Gaimin Gladiators announce withdrawal from The International
25 August 2025
The International 2025 is nearing and preparations for the year’s biggest Dota 2 event are in full swing. Back in January, Valve (the publisher behind Dota 2) announced Hamburg, Germany, as the location for this year’s Dota 2 world championship, which will take place from September 4th to September 14th, 2025.
One thing the organization undoubtedly did not prepare for though, was having to look for a replacement team less than a month before the start of one of international esports’ biggest events. It is nevertheless what they have to do, as Gaimin Gladiators have announced their withdrawal from The International 2025 last minute. The Canadian organization, who are considered a powerhouse in the global Dota 2 community, have stated that contractual disputes between players and organization are the cause of their drastic decision.
Need for suitable replacement
As a result, Valve now need to do their utmost best to find a suitable replacement for Gaimin Gladiators, with just around two weeks to go before the start of The International 2025. This is essential, as the first stage of the tournament is a Group Stage with sixteen teams facing each other. The top three advances to the Playoff Stage straight away, while the numbers four to thirteen proceed to a special elimination round. The remaining teams are eliminated. Missing one team out of sixteen means that the Group Stage will feature fifteen games less than planned, which is unacceptable for the organization and viewers alike.
“On Sunday, the Gaimin Gladiators organization informed us that they were withdrawing their team from The International”, Valve wrote on the official X account of The International, “After talking with the invited players directly, we learned they were unable to come to an agreement with their organization that would allow them to participate. We are now in the process of finding a suitable replacement team.”
Internal dispute at Gaimin Gladiators
As to what exactly has led the Gaimin Gladiators to withdraw from the Dota 2 world championship no details have been revealed just yet. What we know up to this point is that contractual disputes between members of the Dota 2 roster and the larger organization have made it impossible for the Canadian organization for them to attend and compete.
“I want to share that Gaimin Gladiators won’t be competing at TI this year”, explains Nick Cuccovillo, co-founder and President of Gaimin Gladiators, “Some internal matters between the players and the organization made it impossible for us to move forward with a roster. For now, I can’t go into more detail as there are legal considerations involved, but I’ll share more when I’m able to.”
Second time in history
The troubles at Gaimin Gladiators mark only the second time ever that a qualified team withdraws from The International in the history of the event. This was back in 2012, when the The International was held in Seattle (United States) and Malaysian organization MUFC could not attend due to visa issues. To find a replacement, Valve organized a special playoff between Chinese esports organization World Esports (currently known as Team WE) and Germany-based mousesports, which was won by the latter.
Valve have not announced any developments yet in the search for a replacement, at the moment of writing.