of the teams that stand out.

PARIVISION

Image credit: Esports Foundation

A quick look at the best betting sites will show you that PARIVISION is the big favorite to win TI15. This will not come as a surprise to Dota 2 fans who’ve been following the pro scene this year because the team has been on another level.

To be fair, PARIVISION did not win any big tournament until three months ago. Although they’ve always been among the best, they had not managed to secure a major title, but that changed in May. Alan “Satanic” Gallymov (who is on loan from Team Spirit, by the way) and co. won 1win Essence 1 in May. After that, the team secured first place at the TI15: Europe Regional Qualifier and won the Esports World Cup 2026.

Considering the importance of the EWC 2026, it’s no surprise that PARIVISION is the big name to follow at TI15. Bear in mind that the team finished third at TI14, so it is yet to lift the Aegis.

In terms of betting odds, Roobet gives the squad 3.90 to win the event. Remember that the prices are subject to change.

BetBoom Team (BoomBoys)

Image credit: SC PGL Esports S.R.L.

Speaking of the TI 2026 power rankings, we have to mention BetBoom Team. Danil “gpk” Skutin and his crew have been one of the most successful Dota 2 teams for a while now and are almost always among the favorites.

Even though 2026 has not been as good as 2025 yet, the team has already achieved some success. BetBoom Team defeated Aurora Gaming to win the PGL Wallachia Season 8 and they finished second at the Esports World Cup 2026. These results put the team in a good position to try and win its first Aegis.

Bookies, such as Stake, also put BetBoom Team as one of the favorites by giving it odds of 6.30 to win. It definitely won’t be easy, but the squad has what it takes.

Team Yandex

Image credit: BLAST

The third TI15 favorite that definitely deserves more attention is Team Yandex. Dota 2 fans know that the squad has been in excellent form throughout 2026. So far, the team has won PGL Wallachia Season 7 and BLAST Slam VII, and finished second at ESL One Birmingham 2026. It has also recorded several third-place finishes, including at the Esports World Cup 2026.

Considering the team’s consistent results and overall prowess, bookies believe Team Yandex is a solid favorite. That’s why the odds of the team winning are around 4.50 when you visit BC.Game and other big operators.

Team Falcons

Image credit: Valve

Of course, we also have to mention Team Falcons because they will attend TI15 as the defending champions. 2026 has not been nearly as good for them as 2025, but they remain one of the big Dota 2 names. Team Falcons has excellent players, so this explains why Shuffle gives them odds of 7.50. It definitely won’t be easy, but the team has proven it can do well when it is important.

How to watch The International 2026?

People looking to make their The International 2026 predictions will definitely want to watch the action. Needless to say, the competition will most likely be live streamed across all popular platforms, including Twitch and YouTube. The streams should be in several languages, including English, Chinese, Russian, Spanish, Portuguese and Ukrainian.

Those lucky enough to get tickets to The International 2026 will also see all the big names in the talent lineup. We will have the likes of Natalie ”NatTea” Mahoney, Neal “Tsunami” Khandheria, Austin “Cap” Walsh, and many others.

Keep in mind that China is sitting in the UTC+8 time zone.

Featured image credit: Valve