The International 2025: Best group stage predictions and fantasy players

The International 2025 is fast approaching, and with the new fantasy mini-game and Road to TI predictions already here, we’ve put together the best picks you can make.

Fantasy Dota 2 and TI predictions have sometimes been set behind a paywall, but that’s not the case in 2025. All players can now lock in their picks and roll for better stats in fantasy, free of charge. The prize? A set of limited-edition immortal skins.

Of course, a bit of information regarding the current state of professional Dota 2 goes a long way towards increasing your chances of getting those limited-edition skins. With that in mind, it’s worth going over the general outlook for the participating squads and which players are likely to rack up the best numbers for your fantasy team.

Best predictions for Road to The International 2025

Dota 2 esports is very stratified right now. There is a definitive top seven teams in the game today, with just a few reasonably competitive contenders behind them. Past that, the scene is a messy tangle of sides battling it out at the regional level. With that in mind, this is the best set of predictions to lock in for The Road to The International 2025:

Valve

There are seven teams that all have a very good chance of taking four wins in the group stage: Team Spirit, Parivision, Tundra Esports, BetBoom Team, Team Falcons, Team Tidebound, Gaimin Gladiators, and defending champion Team Liquid.

4-0 and 4-1 team picks

• Team Spirit (4-0)
• Parivision ( 4-1)
• Tundra Esports (4-1)

Team Spirit is entering the event with the hottest hand after winning the Esports World Cup, and it’s also a team that historically plays at its best in the biggest tournaments. Dota 2 tournaments don’t get any bigger than The International. Parivision, Team Falcons, and Tundra Esports all worth considering for the 4-1 spots, but only two teams can be chosen. We’ll pick Tundra to edge out Falcons, but it’s a very close call.

Elimination round winner and loser picks

• Team Falcons (Elimination round winner)
• Gamin Gladiators (Elimination round winner)
• B8 Team (Elimination round winner)
• Team Liquid (Elimination round winner)
• Team Tidebound (Elimination round winner)
• Aurora Gaming (Elimination round loser)
• Nigma Galaxy (Elimination round loser)
• Natus Vincere (Elimination round loser)
• Heroic (Elimination round loser)

The rest of the aforementioned top eight teams attending TI this year can be reasonably inserted in the “Elimination Round Winner” category. Aurora Gaming and NAVI are capable of pulling off an upset along the way to rank themselves higher in the event, so don’t discount the two squads. But make no mistake, it would be an upset if either managed to rank any higher than this.

1-4 and 0-4 team picks

• Xtreme Gaming (1-4)
• Team Nemesis (1-4)
• Boom Esports (1-4)
• Wildcard (0-4)

When it comes to the teams most likely to wash out of the group stage, the best options by a considerable margin are Team Nemesis, BOOM Esports, and Wildcard. Wildcard in particular is the best option for the 0-4 pick, given the team’s complete lack of success at major tournaments despite playing together all year. The side has shown nothing to indicate that it’s likely to rank anywhere but at the very bottom of the standings.

Xtreme Gaming is the one difficult pick here. It wouldn’t be a huge surprise to see the team outperform this positioning, but it’s also hard to rank it above any of the squads we’ve chosen to finish higher in the standings.

The best players for Road to The International 2025 fantasy mini-game

The best players by far to lock into your roster for the Road to The International fantasy game are the carry, mid-laner, and position-five support spots from Team Spirit, Parivision, Tundra Esports, or Team Falcons.

As with previous The International fantasy mini-games, the first major key to success is making sure to pick players from the right positions. Off-laners are available to pick in the “core” position, but they rarely put up the fantasy numbers of a true hard carry. Similarly, position-four and position-five players are both included in the support position, but the position-five role typically gets much better numbers than the four when it comes to Dota 2 fantasy scoring.

Here are all the best players to choose for the Road to The International fantasy mini-game:

Each of these players are strong candidates for any team, and the exact right choice among them is up to individual preference and available stat boosts. The different stat boosts available at each position will influence which player is the best for any given position.

For those just looking to lock in some specific players regardless, our best player picks for fantasy at TI 2025 are Yatoro of Team Spirit, Malr1ne of Team Falcons, and Whitemon of Tundra Esports. Each is among the best potential sources of points at their respective positions and should set anyone up for a good potential run in the Road to The International fantasy game.