Team Secret

Roster: Nisha | MidOne | zai | YapzOr | Puppey | SunBhie

Team Secret received the first invite of the IEM Katowice and they deserve it since they are statistically the best Dota 2 team in the world. A few weeks ago, the community of Dota 2 witnessed the Chongqing Major where Team Secret proved to be a force to be reckoned with. The EU Team completely outplayed their opponents and reigned supreme in the 2nd Major of the 2018-2019. The team qualified for the first slot of the EU qualifiers and played well in the early group stage of the competition. They only lost to PSG. LGD which was enough to get them through to the upper bracket.

On their way to the grand finals of Chongqing Major, they cruised in the initial elimination matches beating the likes of Liquid and EHOME. However, they were defeated by VP and were knocked down to the lower bracket. The team got their redemption by making a comeback from the lower bracket and defeating VP in the grand finale. In their 3-1 grand finals’ victory, Team Secret won the second game in just 17 minutes which just shows the superiority of the EU side. The team is ranked first in the DPC rankings and have already secured their invite to TI9.

Alliance

Roster: qojqya | miCKe | Taiga | iNSaNiA | Loda | Boxi

The Alliance team is not even the shadow of the team that won the third installment of The International. However, over the years the team has failed to show signs of resurgence. Nonetheless, In the 2018-2019 season, they have shown sparks. In the qualifiers of the Chongqing Major, they eliminated the reigning champions of the 2018 International, OG and exhibited one of the best plays of the season with a full five-man wipe out. The impressive run and plays in the qualifiers were enough to get them an invite to this competition. However, in the Chongqing Major, they were the first team to get eliminated from the tournament. So, we hope a much better performance at Katowice from the former TI champions.

Team Aster

Roster: Sylar | loveyouloveme | Xxs | BoBoka | Fenrir | BurNIng

After Alliance, the next team to secure the invite was Aster. After the International, the team recruited former veterans of the Chinese region and the veterans managed to live up to their legends since they were able to secure the No.1 slot from China for the Chongqing Major. In the competition, the team made it to the lower bracket, but unfortunately, they were defeated by J.Storm in a fascinating 70-minute matchup. Therefore, we hope that the luck will be on their side at Katowice. They need to make a mark and will surely try to deliver their best at the competition. Team Aster will be looking for redemption since they got a 5th place finish at the last Katowice event.

Forward Gaming

Roster: Resolution | YawaR | UNiVeRsE | MSS | SVG | Aui_2000

One of the most promising teams of the 2018-2019 season in Forward gaming. The team started competing in the circuit two months ago and in that short time, they have gained the respect of the competitive community. In just two months after their formation, Forward Gaming secured an invite to ESL event. The team includes some of the best stars of the Dota 2 landscape, like Roman “Resolut1on” Fominok and former TI champion Saahil “UNiVeRsE” Arora. The lineup also includes the talented brother of Sumail, Yawar “Yawar” Hassan. So, with so much potential in the team don’t be surprised if we see this team beating Team Secret and lifting the ESL title.

Fnatic

Roster: MP | Abed | iceiceice | DJ | Jabz | DuBu

Fnatic, so far, had a roller coaster season. Despite poor results, the team has managed to qualify for the big competitions. However, they have yet to make their mark since the side always get eliminated before reaching the finals of any competition so they should be looking to get on the main stage at Katowice.

OG

Roster: iLTW | Topson | 7ckngMad | JerAx | Notail | ppasarel

Ninjas in PyjamasAfter winning The International 2018, the team has had a quiet season. The side has yet to book a place in the Major. Their biggest achievement so far is almost winning the WePlay! Dota 2 Winter Madness where they finished at 2nd place. The team will be aiming to get things running in Katowice.

Ninjas in Pyjamas is composed of some of the most experienced and veteran players in the world. They have shown decent performances including the fourth-place finish at The Kuala Lumpur Major. They are some of the best contenders to secure a direct invite for The International 2019. We expect a decent performance from ppd and the crew.

Chaos Esports Club

Roster: hFn | w33 | tavo | Kingrd | MISERY | TeaGuvnor

In 2016, Chaos Esports Club or formerly known as Digital Chaos almost won The International. Since then, the team has failed to qualify for the biggest event of the year. They have a decent team but in our opinion, that won’t be enough to get them the ESL trophy in a few days.

Gambit Esports

Roster: Daxak | Afoninje | AfterLife | Immersion | fng | boolk

Gambit eSports made its way to ESL after reigning supreme in the qualifiers. They came out on top against Vega Squadron, Empire, and Team Spirit. They have the properties of TNC since they have beaten the likes of NiP this season. Therefore, don’t be surprised if you see shocking results in ESL.



compLexity Gaming

Roster: Meracle | Limmp | Deth | Zfreek | Adam | Kipspul

coL is one of the outsiders. They made their way by defeating the likes of Test 123 and J.Storm. They didn’t have any significant achievements in 2018 due to which they will be looking to survive and avoid getting eliminated in the group stage of the competition. It will surely be a miracle if we see compLexity Gaming in the playoffs.

For The Dream

Roster: vtFaded | YRG | qianqian | James | QYQX

A Chinese team with a Malaysian mid laner, For The Dream has got bronze in a national competition, The Challenge Cup. As far as ESL One Katowice 2019 is concerned, in our opinion, their chance of survival will be a lot less than coL since they lack pro experience.

Mineski

Roster: Ahjit | Moon | kpii | Febby | Pieliedie

Mineski only made it to the competition after TNC couldn’t make it after having some Visa problems. Now Mineski has got the spot and will be aiming to make the most out of this opportunity. They have the experience as well as the players to just make it to the playoffs.