NS commented on the Single Elimination playoff format

Analyst Yaroslav NS Kuznetsov spoke positively about the Single Elimination playoff format used at Riyadh Masters 2025. Kuznetsov stated that he considers it more suitable for tournaments. He commented on the format as follows:

I honestly think Double Elimination is just a terrible system. I’ve probably been saying for ten years that Dota should’ve switched to Single Elimination a long time ago. It’s better to have two semifinals and a final on separate days, let them be bo5, but no lower bracket nonsense. One match per day, full focus and no unnecessary delays.

It’s worth noting that many disagreed with Kuznetsov. Team Spirit manager Dmitry Korb3n Belov criticized the format for its drawn-out schedule, while PARIVISION midlaner Vladimir No[o]ne Minenko, on the contrary, praised it for its unpredictability. He said:

 Single Elimination is not the best format for Dota, but it is what it is. It’s fun because you can be eliminated after any match. But I think the best format for Dota is Double Elimination.

Riyadh Masters 2025 was held from 08.07.2025 to 19.07.2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Sixteen teams competed for a prize pool of $3,000,000. You can read the full recap of the tournament in our report.

Earlier, CyberScore.live reported that Team Spirit shared their emotions after winning Riyadh Masters 2025.