The DreamLeague Season 25 marked the first major Dota 2 event of 2025, bringing together some of the top teams in the world to compete for a $1 million prize pool. The event concluded with a nail-biting Grand Final, where Team Spirit triumphed over Tundra Esports in a 3-2 victory. This intense showdown set a new benchmark for the DreamLeague series, making it the most-watched edition in six years.
The tournament’s Grand Final attracted 416,166 Peak Viewers (PV), making it the most popular match of the competition. This milestone was the highest for DreamLeague since Season 11 in 2019. However, the final match was not without controversy, as an alleged DDoS attack disrupted game four. Team Spirit’s players were unable to reconnect in time, leading to the organizers postponing the remainder of the series to March 4.
DreamLeague Season 25 Viewership Stats and Top Matches
Team Spirit, leading 2-1 before the interruption, maintained composure to secure victory when the series resumed. Their triumph earned them $290,000 and 4,620 ESL Pro Tour (EPT) points, while runners-up Tundra Esports took home $130,000 and 3,920 EPT points.
The ESL Pro Tour circuit, now in its third season, serves as a crucial ranking system, granting direct invitations to major events like the Esports World Cup. Teams accumulate EPT points through their performances at DreamLeague and other ESL-organized tournaments, ensuring a transparent qualification process.
Team Spirit’s resurgence significantly contributed to DreamLeague Season 25’s record-breaking viewership. Having struggled for most of early 2025 and going ten months without a tournament win, the team’s success sparked renewed interest among fans. Their matches dominated the viewership charts, featuring in all five of the most-watched games. Encounters against Tundra Esports and fellow Russian squad PARIVISION particularly stood out, drawing large audiences and driving the event’s general numbers to new heights.
DreamLeague Season 25 (image via Getty)Russian Viewership Reaches New Highs
A key factor behind the event’s popularity was the massive support from Russian-speaking viewers. As Team Spirit advanced through the tournament, more fans tuned in, propelling the Russian-language broadcast to a new series record of over 244,000 Peak Viewers. This was only the second time the language crossed the 200,000 concurrent viewer mark at a DreamLeague event.
Additionally, Russian broadcasts surpassed 10 million Hours Watched (HW) for the first time in DreamLeague history. This surge in interest was partly fueled by popular co-casters like Roman “ramzes” Kushnarev and Yaroslav “just_ns” Kuznetsov, whose coverage played a crucial role in amplifying engagement. Their contributions, along with the official channels, made them some of the most-watched broadcasters of the event.
DreamLeague Season 25’s Historic Achievements
As the most-watched DreamLeague event since 2019, Season 25 became only the third edition in the series to surpass 400,000 Peak Viewers. It also accumulated over 23.8 million Hours Watched across 167 hours of airtime, placing it second in general watch time behind Season 22.
The tournament also witnessed a surprising early exit from Team Falcons, the reigning champions of the past three DreamLeague events. This marked a significant shift in the competitive terrain, as only Team Spirit and Team Falcons have won the last five editions of the series.
DreamLeague Season 25 (image via Getty)The Most Popular Dota 2 Event of 2025 So Far
DreamLeague Season 25 has set the standard for Dota 2 esports in 2025, standing out as the most-watched tournament of the year so far. It remains the only event to surpass 20 million Hours Watched, highlighting the community’s growing enthusiasm.
With major competitions like the Esports World Cup on the horizon, Dota 2 esports appears poised for an exciting year. If the current trend continues, viewership numbers may reach even greater heights as more fans tune in to witness top-tier competitive action.
