Valve, the developer of Dota 2, has officially announced a major format overhaul for The International 2025, the game’s flagship annual tournament. Set to take place at the iconic Barclays Arena in Hamburg, Germany, this year’s edition will replace the conventional Group Stage format with a five-round Swiss Stage, promising a more intense and competitive atmosphere for both players and fans alike.
As outlined in a detailed blog post on Dota 2’s official website, the new format has been designed with the primary goal of ensuring that every single match carries weight. Unlike previous iterations where group play sometimes lacked urgency, the Swiss Stage aims to keep every moment crucial to the tournament’s outcome.
The Road to The International Introduces Swiss Stage for the First Time
The journey to The International 2025 kicks off with the newly introduced Swiss Stage, taking place from September 4th to 7th. Sixteen qualified teams will face off in best-of-three matches over five rounds. In each round, teams with the same win-loss record will be matched up, intensifying the competition as teams must consistently perform to avoid early elimination.
A team will need to secure four victories to advance directly to the playoffs, while any team that suffers four losses will be eliminated from the event entirely. At the end of the Swiss Stage, three teams will qualify straight into the next phase, while 10 teams remain to battle it out in an additional elimination round.
The International 2025 (image via Getty)This elimination round introduces a high-stakes showdown where the highest-performing remaining teams will face off against those with weaker records. Out of these matchups, only five teams will advance, with the others being knocked out of the tournament.
Valve emphasized that while Swiss formats can be logistically challenging, they’ve taken extra steps to enhance viewer and player experience. For instance, fans will know ahead of time when their favorite teams are playing, and no team will be required to play two consecutive series if they’re on a winning streak.
Playoffs and Grand Final Set for a High-Stakes Finish
Following the Swiss Stage and elimination rounds, The International 2025 will enter its Playoff Stage from September 11th to 14th. Unlike previous editions, only eight teams—half the number from the initial 16—will make it to this phase, intensifying the competition and significantly increasing the prestige of reaching the final bracket.
The playoffs will follow a double-elimination format, where top-seeded teams will face off against lower-performing ones in best-of-three matches. This structure continues until the grand finale, which will be contested in a best-of-five series, determining who will lift the Aegis of Champions this year.
The International 2025 (image via Getty)Valve shared that this revamped format reflects over a decade of experience running The International, starting from its debut at Gamescom in Cologne. “Every year, we try to capture the best parts of prior decisions while looking for opportunities to try some variations that might work even better,” the developer stated.
This announcement follows a wave of excitement in the Dota 2 competitive scene. Recent headlines include Xtreme Gaming’s Dota 2 comeback, signing Ame, Xxs, and XinQ, Tundra Esports being named the most-visited Dota 2 team on Liquipedia in 2024; and the ACL’s newly announced tournament, which grants direct qualification to the Esports World Cup (EWC).
As the scene gears up for one of the most dramatic and strategically complex Internationals yet, both players and fans are eager to see how this new format will shape the road to glory in Hamburg this September.
