The PGL Arlington Major 22 kicked off on the 4th of August in Arlington, Texas, and will run until the 14th. The exclusive Dota 2 tournament features the best teams from around the world and a $500,000 prize pool. This is the final tournament of the Dota Pro Circuit for 2021/2022, so teams are bringing their A-game as they try and qualify for the International 11. You can stream in HD and live bet on all PGL Arlington Major 22 matches at gg.bet. Let’s look at the early matches from the tournament and see which teams are looking strong!
Which Teams Are Competing in The PGL Arlington Major 22?
The PGL Arlington Major 22 is a one-star studded lineup! All of the best international teams have turned up in hopes of winning the last Major of the season. Here is the full team list:
Royal Never Give Up (China)
PSG.LGD (China)
Team Aster (China)
BOOM Esports (Southeast Asia)
Talon Esports (Southeast Asia)
Fnatic (Southeast Asia)
OG (Western Europe)
Tundra Esports (Western Europe)
Team Liquid (Western Europe)
Entity (Western Europe)
Outsiders (Eastern Europe)
Natus Vincere (Eastern Europe)
Team Spirit (Eastern Europe)
Quincy Crew (North America)
Evil Geniuses (North America)
Beastcoast (South America)
Thunder Awaken (South America)
There are some legendary teams on this list, including in form PSG.LGD and International winners Natus Vincere, Team Spirit, OG, Evil Geniuses, and Team Liquid. You don’t want to miss this tournament if you enjoy exciting and world-class Dota 2 actions. You can catch all the matches live and in HD at https://gg.bet/en/dota2!
What Is the Format of the PGL Arlington Major 22?
The PGL Arlington Major 22 features a round-robin group stage followed by double elimination playoffs. The teams are divided into two groups, A and B, and will each play their group members once. The top 6 teams from the group stage move to the playoffs, while the bottom 3 are automatically eliminated. The top 4 teams move to the top side of the playoff bracket.
With so many amazing teams, it will be extremely challenging to just make it to the playoffs. And then teams will have to hope for a good playoff draw if they want to make it to the grand finals. Let’s look at which teams are playing well and looking like title contenders after the first couple of matches.
PSG.LGD Is Off To A Good Start
PSG.LGD is considered the top Dota 2 team in the world. They have the perfect blend of raw talent, skills, and incredible strategy. Opponents are scared of taking on this great Chinese team. So it is no surprise they won their first match at the PGL Arlington Major. They are our pick to win the tournament, and we also expect them to win their first International title later in the year after coming so close in previous years.
In their first match, PSG.LGD played Talon Esports, a team from Southeast Asia, and totally outclassed them. Talon Esports were massive underdogs against PSG.LGD and nobody expected them to win. However, it was surprising just how quickly and easily PSG.LGD crushed Talon. PSG.LGD won 2-0 against Talon without breaking a sweat!
Team Spirit Is Leading Group B
Team Spirit is a very strong Russian Dota 2 team who won the coveted International in 2021 and over $18 million. It appears they are peaking at the right time of the season as they won their first two series and are currently the leaders of Group B. We would love to see a rematch of the International Grand Final between Team Spirit and PSG.LGD. This could be likely as PSG.LGD is clearly the best team in Group A.
In their first match, Team Spirit took on Tundra Esports. Tundra was no match for the Russian team, who quickly disposed of them 2-0. Tundra could not handle Team Spirit’s relentless aggression, and their defenses were quickly breached.
In Team Spirit’s second match, they took on Beastcoast from Peru. Team Spirit again outclassed their opponents, rapidly defeating them 2-0. Team Spirit is looking strong, but we need to wait until they play some of the higher-ranked teams before we know if they are a legit title contender.
Team Aster is Undefeated
China consistently produces incredible Dota 2 esports athletes. So it is not surprising that PSG.LGD and Team Aster are playing so well. Team Aster is currently sitting pretty with a perfect 2-0 record.
In their first match, the Chinese team took on the legendary team Evil Geniuses. It was surprising how easily they crushed them, winning the series 2-0. In their second match, they took on Entity and again quickly won 2-0.
We can’t wait for Team Aster to take on Team Spirit. Whoever wins that group stage match will most likely meet PSG.LGD in the grand final!
What Other Teams Can Win the PGL Arlington Major
Team Liquid and Boom Esports are two teams you can’t count out. They both have a game record of 3-1 and a match record of 1-1. We expect these teams to improve as the tournament goes on. Team Liquid against PSG.LGD is a much-watch match and will reveal whether Liquid has a shot at winning the tournament.
Wrapping Up
The PGL Arlington Major is just warming up! We are in the very early stages of the tournament, with many teams only playing 2 series. Tune in every day from now until the 14th of August to see the top Dota 2 teams in the world battle it out! Our pick to win the tournament is PSG.LGD, but watch out for Team Spirit.
