Western Europe Dota 2 team, Gaimin Gladiators, continues its streak with another win at the DreamLeague Season 20. While they really didn't dominate the competition, they were still the ones that came out on top. The tournament may not be part of the DPC but the team takes home $300,000.
Winning Streak
Many fans have been saying that it seems Gaimin Gladiators are pretty much speedrunning this year's Dota 2 tournaments. It all started with a win at Lima Major with Gaimin Gladiators sweeping opponents in the playoffs. Then, it had another impressive performance during DreamLeague Season 19. A few months back, the team had another strong performance and became the first Dota 2 team to win back-to-back majors by taking home the crown at Berlin Major.
A Slow Start
For DreamLeague Season 20, Gaimin Gladiators was one of the 16 teams invited and got placed in Group B. While the team didn't really have a strong showing, it was enough to qualify them for Group Stage 2. To be fair, while the team did have one loss, they had two wins and four draws. Their performance during Group Stage 2 was a bit better though it only put them in the third spot, meaning, a place at the lower bracket of the playoffs.
During the playoffs, the team first faced off against Talon Esports where they lost the first game but won the next two. It was the same story in the next round with the team beating PSG.LGD at 2-1.
This resulted in Gaimin Gladiators going against BetBoom Team in the grand final.
To the Final
The first match was rather close with Gaimin Gladiators winning and getting a 1-0 advantage against its opponent. However, BetBoom would not take things sitting down and completely outplayed Gaimin Gladiators in the next two matches to swing the series to their favor at 2-1.
With one game away from being eliminated, Gaimin Gladiators did not waste any time and took the lead early in the fourth match. The team never looked back and tied the series 2-2. The fifth match was clearly a battle of wits as both teams didn't want to give the other too much advantage. While Gaimin Gladiators had a slight lead early on, BetBoom was able to outfarm and outmaneuver them in some situations. Yet, Gaimin Gladiators slowly worked their way, and after preventing an attempted comeback by BetBoom, the former won in the end.
What's Next?
There are three more Dota 2 tournaments before the year closes out. These are Bali Major, starting later this week, Riyadh Masters in July, and The International in October. Can Gaimin Gladiators do a "perfect run?" What do you think?
Dota 2 is available on PC through Steam.
