The first day of ESL One Birmingham turned out to be a bit chaotic and clearly not the way the fans imagined it. Instead of confident wins, there are continuous draws and unexpected misfires. Most of the matches did not reveal a winner, and the favorites looked like they were just waking up. There were bright moments and outright disappointments. For example, Xtreme Gaming, who recently raised the Elite League trophy over their heads, suddenly failed to start and lost in both matches. Gaimin Gladiators wasn’t happy either — just one point out of four, a draw with Team Spirit and a loss to Tundra Esports. The Falcons, who were expected to exert confident pressure from the first minute of the tournament, were limited to two draws — against BetBoom Esports and Shopify Rebellion.
After such a start, there are more questions than answers. Did the teams not get into a rhythm? Was the flight and jet lag affected? Or did the players just decide to “rock out” during the tournament? Yes, major Dota 2 events in England are rare, but this is unlikely to be the key reason. Rather, many looked out of place: mistakes out of the blue, unsynchronized actions, strange decisions. However, this is just the beginning. The tournament is long, and the teams will still have a chance to really get involved. ESL One Birmingham has already made it clear that you can’t relax, and surprises are part of the program here.
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Results in group A
In Group A, the first game day turned out to be particularly intense and even intriguing in some places. G2.iG stood out the most at the start — the team looked collected, calm and confident. They started the day with a victory over BetBoom, where they literally sorted out the opponent’s game. Excellent communication, a clear understanding of timings, and confident implementation all worked out in their favor. But the real indicator of G2.iG’s strength is the match against Team Liquid. Despite Liquid’s favorite status, G2.iG did not flinch and pulled out a draw, showing character and patience in difficult moments.
Talon Esports was no less pleasantly surprised. Before the start of the tournament, they were not expected to do much, but the team decided to make a big statement on the very first day. The draw with Team Liquid looked more than decent: Talon competently adjusted to the opponent’s style and did not allow themselves to be crushed. This is followed by another draw, already against Shopify Rebellion. And it was not an accident, but the result of a well-thought-out game. Talon is remembered for its bold and, importantly, working drafts. In the match against Shopify Rebellion, they relied on survival and powerful team fights — Tiny, Timbersaw, Enchantress, Faceless Void and Death Prophet constantly kept the opponent in suspense.
In the game against Team Liquid Talon, they chose a different, but no less reliable approach. Dragon Knight, Sven, Mars, Phoenix and Grimstroke gave the team density, control and confidence in teamfights. It was difficult for Liquid to impose its own pace, while Talon calmly did their job. Flexibility in spades and confident execution were the key to their successful start.
Shopify Rebellion started the tournament with two draws, and there was clearly potential in their game. In the match against the Falcons, they wisely took advantage of the absence of the opponent’s main player and brought the meeting to an equal result. However, the use of the stand—up still affected – sometimes there was a lack of synchronicity, which caused the team to miss advantageous moments.
Team Liquid, despite the resistance from G2.iG and Talon Esports, still managed to make the most of the first day and took two wins. In the match against G2.iG, Liquid was surprised by a non—standard draft with Weaver, Doom and Leshrac – this move turned out to be decisive and allowed them to take a difficult but important victory. Against Talon Esports, they bet on Luna, Puck and Doom, once again showing that they can adapt to any opponent.
But BetBoom will definitely want to forget the first day as soon as possible. The team looked lost, searched for their game for a long time and eventually managed to earn only one point in three matches. An additional blow was the fines for using the Shadow Demon bug, which further complicated the situation. Now BetBoom will have to come together, draw conclusions, and change their approach if they expect to compete to get out of the group.
There are still many matches ahead for the Group A teams and opportunities to fix everything. The first day showed weaknesses, but it also provided food for work. ESL One Birmingham is just gaining momentum, which means that even tougher games, unexpected twists and a real, live Dota 2 are waiting for us, for which we already want to watch this tournament to the end.
Group B results
Group B made it clear from the very first matches that it would not be easy here. They played hard, sometimes audaciously, and sometimes just on their nerves. OG, whom many were waiting for with special interest, started the tournament as confidently as possible, without long warmups. In the match against Xtreme Gaming, they immediately took control of the situation and brought the series to a convincing victory. Under the leadership of Ceb, the team looked composed and, most conspicuously, very bold in their decisions. OG didn’t just feel good about the game — they deliberately went against the usual meta, choosing characters for which the opponents were clearly not ready. Marci, Bane, Muerta, Invoker — these peaks looked risky on paper, but in practice they worked flawlessly. Xtreme Gaming seemed to expect a more standard Dota 2 and tried to play “according to the textbook,” but it quickly became clear that this was not enough against such training.
The real highlight of the band was the confrontation between OG and Tundra. The series turned out to be viscous, tense and, as they say, endurance — the final draw was the logical result. The first map lasted 48 minutes and was reserved for Tundra, but the second turned into an epic 71-minute battle, where OG still put the squeeze on the opponent. Tundra, inspired by OG’s unconventional ideas, tried to use similar drafts in both games. But OG turned out to be ready for this: the team quickly adapted and found answers to almost all the opponent’s moves. In the matches against Tundra, Marci, Bane and Luna became the key players for OG. Even when the start wasn’t in their favor, the team didn’t panic and patiently looked for their chance. In the second map, OG completely found themselves in the role of catching up, conceding about 12,000 gold by the 30th minute, but due to their composure, competent teamwork and accurate decisions, they were able to turn the game around and snatch a hard-fought victory.
Tundra, despite the fact that they could not close the series against OG, looked very decent. Their drafts and strategic decisions showed flexibility and a good understanding of the game, but OG proved to be too uncomfortable an opponent this time. Gaimin Gladiators, another Group B team, held meetings with Tundra and Team Spirit, ending with a defeat and a draw. There were bright flashes and interesting ideas in their game, but stability was clearly lacking. Spades like Sniper and Clockwerk were supposed to break opponents’ plans and give them an advantage in team fights, but in practice they did not always succeed, which is why the results were mixed.
In the matches against Gaimin Gladiators, Team Spirit showed their usual composure and good team chemistry. Even though the series ended in a draw, it was clear from the game that the team perfectly understands its strengths. Slardar, Bane and Leshrac have become an important part of their strategy, helping to control the map and impose constant pressure on the opponent. As the tournament gains momentum, the Group B teams will surely surprise you more than once — error analysis, strategy adjustments, and adaptation to changing meta will be crucial factors. There are new intense matches ahead, unexpected heroes and real battles for every card, because in professional Dota 2 you always have to prove the right to win over and over again.
