After the end of the China Supermajor, teams which missed out on the first eight spots had to face the deadly qualification battle. There were some pretty exciting games that took place in this years’ qualifications to claim their place for TI 8.

Sadly, some teams that were usually considered as “favourites” in the qualifications could not make it to this TI. We have already discussed the situation with Na’Vi and we can only hope that they will be able to resolve their issues for the next Pro Circuit season.

The Participants

Without further ado, here are the teams that will join the top 8 from the Pro Circuit leaderboard:

Europe Qualifiers

• OG

The road was long, challenging and required a lot of sacrifices. But OGs, we’re coming to #TI8 – among the very best. #DreamOG pic.twitter.com/QgIRz6shGP — OG (@OGesports) June 25, 2018

This year the slots distribution is kinda awkward and in the end there was only one slot for Europe, which was won by OG.

We can safely say that the tweet sums it all up. OG are indeed one of the team that belongs to TI, because they have huge fan base and are generally one of the heavy favourites to win as well. This year they are definitely not considered to be favourites, but nevertheless, it is always fun and exciting to watch them play.

CIS Qualifiers

• Winstrike Team

Similar to EU, the CIS scene only has one slot for this years’ TI. Many people thought that this will be an easy victory for Na’Vi, because the other “good” CIS teams have already qualified for TI, which meant that their path to the tournaments had to go kinda easy. Despite that, Dendi and co failed pretty hard in the first couple of games, which resulted in their elimination. This is a second TI in a row that they will not be attending.

Instead, a newly formed team which consists of some very known names have decided to take measures in their own hands and they’ve quickly stomped the competition. We can wish ALWAYSWANNAFLY and the rest good luck in the upcomming battle.

Chinese Qualifiers

• Team Serenity

Team Serenity have secured a slot at The International 2018. Congratulations. #TI8 pic.twitter.com/LEjL5ktuze — Wykrhm Reddy (@wykrhm) June 20, 2018

The Chinese Dota 2 scene has been on the rise for some time now. There are many new teams that are emerging and are on pair with the already established ones in the region. Team Serenity is an example for that. They have a mixture of “old and new”, which has proved yet again that it is a deadly combination.

If we follow the tradition, this year the winner should be from China, which means that in theory Team Serenity could potentially win the event. We are yet to see if this will happen.

• Invictus Gaming

Yes we have done it! iG has qualified from TI8 CN Regionals and will be seeing you at Vancouver! Picture credit to: @wykrhm pic.twitter.com/uNemfmo65s — Invictus Gaming (@invgaming) June 21, 2018

The second Chinese team. The TI 2 champions Invictus Gaming have managed to go through the Chinese qualifiers and they are back yet again. When IG were on “top of the food chain” few years ago, there were pretty much no teams that even came close to their effective team play and team fights. The question is if the current roster has what it takes in order to continue the legacy or will they just crumble? For us the viewers, we can just hope that it is the first option. Having a pretty decent squad, IG will surely be able to compete with the other top teams in the world right now.

SEA Qualifiers

• Fnatic

“I couldn’t be more grateful to my team for helping me attend my eighth TI now.” – @UniverseDota “Even though I’ve come into the team recently, I’ve seen how hard they’ve been working as a team and that’s paid off this weekend.” – @Aui_2000 READ MORE 📰 https://t.co/9dpPXljQyf pic.twitter.com/U2mQalgdub — FNATIC (@FNATIC) June 25, 2018

Similar to the Chines scene, the SEA region has improved a lot during this years’ pro circuit. What’s more, the region got its first Major title which was won by Mineski @ the DAC 2018. This just proves that the region has a bright future ahead of it.

Fnatic are one of the teams that can pretty much win and loose against everyone at the same time. They have some amazing players in their roster and they are slowly but steady becoming a fierce team as well. In the beginning they lacked a lot of coordination and what not but after they’ve played for several months we can safely say that they managed to resolve their issues.

• TNC Predator

We will once again represent the Philippines at The International Dota 2 Championships! Thank you everyone for supporting us all throughout and thanks be to God!#SummonYourStrength #TNCDota2 #RiseofthePhoenix #WeartheColorsProud pic.twitter.com/u9AJMXLCqY — TNC Pro Team (@TNCProTeam) June 25, 2018

The second SEA team that will join Fnatic and Mineski is TNC Pro Team. Last year they had a pretty decent run, managing to beat several opponents that many people thought t would be impossible. This makes TNC of the more unpredictable teams. If some teams decide to underestimate them they will be in for a surprise.

NA Qualifier

• VGJ.Storm

Congrats to Team VGJ.Storm,w ho secured the first place in The International North American Qualifiers.

The three brothers will gather once again, this time in Vancouver! 💪 #TI8 pic.twitter.com/yhuHTFCTg1 — ViCi Gaming (@ViCi_Gaming) June 24, 2018

One of the biggest surprises of this years’ Pro Circuit has to be VGJ.Storm. They have literally came out of nowhere with some gathered roster and they’ve completely demolished their opponents in the first couple of tournaments. Sadly, there were not that many events left, which meant that the team did not have a chance to secure that many qualifications points in order to get that direct invite. Regardless of that, they have managed to go through the qualifiers and now we will be able to witness them at TI.

• Evil Geniuses

Probably the second most loved team in the world, EG have managed to secure their place in the upcoming event. They are usually one of the favorites for TI, because they have the ability to “pick themselves up” for the event and play like an entirely new team, regardless of their previous results. What’s more, they are TI 5 champions as well, which is always worth respecting.

As an EG fan myself I could only hope that they will be able to put up a fight and prove wrong the people that doubt them. We are yet to see if this will happen.

• OpTic Gaming

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are going to The International! pic.twitter.com/WkBJUGuJcG — OpTic Gaming™ (@OpTicGaming) June 25, 2018

Following a gruesome game between OpTic and Complexity, PPD’s squad managed to outplay their opponents and secure themselves the last NA spot for TI 8. OpTic are one of the teams that are somewhat unpredictable. We’ve seen them in action in many tournaments this year and their performance was not that great all the time. However, when they have the momentum they are definitely one of the teams that is capable of upsetting even the heavy favourites.

SA Qualifier

• paiN Gaming

Last but not least, we have paiN gaming as the final addition to the TI squad. The South American team has proven to be the best team from this region and these last qualifiers just further proved that. We can hope that they will be able to get at least a top eight finish, which will probably be their goal too.

Final Thoughts

Despite that fact that some teams that were supposed to attend TI are not here, we can safely say that the caliber of the participants is pretty high, which will be a guarantee for some high quality Dota. TI is also one of the biggest events in terms of betting. After the groups are announced be sure to check for the odds, because you might be in for some nice surprise.

Here is the final list of all participants:

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