Esports World Cup 2026: all tournament participants determined

The closed qualifiers for Esports World Cup 2026 have come to an end. As a result, 11 teams from different regions secured their places at the tournament.

In Europe, the biggest surprise was Pipsqueak+4 defeating Natus Vincere in the decisive match for a slot. LGD Gaming also qualified after signing the former Heroic roster just two weeks ago.

Two Move, L1GA Team, Inner Circle and Aibek TA2000 Tokayev's new stack, Poor Rangers, also secured spots at the championship.

In the Americas, Team Nemesis and GamerLegion secured spots at the tournament. The region was allocated two slots due to its division into North and South America, despite having a relatively small number of top-tier teams.

The qualifiers were also marked by a controversy surrounding the alleged use of cheats, an issue repeatedly raised by Nemesis coach Filipe Astini Astini.

The MESWA region featured the least intrigue, with Nigma Galaxy securing its slot without dropping a single map throughout the qualifier.

Southeast Asia received only one slot, forcing several of the region's strongest teams to compete for a single place at the event.

REKONIX emerged victorious in the qualifier after defeating Team Glyph in the grand final. As a result, Execration, Carstensz and Nuengnara 23savage Teeramahanon's new roster Grind Back will miss one of the biggest tournaments of the year.

Direct invitations to the championship were determined based on EPT points. The final opportunity for teams to improve their position in the rankings came at DreamLeague Season 29, which was won by PARIVISION.

Team Spirit received an invitation to EWC 2026 as the defending champion, while Vici Gaming secured its place by winning ESL Challenger CN Season 3, the qualification tournament for China.

1Win qualified for the championship after signing the former Tundra Esports roster, as the organization sold its lineup and transitioned into a media-focused project, stepping away from professional competition.

The final invitation distribution results and leaderboard standings can be found here.

List of all tournament participants:

The Dota 2 tournament at Esports World Cup 2026 will take place from 06.07.2026 to 18.07.2026. A total of 24 teams will compete for a $2,000,000 prize pool.

Earlier, Cyberscore reported that Chinese veterans had returned for the The International 2026 qualifiers.