Dota 2 Live Scoreboard Predictions: Who Advances From Every EWC 2026 Group?

The Esports World Cup is back, and this year it is landing in Paris with a $2 million prize pool, 24 teams, and four groups that each carry their own storyline. The group stage runs July 7 through 11, with every series played as a best-of-two. Only one team per group escapes directly to the playoffs. The second through fourth place finishers head to the Survival Stage, where one more win is required to book a quarterfinal berth. And for the bottom two in each group, the tournament ends before it truly begins.

Gocore has you covered for every match along the way. Head to the Pick'ems section now to lock in your group stage predictions before the action starts.

The field is wide open. Thirteen of the 24 teams earned their spots via the ESL Pro Tour leaderboard or defending champion status. The remaining eleven came through regional qualifiers, and more than a few of them are capable of pulling an upset. But not every group is created equal, and some outcomes are significantly easier to call than others.

Here is where we see the top two teams landing in each group.

Group A Upcoming Dota 2 Tournaments Preview: Falcons and BetBoom Team Lead The Pack

Group A is the group of established pedigree. Team Falcons arrived at EWC 2026 as TI 2025 champions and finished second at EWC 2025, making them one of the two most consistent rosters in the world right now. They are a team that does not need time to find their footing at a LAN event. Their level of play is known, their draft tendencies are studied, and they still find a way to make it work.

BetBoom Team comes in as the #9 EPT Leaderboard qualifier, which undersells what this roster has shown during the season. BetBoom have been a reliable Tier 1 presence with a track record of performing at major events, and Group A does not feature the kind of elite competition that would push them out before the Survival Stage. The path to a top-two finish here is cleaner than it looks on paper.

The rest of Group A will fight hard, but the combination of TI-winner firepower from Falcons and BetBoom's consistency makes this the most predictable group on the bracket. Both should advance.

Prediction: Team Falcons (1st), BetBoom Team (2nd)

Group B: Team Liquid and Aurora Gaming Clear The Rest of The Field

Group B is where things get genuinely interesting. Team Liquid enters as the defending TI 2024 champions, carrying one of the deepest rosters in the tournament. They are the #8 EPT Leaderboard qualifier by position, but that number does not reflect the ceiling of what this team can produce. Boxi, Nisha, and company have shown across multiple seasons that when the tournament format requires steady, composed play, Liquid tends to be among the last standing.

Aurora Gaming has been one of the stories of the 2026 season. The #3 EPT Leaderboard qualifier finished second at both DreamLeague Season 28 and PGL Wallachia Season 8, and reached the playoffs at multiple other tier-1 events. Aurora are not a dark horse at this point. They are a legitimate playoff-level team that has earned every ranking point on their ledger. They enter Group B as a clear second favorite.

The question is whether anyone else in the group can disrupt that picture. PlayTime pulled a surprise top-6 at DreamLeague Season 29, and they cannot be entirely dismissed. But the gap between Liquid and Aurora at the top and the rest of Group B is real.

Prediction: Team Liquid (1st), Aurora Gaming (2nd)

Group C: Team Spirit Defend Their EWC Title, MOUZ Push For The Survival Stage

Group C carries the biggest narrative weight of the four groups. Team Spirit are the defending EWC champions. They won this event in 2025 with what analysts described as a dominant run through the bracket, and they enter this edition as one of the teams that simply knows how to perform on this specific stage. EWC suits Team Spirit. The format, the pressure, and the single-elimination playoff structure all play to their strengths.

MOUZ are the surprise pick here, and deliberately so. They qualified as the #10 EPT Leaderboard team, sitting in territory usually occupied by the reliable-but-not-spectacular Tier 1 performers. But MOUZ have shown enough throughout the season to suggest they can take points off any opponent in a best-of-two format. The BO2 series structure actually benefits a team like MOUZ more than a longer elimination format would. A draw in a single series is not a disaster. Two draws might be enough to edge out the group's weaker sides.

Spirit are the clear first-place pick. MOUZ getting through to the Survival Stage from second is the call that requires some conviction, but the evidence supports it.

Prediction: Team Spirit (1st), MOUZ (2nd)

Group D: The Group of Death, 1W and Team Yandex Fight Their Way Through The Chaos

Group D requires a separate warning label. Viewers, pay close attention to this group.

1W (formerly Tundra Esports) enter as the #1 EPT Leaderboard qualifier. This is the season's top-ranked team by points accumulated across ESL One and DreamLeague events, which makes them the tournament's clearest statistical favorite to win the whole thing. The Tundra core has been competing at the top of the scene for years, and the move to the 1W banner has not slowed them down. They are the most complete roster in this field and the most likely team to come out of Group D in first.

Team Yandex presents the more compelling storyline. They are the #5 EPT Leaderboard qualifier and current holders of three Tier 1 titles this season: DreamLeague S27, PGL Wallachia S7, and BLAST Slam VII. Saksa captaining this side has proven to be one of the more unexpectedly strong combinations of the season. Yandex play with a tactical aggression that makes them dangerous regardless of the draft.

The challenge is that Group D also contains Team Spirit... wait, Spirit are in Group C. Group D still features PARIVISION (#2 EPT), which means the group has genuine Tier 1 competition throughout. This is not a group where any team can coast. 1W and Yandex are the picks, but both will be tested along the way.

Prediction: 1W (1st), Team Yandex (2nd)

Make Your Picks Before The Group Stage Locks

The EWC 2026 group stage is live from July 7. Every best-of-two matters, every draw shifts the standings, and the Survival Stage means that a second-place finish is not the end of the road. Remember to check out our tips section, for daily winner predictions all throughout the Group Stage.

The field is loaded, Group D alone is worth watching in full, and the Survival Stage is going to be chaotic.

Paris is the stage. Make your predictions count.

TL;DR

• EWC 2026 Dota 2 runs July 7-19 in Paris with 24 teams competing for $2 million, group stage is BO2 round-robin
• Group A pick: Team Falcons (1st) and BetBoom Team (2nd)
• Group B pick: Team Liquid (1st) and Aurora Gaming (2nd)
• Group C pick: Team Spirit (1st) and MOUZ (2nd)
• Group D is the stacked group of death: 1W (1st) and Team Yandex (2nd)
• Top team from each group goes directly to playoffs; 2nd-4th enter the Survival Stage