Mark your calendars, guys, a PGL event is finally here, and it’s massive. The upcoming PGL Wallachia Season 1 will take place at Bucharest, Romania from May 10-19. It’s the same venue where the International 10 unfolded which was arguably the greatest TI Championship we have experienced in Dota 2 history.
The ancient Bucharest architecture alongside the classy European culture will surely be a theme at the PGL Wallachia S1. Of course, we can’t forget the generous million-dollar prize pool that is up for grabs amongst the world-class teams.
Image Credits: PGL
The tournament’s dense schedule kicks off on May 10, featuring top-tier talents across various languages, each broadcasting the PGL Wallachia 2024 in fanatical light. Catch all the action on the official PGL Dota 2 Twitch channel.
PGL Wallachia S1 introduces a modified Swiss-system format in its group stage, consisting of sixteen teams competing in a series of best-of-three matches. This certainly isn’t your standard round-robin format which we are so familiar with. However, it might just make the competition more intense.
After the group stage, the top eight teams from this round will progress to the Playoffs, which features a double-elimination bracket. While every playoff match maintains a best-of-three structure, a best-of-five series is reserved for the grand final.
PGL Wallachia 2024 features a compelling mix of teams, both invited and qualified via regional qualifiers. These are as follows:
Invited Teams
Regional Qualifiers
Image Credits: PGL
This tournament highlights teams such as Team Falcons, BetBoom Team, and Tundra Esports as favorites due to their consistent performance and strong roster combo. Fans expect these teams to make deep runs and potentially claim the title, given their track records and recent form.
Notably, Team Falcons have been in the spotlight for their dominance across three major tournaments this season, including the BetBoom Dacha Dubai 2024, DreamLeague S22 and most recently, the ESL One Birmingham 2024. BetBoom Team is following close behind, often giving the consecutive champions a run for their money by placing runner-up finish.
Team Falcons wins ESL One Birmingham 2024 (Image Credits: ESL)
PGL Wallachia S1 welcomes staples like Team Liquid, G2.iG, and Xtreme Gaming, known for their consistent participation and decent performance. Then, there’s HEROIC, a newly debuted team hailing from South America, which has been on many strong rivals’ radars.
Meanwhile, teams like Virtus.pro, BOOM Esports, nouns, Blacklist International, and especially Team Secret, enter as underdogs. However, what’s unusual is Team Secret securing a direct invite to such a prestigious event despite their poor performance this season. Anyhow, that’s why these teams are classified as underdogs, which will hopefully turn the tables at PGL Wallachia S1.
We saved the worst teams for last, Gaimin Gladiators and Team Spirit are definitely not in their prime. With underwhelming and premature finishes in recent tournaments, fans are struggling to support these once phenomenal powerhouses that played in TI12 Grand Finals.
Yet, their past participation in the ESL Pro Tour (EPT) circuit gave them sufficient credit to be invited to PGL Wallachia S1. Something which they certainly do not deserve at their current state. Nevertheless, both teams acknowledged the underlying issue in their team, whether it’s roster or meta.
All in all, PGL Wallachia S1 looks fantastic with the great format and participants, so we can’t wait for the action.
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